Opinion ID: 1435062
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Betty as a Member of the Conspiracy

Text: Before hearsay statements of a co-conspirator can be entered into evidence, a defendant's participation in the conspiracy must be established . . . by a preponderance of the evidence. United States v. Clark, 18 F.3d 1337, 1341 (6th Cir.1994) (internal citations omitted). Because hearsay is presumptively unreliable, sufficient independent and corroborating evidence of Betty's knowledge and participation in the conspiracy must be produced to rebut and overcome the presumed unreliability of the proffered out-of-court statement. See id. (holding that sufficient independent evidence is not merely a scintilla, but rather enough to rebut the presumed unreliability of hearsay). Despite Betty's arguments, the government presented sufficient evidence of her participation in the conspiracy prior to the introduction of Seay's out-of-court statement. On two occasions, methamphetamine was found in her home. Agent Woodham testified that Betty herself told him that Jason and Seay used her house for transacting large quantities of methamphetamine. Woodham testified that she told him that Stefan traveled from Texas by bus to her house in order to deliver the methamphetamine to Jason and Seay, and that in exchange for the use of her house, Stefan promised to arrange for a doctor in Guadalajara, Mexico to treat her husband. The government also presented evidence that she was like a mother to Seay and Jason Conrad. She even executed a durable power of attorney on behalf of Seay while he was previously incarcerated for a separate drug offense. She also lied to police during the May 10 search when she stated that the $14,000 cash belonged to her as proceeds from a land sale. She later explained that it was Seay's drug money, and that she was covering for him in the hopes the police would not confiscate it if they believed it was hers. This evidence sufficiently corroborates the out of court statements to establish [Betty's] participation in the alleged conspiracy by a preponderance of the evidence. Id. at 1342.