Opinion ID: 575892
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Conversion of $1541 into 14 Grams of Heroin

Text: 6 The government argued to the district court, and argues on appeal, that the district court could adopt the probation officer's recommendation that the currency be converted into its heroin equivalent under Application Note 2 to Sentencing Guideline section 2D1.4, which provides that where the amount of a drug seized does not reflect the scale of the offense, the sentencing judge may approximate the quantity involved, considering, inter alia, the price generally obtained for the drug and the defendant's similar drug transactions. 5 Three other circuits have relied on that Application Note to approve the conversion of seized currency into its equivalent in drugs. United States v. Hicks, 948 F.2d 877, 881-83 (4th Cir.1991); United States v. Stephenson, 924 F.2d 753, 764-65 (8th Cir.1991); United States v. Gerante, 891 F.2d 364, 368-70 (1st Cir.1989). 7 In each case, however, there was evidence of a connection between the money seized and a drug transaction. See Hicks, 948 F.2d 877, 882 & n. 4 (defendant admitted a majority of the money converted came from drug sales; court determined there was ample evidence on which the district court could have found that all of the money was the proceeds of drug transactions); Stephenson, 924 F.2d at 756 (members of defendants' drug distribution ring habitually arranged their proceeds in a particular and readily identifiable manner); Gerante, 891 F.2d at 365-66, 368 (defendant contended money seized and converted was prepayment for cocaine he possessed when arrested, which had already been counted against him; court found sufficient indicia of reliability to support district court's conclusion money came from prior drug transaction). Here, there was no evidence at all connecting the $1541 to any drug-related activities. 6 Without a finding, based on the record and made by a preponderance of the evidence, United States v. Restrepo, 946 F.2d 654, 656 (9th Cir.1991) (en banc), that the currency seized was the proceeds of or otherwise linked to a drug transaction, the conversion of the cash into its drug equivalent is improper. 8