Opinion ID: 779373
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: apprendi challenges to drug conspiracy sentences

Text: 24 Defendants Nathan Benford, Rena Benford, Calvin Tramble, Suzette Miranda Stewart, and Charles Rossell argue on appeal that the district court committed constitutional error under Apprendi by sentencing them to terms of imprisonment and supervised release based upon the court's finding of drug quantities by a preponderance of the evidence. We are first called upon to clarify the proper method of preserving Apprendi claims prior to the time that case was decided. We begin with a brief recitation of the development of Apprendi jurisprudence in this Circuit. We will then apply those decisions to Defendants. And finally, we will determine whether, to the extent Apprendi error has occurred, such error was harmless.
25 In Jones v. United States, 526 U.S. 227, 248, 119 S.Ct. 1215, 143 L.Ed.2d 311 (1999), the Supreme Court suggested possible violations of the Fifth Amendment's Due Process Clause and the Sixth Amendment's notice (indictment) and jury trial guarantees stemming from the diminishment of the jury's significance by removing control over facts determining a statutory sentencing range. Jones had been decided at the time Defendants were sentenced. After all of the judgments were entered, however, the Supreme Court decided Apprendi, which confirmed the suggestion in Jones that [o]ther than the fact of a prior conviction, any fact that increases the penalty for a crime beyond the prescribed statutory maximum must be submitted to a jury, and proved beyond a reasonable doubt. 530 U.S. at 490, 120 S.Ct. 2348, 147 L.Ed.2d 435. 2 The Court dismissed the then common argument that an enhancing fact may be considered merely a sentencing factor and instead held that the relevant inquiry is not one of form but of effect-does the required finding expose the defendant to a greater punishment than that authorized by the jury's guilty verdict?  530 U.S. at 494, 120 S.Ct. 2348, 147 L.Ed.2d 435 (emphasis added). 26 In the instant case, Defendants were sentenced under the subsections of 21 U.S.C. § 841(b). This statute creates a three-tiered sentencing system based upon drug quantities. Defendants face a sentence of five to forty years under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(B) if they are responsible for between 5 and 50 grams of cocaine base or between 500 grams and 5 kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride (powder cocaine). Under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(A), defendants face a minimum sentence of ten years and a maximum of life imprisonment if they are connected to 50 grams or more of cocaine base or 5 kilograms or more of cocaine hydrochloride. 3 However, where no amount of drugs is specified in the indictment or determined by the jury beyond a reasonable doubt, subsection 841(b)(1)(C) provides the default maximum penalties of twenty years, or thirty years in the case of a repeat felony drug offender. 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C). 27 In United States v. Rebmann, 226 F.3d 521, 524 (6th Cir.2000) 4 , and United States v. Page, 232 F.3d 536 (6th Cir.2000), we determined that [p]ursuant to the provisions of § 841, the quantity of drugs is a factual determination that significantly impacts the sentence imposed. Page, 232 F.3d at 543. In addition, in United States v. Ramirez, 242 F.3d 348, 351 (6th Cir. 2000), we determined that the government must name in the indictment the quantity of drugs for which it seeks to hold a defendant responsible under 21 U.S.C. § 841(a) if it seeks an enhanced sentence based on drug quantity. We further explained in United States v. Strayhorn, 250 F.3d 462 (6th Cir.2001), that each penalty provision of § 841(b) constitutes a different crime with different elements, including drug weight which must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt when sentencing a defendant in excess of the default statutory maximum set out in § 841(b)(1)(C) for all drugs except marijuana.... Id. at 468. 28 In the instant case, the indictment did not specify the drug quantity attributable to each Defendant. With respect to the Benfords, the district court never instructed the jury to determine the drug amounts; rather, the jury merely found that Defendants had conspired to distribute and possess some undetermined amount of crack cocaine. Similarly, the plea agreements entered by Tramble and Rossell also failed to specify drug quantities. However, the district court found, by a preponderance of the evidence, the quantity of drugs for which each Defendant was accountable. The court then used these drug quantities to sentence the Defendants to various terms of imprisonment and supervised release under the subsections of 21 U.S.C. § 841(b). Below, we will discuss whether any claimed Apprendi error warrants vacating any of the Defendants' sentences.
29 The parties dispute the appropriate method of preserving an Apprendi challenge and, therefore, the applicable standard of review. The government characterizes Defendants' Apprendi claims as alleging an omission from a jury instruction and contends that their claims should be reviewed only for plain error because they did not object to the drug amounts until after the jury returned its verdict. In support of this argument, the government cites Fed.R.Crim.P. 30, which provides that a party may not assign as error any portion of the charge or omission therefrom unless that party objects thereto before the jury retires to consider its verdict.... However, this rule is inapplicable in the instant case because an Apprendi violation can occur outside of the context of an omission of an element of a crime from the jury charge. For instance, we have held that an Apprendi issue might arise when a defendant pleads guilty to a drug offense just as it might when he chooses to take his case to trial. Strayhorn, 250 F.3d at 468 (citing United States v. Harper, 246 F.3d 520, 530-31 (6th Cir. 2001)). We explained our basis for applying Apprendi to guilty pleas as follows: 30 Our rationale is simple: the defendant who pleads guilty to an unspecified amount of drugs and is then sentenced under the preponderance-of-the-evidence standard may just as easily be subjected to an enhanced sentence in excess of the default statutory maximum as the defendant who takes his case to trial and is then sentenced by the district court under the same preponderance-of-the-evidence standard. This holding follows inexorably from [ United States v. Flowal, 234 F.3d 932 (6th Cir. 2000)], Ramirez, and Harper, and its outcome is dictated by Apprendi. 31 Strayhorn, 250 F.3d at 468. Therefore, the jury instruction analogy must fail. 32 We also emphasize that the constitutional error likewise does not lie in the indictment itself. The government's failure to allege a drug quantity does not render a drug distribution indictment constitutionally infirm. See Hamling v. United States, 418 U.S. 87, 117, 94 S.Ct. 2887, 41 L.Ed.2d 590 (1974) ([An indictment is sufficient if it, first, contains the elements of the offense charged and fairly informs a defendant of the charge against which he must defend, and, second, enables him to plead an acquittal or conviction in bar of future prosecutions for the same offense.]). Instead, when specific quantities are not alleged, a defendant should be sentenced under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C), which establishes the default statutory maximum sentences and does not require as an element of the offense a specific quantity of drugs. See Page, 232 F.3d at 543 (holding that because indictment failed to mention drug quantity and no such quantity was found by the jury, defendants could only be subjected to the penalties prescribed under § 841(b)(1)(C)). Thus, it would be imprudent for defense counsel to object to an indictment which, by all rights, is facially sound. To do so would be in direct opposition to his client's penal interests; the only logical outcome of such a challenge would be for the government to replace the charge under 21 U.S.C. § 841 with a more specific charge, specifically alleging a drug quantity, which might expose the defendant to a higher statutory penalty range. Instead of objecting to a valid indictment or jury instruction, the proper time for a defendant to raise a challenge to his sentence is at the time the actual violation occurs — at the time of sentencing. See United States v. Jackson, 240 F.3d 1245, 1248 (10th Cir.2001) (The error ... is best characterized as sentencing in excess of the statutory maximum penalty applicable to the offense of conviction.). 33 The government also claims that all of the Defendants have failed to preserve their Apprendi challenges by not raising them before the district court at the time of sentencing. While we disagree with the government as to the Benfords' Apprendi challenge, we agree that the remaining Defendants failed to preserve their claimed error for appeal, and we will review any error they raise only for plain error. Most circuits have held that to preserve an Apprendi challenge for purposes of appeal, a defendant must raise some sort of constitutional objection before the district court. See, e.g., United States v. Candelario, 240 F.3d 1300 (11th Cir.2001) (distinguishing between the evidentiary objection of challenging drug quantities in a presentence investigation report and a formal constitutional objection that the drug quantity must be determined beyond a reasonable doubt under Apprendi or Jones ). However, this Court has held that a defendant's repeated objection to the method of drug calculation below suffices to preserve Apprendi error on appeal. See United States v. Strayhorn, 250 F.3d 462, 467 (6th Cir.2001). 34 Specifically, in Strayhorn, we considered the appropriate standard of review for the case of a defendant who brought a seemingly belated constitutional challenge to his sentence on direct appeal. Apprendi was decided after the Defendant's sentencing hearing and subsequent to briefing on appeal. Thus, he raised the constitutional challenge to his sentence for the first time at oral argument. We dismissed the notion that the constitutional issue had been waived and instead held that, because the defendant was asserting a new constitutional rule that was decided while his case was pending, Apprendi should apply retroactively to his case. Strayhorn, 250 F.3d at 467 (citing Griffith v. Kentucky, 479 U.S. 314, 328, 107 S.Ct. 708, 93 L.Ed.2d 649 (1987)) (holding that appellate courts should apply the new constitutional rules retroactively to cases still on direct review). We further found that, because the defendant had steadfastly challenged the district court's drug quantity determination and the amounts attributed to him in the presentence investigation report (PSIR), his failure to articulate a constitutional challenge at trial did not require application of the plain error standard of review: 35 [T]he record makes plain that Strayhorn preserved his [constitutional] challenge by repeatedly objecting to the drug quantity determination at his plea hearing and at his sentencing hearing, as well as in a written objection to the calculation of his base offense level in his presentence report. Although he did not utter the words `due process' at either of these hearings, he made it well known that he disputed the district court's factual finding with respect to drug quantity. 36 Strayhorn, 250 F.3d at 467 (emphasis added). Based upon this reasoning, we reviewed the defendant's constitutional challenge de novo. Id. (citing United States v. Lloyd, 10 F.3d 1197, 1220 (6th Cir.1993) (holding that constitutional challenge to sentences presents a question of law requiring de novo review)). 37 This Court's most recent explication of preserving Apprendi challenges is found in United States v. Humphrey, 287 F.3d 422 (2002). In that case, much like Strayhorn, the defendant did not rely on Apprendi in challenging his sentence before the district court, and indeed could not have because Apprendi was decided after he was sentenced. Id. at 443. However, this Court held that he had preserved his Apprendi challenge, such that de novo review was appropriate, inasmuch as he objected at the sentencing hearing to both the amount of drugs attributed to him and the standard of proof required to support that amount. Id. We noted in Humphrey that while the defendant's counsel conceded at sentencing that the then current standard of review with respect to drug quantity determinations was preponderance of the evidence, counsel nevertheless challenged the propriety of that standard. Id. at 444. We further acknowledged in Humphrey that where a defendant has merely objected to the quantity of drugs attributed to him, Strayhorn appears to support the proposition that that alone might suffice to find that an Apprendi challenge is preserved for appeal. Id. at 446. However, rather than relying on Strayhorn, we held in Humphrey that the defendant in that case had raised much more than an objection to drug quantity but also to the standard of proof used in making that determination and thus his Apprendi challenge was preserved. Id. at 446. 38 In determining the appropriate standard of review for purposes of this appeal, this panel is of course bound by our holdings in cases such as Humphrey and Strayhorn. See United States v. Jenkins, 4 F.3d 1338, 1345 n. 8 (6th Cir.1993) (explaining that one panel of the Court is bound by another panel's holdings but not its dicta). Both Nathan and Rena Benford raised constitutional objections to their respective sentences based upon the Supreme Court's holding in Jones, which was decided subsequent to trial, but prior to their sentencing, and clearly preserved their Apprendi challenge for our review. Humphrey, 287 F.3d at 446. While before the district court, the Benfords contended that the Jones decision required that the drug amounts be charged in their indictments or be otherwise presented to a jury to be decided beyond a reasonable doubt. The district court overruled these objections, and instead determined the relevant drug quantities by a preponderance of the evidence. The Benfords now seek reversal under Apprendi and Jones. 39 Rossell pleaded guilty to the drug conspiracy charge. Although he submitted written challenges to the PSIR's calculation of certain amounts of drug quantities attributed to him, he at no time challenged the propriety of the district court's using the preponderance of the evidence standard of review to determine drug quantity. Humphrey, 287 F.3d at 444. Likewise, Tramble and Stewart submitted written objections to their PSIRs, challenging certain specific quantities of drugs attributed to them, while failing to challenge other such quantities. 5 While Strayhorn might appear to support the argument that any challenge to the quantity of drugs attributed to a defendant is sufficient to preserve Apprendi error, Strayhorn is distinguishable from the instant case. As we explained in that case, the defendant's argument was preserved although he did not utter the words due process.' 250 F.3d at 467. Indeed, it would have been pointless for his counsel to have done so inasmuch as neither Apprendi nor Jones had been decided by the time Defendant was sentenced. 6 See, e.g., United States v. Jordan, 291 F.3d 1091, n. 4 (9th Cir.2002) (reviewing Apprendi challenge de novo where defendant argued in district court that Jones required that drug quantity be alleged in the indictment and proved beyond a reasonable doubt); United States v. Nance, 236 F.3d 820, 823-24 (7th Cir.2000) (reviewing Apprendi challenge for plain error where defendant could have, but failed to rely on Jones to preserve argument for appeal). This case, however, is similar to our decision in United States v. King, 272 F.3d 366 (6th Cir. 2001). In that case, after a jury trial, the defendants were convicted of and sentenced for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Id. at 370. Drug quantity was neither alleged in the indictment nor submitted to the jury for a reasonable doubt determination. Id. at 374. Despite the fact that one of the defendants objected in the district court to the exact quantity of drugs attributed to him, arguing that the appropriately attributable amount was closer to 300 grams than one kilogram, we reviewed his Apprendi-based challenge to his sentence for plain error inasmuch as he failed to raise arguments based on Jones or Apprendi in the district court. Id. at 374-75. We believe the same reasoning applies to Rossell, Tramble and Stewart. Although all three challenged certain quantities of drugs attributed to them, none raised constitutional arguments or otherwise challenged the propriety of the evidentiary standard used by the district court in determining drug quantity. Humphrey, 287 F.3d at 444. All three were sentenced after Jones was decided and could have relied on that case, as did the Benfords, to challenge their sentences with regard to the determination of drug quantity on constitutional grounds. King, 272 F.3d at 374-75; Jordan, 291 F.3d at 1095 n. 4; Nance, 236 F.3d at 823-24. Therefore, we will review Rossell, Tramble and Stewart's Apprendi claims for plain error.
Nathan Benford and Rena Benford 40 With an unspecified drug quantity, Nathan Benford faced a statutory maximum sentence of thirty years as a prior felony drug offender under § 841(b)(1)(C). However, based on the district court's drug quantity determinations, Benford was sentenced to a term of imprisonment exceeding the otherwise applicable default statutory maximum. The district court held Benford responsible for 6 kilograms of powder cocaine and 3 kilograms of crack cocaine, thereby exposing him to the penalty provisions of § 841(b)(1)(A), which calls for a mandatory minimum term of twenty years (240 months) imprisonment for individuals who are prior felony drug offenders. Using its drug quantity calculations, the district court eventually sentenced Benford to a mandatory life sentence under the sentencing guidelines. 7 The court also sentenced Benford to a five-year term of supervised release on the drug conspiracy conviction, which is the mandatory minimum under § 841(b)(1)(A). 41 Rena Benford faced a default maximum sentence of twenty years under § 841(b)(1)(C). But the district court held her responsible for 1039 grams (1.39 kilograms) of crack and over 500 grams of powder cocaine, thereby exposing her to punishment under § 841(b)(1)(A), which establishes a minimum sentence of ten years (120 months) imprisonment and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment for defendants without a prior felony drug conviction. Using the sentencing guidelines, the district court ordered Mrs. Benford to serve a term of 365 months imprisonment on the drug conspiracy conviction and five years of supervised release, which is the minimum under § 841(b)(1)(A). 8 42 Under Apprendi, a defendant may not be exposed to a greater punishment than that authorized by the jury's guilty verdict. Neuhausser, 241 F.3d at 466 (quoting Page, 232 F.3d at 543). Because the jury did not determine a quantity of drugs beyond a reasonable doubt, the Benfords should have been sentenced under the penalties prescribed under § 841(b)(1)(C). The government contends that the district court, in fact, determined the drug quantities attributable to the Benfords beyond a reasonable doubt. This assertion likely stems from statements the district court judge made at Nathan Benford's sentencing hearing: 43 I heard about 100 [wiretap] phone calls, I mean. I heard so much evidence of drugs in the conspiracy that, I mean, and it's not only testimony I heard the phone calls. 44 . . . . . . 45 We all heard a lot of other evidence as well. I mean, we've seen real evidence and other evidence in this case. If you want me to say I'm convinced, if you want me to say it, I'm convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that there was drug quantities. I've already gone over this and I don't have to go over those quantities again, I hope, but, I mean, I don't know what to do, I mean, I heard it all. 46 (Nathan Benford Sentencing Hearing, J.A. at 1492 (emphasis added).) The government argues that the Benfords' rights were not violated even though the court, rather than the jury, established the drug quantities that permitted sentencing beyond the statutory maximum. Contrary to the government's arguments, however, such a finding by the district court would not cure the failure to allege the drug quantities in the indictment and having the issue submitted to a jury where there is a jury trial. Ramirez, 242 F.3d at 351; cf. Strayhorn, 250 F.3d at 471 (remanding case to the district court so that court could determine beyond a reasonable doubt the issue of drug quantity where defendant pleaded guilty). In addition, despite the court's statements during the sentencing hearing, the record reflects that the district court determined the drug quantities attributable to Nathan Benford by a mere preponderance standard, and not beyond a reasonable doubt, due to its belief that the question did not have to be submitted to a jury. 9 Thus, the Benfords' sentences violated Apprendi. Charles Rossell; Calvin Nelson Tramble; and Suzette Miranda Stewart 47 Rossell, Tramble, and Stewart also each claim that their sentences violated Apprendi. While we have some doubt as to whether Apprendi was implicated at all with respect to some of these Defendants' sentences, we need not reach that issue because Defendants fail to show any claimed Apprendi error warrants correction under plain error review. 48 Rossell pleaded guilty to the drug conspiracy charge. Inasmuch as the drug quantity was neither specified in his indictment, nor in his guilty plea, he faced a maximum sentence of thirty years imprisonment as a repeat felony drug offender under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C). However, when the district court determined by a preponderance of the evidence that his drug quantity was 3.2886 kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride, Rossell was subjected to a sentencing range of 120 months to life imprisonment as a repeat offender under § 841(b)(1)(B), and was sentenced to ten years imprisonment. 10 49 Tramble also pleaded guilty to the drug conspiracy charge. However, similar to the indictment, his plea agreement did not specify a drug quantity for the drug conspiracy charge. Thus, with his prior felony drug conviction, Tramble was subject to a maximum sentence of 360 months under § 841(b)(1)(C). At sentencing, however, the district court determined that Tramble was responsible for 14.5 kilograms of crack, thereby exposing him to a mandatory minimum sentence of twenty years and a maximum of life imprisonment under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(A). Under the sentencing guidelines, Tramble's sentencing range was 292-365 months. 11 After the government filed a downward departure motion for substantial assistance under USSG § 5K1.1, Tramble was sentenced to a term of 200 months imprisonment and ten years of supervised release, to be served concurrently with a 200-month sentence and three years of supervised release as a result of his guilty plea to aiding and abetting money laundering. 12 50 With an undetermined drug quantity, Stewart faced a maximum sentence of twenty years under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C). But the district court determined that she was responsible for 807.6 grams of crack cocaine, thereby exposing her to the penalty provisions of § 841(b)(1)(A), which carries a minimum sentence of ten years and a maximum of life imprisonment. Stewart was eventually sentenced to a term of 190 months' imprisonment and five years of supervised release. On appeal, Stewart claims that her constitutional rights were violated because the indictment did not allege the drug quantity. 51 As explained previously, we need not decide with respect to the issue of drug quantity whether Rossell, Tramble, or Stewart's sentences violated Apprendi. Even assuming that there was error, that was plain and that affected substantial rights, Olano, 507 U.S. at 732, 113 S.Ct. 1770, we still believe these Defendants would not be entitled to relief. This is so because even [i]f all three [of these] conditions are met, an appellate court may ... exercise its discretion to notice a forfeited error, ... only if ... the error seriously affect[s] the fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings. United States v. Cotton, 535 U.S. 625, ___, 122 S.Ct. 1781, 1785, 152 L.Ed.2d 860 (2002) (emphasis added). In Cotton, the Supreme Court dealt with an issue in a case analogous to the one now before this Court, where drug quantity in a vast drug conspiracy case was neither charged in the indictment nor proven beyond a reasonable doubt. The Court held that because the overwhelming evidence in the record showed that the defendants' drug conspiracy involved drug quantities well above that necessary to impose sentences under the higher ranges of 21 U.S.C. § 841(b), then despite the fact that Apprendi had been violated, and even assuming the defendants' substantial rights had been affected, the Court would not address the error because the error did not seriously affect the fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings. Id. at 1786-87. According to the Court, inasmuch as these defendants, who were involved in a wide-spread drug conspiracy, failed to raise their Apprendi argument before the district court, the real threat to the judicial proceedings would be to allow them to receive a sentence prescribed for those committing less substantial drug offenses. Id. at 1787. Likewise, the overwhelming and largely uncontroverted evidence regarding drug quantity in this vast drug conspiracy to which each of these Defendants pleaded guilty convinces us that affirming their sentences would not seriously affect the fairness, integrity or public confidence of the judicial proceedings. Id. Because the Supreme Court has instructed that under plain error review, we may only correct error that seriously affects the fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings, and we find no such error in this case with respect to these three Defendants, we decline to correct any Apprendi error that may have occurred in the imposition of their sentences. 13
52 Having disposed of Tramble, Rossell and Stewart's Apprendi claims, we are left with deciding how to resolve the Benfords' Apprendi challenges. We have already determined that their sentences violated Apprendi. The government contends, however, that even if the Defendants have valid claims under Apprendi, their judgments should be affirmed because the constitutional errors were harmless. In particular, the government argues, inter alia, that Defendants cannot point to any evidence they would have presented to a jury that could lead to a lower drug amount determination because there was overwhelming evidence of the drug quantities, cf. United States v. Duarte, 246 F.3d 56, 62 (1st Cir.2001) (holding under a plain error analysis that the proof of a defendant's complicity in distributing more than 1,000 kilograms of marijuana is so overwhelming that his substantial rights could not have been affected by sentencing him based on that quantity). 53 Rule 52(a) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure provides that [a]ny error, defect, irregularity or variance which does not affect substantial rights shall be disregarded. In Neder v. United States, 527 U.S. 1, 119 S.Ct. 1827, 144 L.Ed.2d 35 (1999), which was decided shortly after Jones, the Supreme Court distinguished between trial errors which may be reviewed for harmless error and structural errors which are excluded from harmless error review. Structural errors reflect a defect affecting the framework within which the trial proceeds, rather than simply error in the trial process itself. Id. at 8, 119 S.Ct. 1827 (quoting Arizona v. Fulminante, 499 U.S. 279, 310, 111 S.Ct. 1246, 113 L.Ed.2d 302 (1991)). 14 The Court in Neder recognized that most constitutional errors can be harmless. Id. at 8, 119 S.Ct. 1827 (quoting Fulminante, 499 U.S. at 306, 111 S.Ct. 1246). Indeed, if the defendant had counsel and was tried by an impartial adjudicator, there is a strong presumption that any other [constitutional] errors that may have occurred are subject to harmless-error analysis. Rose v. Clark, 478 U.S. 570, 579, 106 S.Ct. 3101, 92 L.Ed.2d 460 (1986). 54 With these principles in mind, the Supreme Court determined that a district court's error in failing to charge the jury on an element of an offense is simply an absence of a complete verdict on every element of an offense which violates a defendant's Sixth Amendment right to a jury trial. However, the Court held that failure to deliver a jury instruction was subject to harmless review because the error did not render the trial fundamentally unfair. The Court noted that omission of a jury instruction differs markedly from the constitutional violations [it has] found to defy harmless-error review. Neder, 527 U.S. at 8, 119 S.Ct. 1827. 55 At least two courts of appeal have held that a failure to allege drug quantity in the indictment is subject to harmless error review. See, e.g., United States v. Adkins, 274 F.3d 444, 454 (7th Cir.2001) ([I]t is now well established in this circuit that Apprendi errors in both the indictment and the charge to the jury are subject to harmless error analysis); Sanchez, 269 F.3d at 1272-73 (explaining that failing to submit drug quantity to the jury or include it in the indictment is just an element of the trial process and does not rise to the level of structural error-harmless error review is appropriate); cf. United States v. Mojica-Baez, 229 F.3d 292, 309-10 (1st Cir.2000) (holding that a failure to include in the indictment the type of weapon involved in the offense under federal firearm statute was not structural error; error did not so interfere with such basic and fundamental constitutional protections that they go to the structure of our criminal law system). 15 These courts have essentially determined that where Apprendi error occurs in the indictment, such error is akin to the error in Neder. See, e.g., Sanchez, 269 F.3d at 1272-73. 56 Further, the Second Circuit has held that a failure to allege drug quantity in an indictment or submit the question of drug type or quantity to a jury is subject to plain error review, pursuant to Fed. R.Crim.P. 52(b), when the defendant failed to object to these errors before the district court. See United States v. Thomas, 274 F.3d 655, 659 (2d Cir.2001) ( en banc ). In Thomas, the Second Circuit overruled a prior circuit panel's holding in another case, which had held that where an element of the offense is not charged in the indictment, the defect is not subject to plain error review inasmuch as the error is jurisdictional. Id. at 659 (overruling United States v. Tran, 234 F.3d 798 (2d Cir. 2000)). Similarly, the Tenth Circuit initially held that where the indictment failed to allege drug quantity, such a defect was not subject to plain or harmless error review. See Jackson, 240 F.3d at 1248-49 (rejecting government's argument that defendant's 30 year sentence was subject to harmless or plain error review where the indictment failed to include essential element of drug quantity). However, that court has revisited its position regarding indictments that fail to allege essential elements of a crime. See United States v. Prentiss, 256 F.3d 971, 981 (10th Cir.2001) ( en banc ) (holding that a failure of an indictment to allege an essential element of a crime does not deprive a district court of subject matter jurisdiction; rather, such failure is subject to harmless error review). The Tenth Circuit further held that [t]o the extent that this Court's prior decisions ... hold otherwise, we overrule them. 16 Id. The Tenth Circuit also expressly rejected the argument that a failure to allege an essential element of a crime in an indictment necessarily falls into the category of structural error, requiring automatic reversal. Id. at 983-85. Finally, a panel of the Fifth Circuit previously held that where Apprendi error occurs because of a failure to charge drug quantity in the indictment, the error must be corrected inasmuch as the error is jurisdictional, and a district court only has jurisdiction to sentence a defendant to a sentence equal to or less than the statutory maximum. United States v. Gonzalez, 259 F.3d 355, 360-61 & n. 3 (5th Cir.2001). However, relying on Cotton, 535 U.S. 625, 122 S.Ct. 1781, 152 L.Ed.2d 860, the Fifth Circuit, sitting en banc, recently overruled Gonzalez, to the extent that case held that an indictment that fails to allege the essential element of drug quantity deprives a court of jurisdiction. United States v. Longoria, 298 F.3d 367 (5th Cir.2002). 57 Although much authority suggests that a failure to allege an essential element of a crime in the Apprendi context is subject to harmless error review, at least one court has reached a different conclusion. The Eighth Circuit has held that where drug quantity is missing from the indictment, harmless or plain error review is inappropriate as to sentences imposed beyond that allowed by 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C). See United States v. Maynie, 257 F.3d 908, 920-21 (8th Cir.2001) (holding that Apprendi error in indictment is fundamental, and that where drug quantity is not alleged in the indictment, error must be corrected). 58 However, it is now settled that the omission of the element of drug quantity from the indictment did not deprive the district court of subject matter jurisdiction over the cases now before us. See Cotton, 535 U.S. at ___, 122 S.Ct. at 1784 (rejecting Fourth Circuit's holding that failure to allege drug quantity in an indictment is jurisdictional, such that it deprives a court of jurisdiction to impose a sentence for an offense not charged in the indictment). Jurisdiction is the power to decide a justiciable controversy, and includes questions of law as well as fact ... [and] even the unconstitutionality of the statute under which the proceeding is brought does not oust a court of jurisdiction. United States v. Williams, 341 U.S. 58, 66, 71 S.Ct. 595, 95 L.Ed. 747 (1951) (citations omitted); Cotton, 535 U.S. at ___, 122 S.Ct. at 1785 (explaining that jurisdiction means the courts' statutory or constitutional power to adjudicate the case). Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3231, district courts have original jurisdiction ... over all offenses against the laws of the United States. Id. [E]rrors in a non-frivolous indictment do not strip the district court of jurisdiction under § 3231. United States v. Bjorkman, 270 F.3d 482, 490 (7th Cir. 2001). Therefore, [an indictment's failure to allege an element of a crime is not jurisdictional in the sense that it affects a court's subject matter jurisdiction, i.e., a court's constitutional or statutory power to adjudicate [the] case.... ] Prentiss, 256 F.3d at 982 (quoting United States v. Martin, 147 F.3d 529, 532 (7th Cir.1998)). 59 We also decline to categorize the omission from the indictment that occurred in these cases as structural error. The Supreme Court has identified a limited class of fundamental constitutional errors that defy analysis by harmless error standards. Neder, 527 U.S. at 7, 119 S.Ct. 1827 (internal quotation marks omitted). Structural errors require automatic reversal, despite the effect of the error on the trial's outcome. Id. As for all other errors, courts must apply Fed.R.Crim.P. 52(a)'s harmless error standards, and disregard errors that are harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. Neder, 527 U.S. at 7, 119 S.Ct. 1827 (emphasis in the original). The error complained of in the instant case is not among those listed in Neder that classify as structural. 17 As previously mentioned, structural errors infect the entire trial process ... and `necessarily render a trial fundamentally unfair....' Neder, 527 U.S. at 8, 119 S.Ct. 1827 (citations omitted). In other words, structural errors deprive defendants of `basic protections' without which `a criminal trial cannot reliably serve its function as a vehicle for determination of guilt or innocence... and no criminal punishment may be regarded as fundamentally fair.' Id. at 8-9, 119 S.Ct. 1827; Sanchez, 269 F.3d at 1272-73. 60 In Cotton, 535 U.S. 625, 122 S.Ct. 1781, 152 L.Ed.2d 860, the Supreme Court declined to address the defendants' argument that the failure to allege drug quantity in the indictment was structural error. Id. at 1786. As we previously explained, on plain error review, the Court instead assumed the error affected the defendants' substantial rights but found that the error did not seriously affect the fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings. Id. However, the fact that the Court declined to notice the error under plain error review supports the view that such error was not necessarily structural requiring automatic reversal, inasmuch as it is difficult to imagine that an error that  necessarily render[s] a criminal trial fundamentally unfair or an unreliable vehicle for determining guilt or innocence, such that no criminal punishment may be regarded as fundamentally fair, Neder, 527 U.S. at 8-9, 119 S.Ct. 1827, does not also seriously affect the fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings, Cotton, 535 U.S. at ___, 122 S.Ct. at 1786. 61 This reasoning is buttressed by the Supreme Court's decision in Johnson v. United States, 520 U.S. 461, 117 S.Ct. 1544, 137 L.Ed.2d 718 (1997), in which the issue of materiality in a perjury prosecution was decided by the district court rather than the jury. Id. at 464, 117 S.Ct. 1544. Under the law that existed at the time of trial, the district court instructed the jury that it did not have to decide the issue of materiality. Id. Reviewing the issue for plain error, the Supreme Court reserved the decision as to whether the error affected substantial rights, but ultimately decided not to notice the error inasmuch as it did not seriously affect the fairness, integrity or public reputation of judicial proceedings because the evidence pertaining to materiality was overwhelming and essentially uncontroverted. Id. at 469-70, 117 S.Ct. 1544. The Court later noted in Neder, when analyzing whether omission of an element of the offense from jury instructions was structural error, that the conclusion reached in Johnson cuts against the argument that the omission of an element will always [or necessarily] render a trial unfair. Neder, 527 U.S. at 9, 119 S.Ct. 1827 (emphasis in the original). Likewise, the Supreme Court's holding that the erroneous omission of drug quantity from the indictment does not seriously affect the fairness, integrity or public reputation of judicial proceedings, lends strong support for the proposition that such error is not structural and will not always or necessarily render a criminal trial unfair. After all, structural error is not to be determined on a case-by-case basis. Id. at 14, 119 S.Ct. 1827. [A] constitutional error is either structural or it is not. Id. The Supreme Court's approach to such errors has been categorical. Id. Inasmuch as only a limited class of fundamental constitutional errors defies harmless error review, and all other constitutional errors are subject to such review, id. at 7, 119 S.Ct. 1827, we believe harmless error analysis is appropriate under the facts of this case. 62 Finally, King, 272 F.3d 366, supports the view that harmless error analysis is appropriate where drug quantity is neither charged in the indictment nor submitted to the trier of fact for proof beyond a reasonable doubt. The Apprendi-based challenge in King was reviewed for plain error. Under that standard of review, before a court may correct an error, it must determine whether (1) there was error, (2) that was plain, and (3) that affected substantial rights. Id. at 375. Even then, the error can only be corrected if it seriously affects the fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings. Id. We ultimately determined that the defendants' substantial rights were not affected by the Apprendi error. Id. at 379-80. We explained in King that the substantial rights prong of the plain error analysis is akin to the harmless error analysis employed in preserved error cases.... Id. at 378. The difference, however, is that under plain error review the burden is on the defendant to show that the error was prejudicial, i.e., that his substantial rights were affected. United States v. Vonn, 535 U.S. 55, ___, 122 S.Ct. 1043, 1048, 152 L.Ed.2d 90 (2002). The tables are turned under harmless error review, as the government bears the burden of showing that the error had no effect on a defendants' substantial rights. Id. Nevertheless, the fact that we found in King that the defendants' substantial rights had not been affected by the failure to allege drug quantity in the indictment or to have the quantity issue proven beyond a reasonable doubt, supports the view that such error may be harmless if the government can shoulder its burden. Vonn, 535 U.S. at ___, 122 S.Ct. at 1048. 63 Having made the determination that harmless error analysis is appropriate, however, does not end our inquiry. Where a reviewing court, after examining the entire record, cannot conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that the jury verdict would have been the same absent the error — for example, where the defendant contested the omitted element and raised evidence sufficient to support a contrary finding — it should not find the error harmless. Neder, 527 U.S. at 19, 119 S.Ct. 1827. Thus, a court reviewing a defendant's sentence in which it finds an Apprendi error must look to whether the `omitted element is supported by uncontroverted evidence,' and also `ask[] whether the record contains evidence that could rationally lead to a contrary finding with respect to the omitted element.' Candelario, 240 F.3d at 1308 (citing Neder, 527 U.S. at 18-19, 119 S.Ct. 1827); King, 272 F.3d at 378 (explaining that some circuits have concluded that a factual finding that Apprendi would otherwise require to be determined by a jury beyond a reasonable doubt may be harmless if the court can conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that the jury verdict would have been the same absent the error.). As the Court in Neder explained: 64 A reviewing court making this harmless-error inquiry does not, ... become in effect a second jury to determine whether the defendant is guilty. ... Rather a court, in typical appellate-court fashion, asks whether the record contains evidence that could rationally lead to a contrary finding with respect to the omitted element. If the answer to that question is no, holding the error harmless does not reflec[t] a denigration of the constitutional rights involved. ... On the contrary, it serve[s] a very useful purpose insofar as [it] block[s] setting aside convictions for ... defects that have little, if any, likelihood of having changed the result of the trial. 65 Neder, 527 U.S. at 19, 119 S.Ct. 1827.
66 The Ninth Circuit recently has noted that there is little judicial experience on how to analyze the harmlessness of Apprendi error. Jordan, 291 F.3d at 1095. That court recognized that to determine whether error is harmless beyond a reasonable doubt where drug quantity is neither alleged in the indictment nor proven beyond a reasonable doubt is a formidable task. Id. at 1095-96 (distinguishing prior case where court found that defendant's substantial rights were not affected where drug quantity, although alleged in the indictment, was not found by jury beyond a reasonable doubt). The court explained in Jordan that because the indictment did not allege quantity, the court would first have to determine that the grand jury would have indicted the defendant for possessing more than 50 grams of methamphetamine. Id. at 1096. Further, as the defendant had no notice of the quantity issue at trial, the court would have to determine whether the defendant would have contested quantity. Id. The court would also have to determine beyond a reasonable doubt that considering the evidence presented and not presented, that the jury would have convicted the defendant of the higher penalty — 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(A) instead of § 841(b)(1)(B) or (b)(1)(C). The court held that based on the record, those issues could not be resolved beyond a reasonable doubt. Id. The court then went on to adopt a per se approach to the issue it faced. We hold that the government cannot meet its burden under the harmless error standard when drug quantity is neither charged in the indictment nor proved to a jury beyond reasonable doubt, if the sentence received is greater than the combined maximum sentences for the indeterminate quantity offenses charged. Id. at 1097. 67 This circuit's law is contrary to the Ninth Circuit's position regarding affirming a sentence based on unknowns with respect to both what the grand jury as well as the petit jury would have done. Under this circuit's jurisprudence, there may be instances where a court might find that a defendant's substantial rights were not affected although drug quantity was neither alleged nor proved beyond a reasonable doubt. See King, 272 F.3d at 379-80; see also Sanchez, 269 F.3d at 1272 (holding that harmless error review is appropriate where drug quantity is neither alleged in the indictment nor proven beyond a reasonable doubt). Further, it appears that in Jordan, the only evidence regarding drug quantity was 349.9 grams of methamphetamine that authorities found on property leased to the defendant. Id. at 1093. 68 In the instant case, however, Nathan Benford not only fails to challenge the amount of drugs attributed to him, but also the uncontroverted evidence — witness testimony and otherwise — presented at trial shows that Benford trafficked in quantities far above the 50 grams of crack cocaine or 5 kilograms of cocaine powder required for sentencing under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(A). Numerous witnesses testified that they had been involved with Benford in distributing kilogram quantities of cocaine or storing large quantities of crack cocaine for him. Benford even stipulated to the quantities of some of these drugs, such as the 1,369 grams of crack that co-defendant Eddie Joe Mitchell testified that he retrieved at Benford's direction. Myron Hilt testified that he had once delivered a kilogram of cocaine to Tramble at Benford's direction. On another occasion, Benford and Hilt were counting money after selling a kilogram of cocaine, when Rena Benford asked them if they needed help. Although they told her they did not, they directed that she put the money in a safe located in the Uptown Supper Club. Hilt also testified that he and Benford had once purchased a kilogram of cocaine, and that Rena Benford delivered some of the money to her husband in order that he might make the purchase. Co-defendant Cleveland Billingsley testified that upon his release from prison in 1998, he received several ounces of crack and powder cocaine directly from Benford. He also testified that he witnessed Benford possessing other quantities of cocaine, including a kilogram of cocaine powder that Benford distributed to Billingsley and to others. Co-defendant Tracy Ellis testified that she stored drugs in her apartment for Benford. Pursuant to a search warrant, police recovered 408.2 grams of crack and 148.5 grams of cocaine hydrochloride from Ellis's apartment. After reviewing the presentence report, which recounted the above-cited events regarding Benford's cocaine dealings and numerous others, the district court found that more than 3,000 grams of crack and 6,000 grams of cocaine hydrochloride were properly attributable to Benford. We have no doubt based on this uncontroverted evidence that a jury would have found beyond a reasonable doubt that Benford was involved with quantities of drugs well above the requisite amounts needed for sentencing under § 841(b)(1)(A). See Sanchez, 269 F.3d at 1273 (explaining that omission from a § 841 indictment is similar to the jury instruction error in Neder inasmuch as part of the defendant's argument is that quantity must be charged so that it can be submitted to the jury and proven beyond a reasonable doubt). Therefore, we believe that the Apprendi error in Benford's case was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. Neder, 527 U.S. at 8, 119 S.Ct. 1827. 69 However, unlike the panel majority on this issue, I believe Mrs. Benford's case presents a different matter. Mrs. Benford's guideline range under the Sentencing Guidelines was 290 to 365 months. The district court concluded that being hypersuperconservative, the quantity of drugs attributable to Mrs. Benford fell within the statutory range of 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(B), although her judgment indicates that she was actually sentenced under the higher provisions of § 841(b)(1)(A). (J.A. at 366-72.) The government also argues on appeal that the evidence was sufficient to show Mrs. Benford's involvement with quantities of crack cocaine and cocaine hydrochloride to support a sentence under § 841(b)(1)(B). However, a review of the record shows that testimony regarding Mrs. Benford's actual involvement with drugs was minimal compared to her husband. As her counsel noted at sentencing, he would go a day or two at trial without cross-examining witnesses because Mrs. Benford was not mentioned. (J.A. at 1513.) The district court based Mrs. Benford's sentence largely on testimony that she offered to assist counting money earned from selling a kilogram of cocaine; placed money in a safe located in Uptown Supper Club that according to Hilt, he and Mr. Benford planned to later use to buy a kilogram of cocaine powder; and helped transport 500 grams of crack on one occasion. Billingsley also testified that he witnessed Mrs. Benford cook cocaine into crack on one occasion. I cannot on this record, with so few references to Mrs. Benford's actual involvement with the drug amounts in this vast conspiracy, determine beyond a reasonable doubt that the grand jury would have indicted her for conspiracy to possess 50 grams or more of crack or five kilograms of cocaine. See Jordan, 291 F.3d at 1095-96. More importantly, inasmuch as Mrs. Benford had no notice that drug quantity was an issue at trial, there is no way of knowing whether she would have contested drug quantity, and if so, of assessing the evidence that she would have presented contesting quantity. I therefore cannot find based on the present record that the failure to allege drug quantity in the indictment or to have the jury determine drug quantity beyond a reasonable doubt was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. Id. Contrary to the government's arguments, it is not enough that there might be some evidence in the record that might permit affirming the sentence the district court imposed in Mrs. Benford's case. Rather, in determining whether Mrs. Benford's substantial rights were affected, the evidence must be over-whelming and essentially uncontroverted. See Neder, 527 U.S. at 19, 119 S.Ct. 1827; Candelario, 240 F.3d at 1308 (emphasis added). Further, the Court must be convinced that the record evidence could not lead to a contrary finding with respect to the element omitted. Id. Had Mrs. Benford realized that drug quantity would be an issue at trial, she through her counsel might have posed different questions or attacked witness testimony regarding her involvement in drug trafficking in ways that might have raised sufficient doubt in juror's minds regarding the exact quantities of drugs that Mrs. Benford was charged with cooking or transporting, etc. See Jordan, 291 F.3d at 1095-96. Determining whether the jury would have reached the same results as the district court on this record would be speculative at best. Because I cannot find that the Apprendi error in Mrs. Benford's case was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt, I would vacate Mrs. Benford's sentence and remand her case to the district court for re-sentencing under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C). 18 70