Opinion ID: 584174
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Hooks's Sentence

Text: 52 The district court sentenced Hooks to the mandatory minimum sentence of ten years without parole for conspiracy to distribute at least fifty grams of crack, under 21 U.S.C.A. § 841(b)(1)(A) (West Supp.1991). Hooks appeals his sentence, arguing that the district court erred in finding that he participated in a conspiracy to distribute at least fifty grams of crack. Hooks argues that he should be sentenced based on the amounts of crack that he actually sold, which amounted to no more than a few grams, and not for the large amounts (1.2 kilos) of crack possessed and sold by Travis, Roulette and Jones at 1008 East 26th Street in Kansas City. 53 The probation officer concluded in Hooks's Presentence Investigation Report (PSR) that Hooks could not be tied to more than the .5 grams that he actually sold to Detective Tisinger, and assessed his base offense level at 16 and his sentencing range at one year nine months to two years three months. At sentencing, the Government challenged the PSR's findings, arguing that it presented sufficient evidence at trial proving that Roulette's large crack deals were reasonably foreseeable to Hooks. The district court agreed with the PSR's conclusion, but felt it was bound by the jury's verdict to give Hooks the mandatory minimum sentence of ten years for conspiring to distribute at least fifty grams of crack. 1 54 However, we observe that the jury did not specify what quantity of crack Hooks was guilty of conspiring to distribute. Although the district court read the indictment to the jury, in which the Government alleged that Hooks conspired to distribute at least fifty grams of crack, the district court gave the jury a generic conspiracy instruction and did not require the jury to link Hooks to a specific quantity of crack to convict him of conspiracy. After a guilty verdict, the district court must determine whether the mandatory penalties of section 841(b)(1)(A) apply by finding by a preponderance of the evidence the quantity of drugs a defendant possessed, distributed or conspired to distribute. See United States v. Wood, 834 F.2d 1382, 1388-90 (8th Cir.1987). Therefore, the district court was free to adopt the PSR's quantity determination in sentencing Hooks. 2 55 The same standards govern the district court's drug quantity determinations for section 841(b) and the Sentencing Guidelines. United States v. Johnson, 944 F.2d 396, 405 (8th Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 112 S.Ct. 646, 116 L.Ed.2d 663 (1991). The district court may sentence Hooks for crack possessed and sold by Roulette and Travis if it finds by a preponderance of the evidence that their activities were (1) in furtherance of the conspiracy and (2) were either known to Hooks or were reasonably foreseeable to Hooks. See United States v. North, 900 F.2d 131, 133 (8th Cir.1990) (citing U.S.S.G. § 1B1.3, comment.). 56 In multi-level drug networks, defendants may aid conspiracies that span far beyond their actual participation. For activities of a co-conspirator to be reasonably foreseeable to a defendant, they must fall within the scope of the agreement between the defendant and the other conspirators. See United States v. Edwards, 945 F.2d 1387, 1393 (7th Cir.1991). Thus, if a defendant agrees to aid a large-volume dealer in completing a single, small sale of drugs, the defendant will not be liable for prior or subsequent acts of the dealer that were not reasonably foreseeable. U.S.S.G. § 1B1.3 illustration e; see also United States v. Knapp, 955 F.2d 566, 570-71 (8th Cir.1992) (Bright, J., concurring); Edwards, 945 F.2d at 1392; United States v. Matthews, 942 F.2d 779, 785 (10th Cir.1991). 57 Hooks and Sanders received small quantities of crack from Roulette to sell and smoked much of that themselves. The Government argues that Travis's visits to Roulette at Hooks's residence to cut up large amounts of crack prove that Hooks knew he had joined a large-scale conspiracy. We disagree. Sanders did not testify that Hooks knew in any way of these activities. The Government also argues that Sanders testified that on one occasion Hooks learned from a conversation between Sanders and Roulette that Roulette received weight, or large quantities of crack, from Big Daddy, a.k.a. Travis. IIA Tr. at 405. Sanders cannot remember even the approximate date of this conversation. Id. This evidence hardly suffices, by itself, to prove that Roulette's large-scale activities were a reasonably foreseeable part of Hooks's conspiracy with Roulette. Simply because a defendant knows that a dealer he works with sells large amounts of drugs to other people does not make the defendant liable for the dealer's other activities. North, 900 F.2d at 134; see also Edwards, 945 F.2d at 134. To determine reasonable foreseeability, we also examine whether a defendant benefitted from his co-conspirators' activities. North, 900 F.2d at 134. Hooks never received any benefits from Roulette's large quantity sales to Tisinger and received only a few rocks from Roulette as pay for his work. Therefore, we hold that Hooks cannot be sentenced for participating in a conspiracy to distribute at least fifty grams of crack. We vacate Hooks's sentence and remand for the district court to determine the amount of crack Hooks personally distributed, or aided in distributing, in furtherance of the conspiracy and to sentence Hooks based only on that amount.