Opinion ID: 587744
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Defendant Slater's Base Offense Level

Text: 58 Although Mr. Slater was charged with possession with intent to distribute 223.3 grams of crack cocaine, included in the calculation of his base offense level under U.S.S.G. § 1B1.3(a)(1) was 524.4 grams of crack cocaine, a figure arrived at by multiplying the number of prior transactions by the amount of crack involved. According to Mr. Young, these sales occurred during a three-month period before the charged offense and reflected a similar pattern of dealing. After a hearing on defendant Slater's objections to the Presentence Report, the district court found a preponderance of evidence supported the PSR's computation of the offense level and accepted it, noting [i]n fact, it's on the conservative side. (Appellant Slater's Appendix, 303). 59 Under the Drug Quantity Table in U.S.S.G. § 2D1.1, the additional cocaine raised the base offense level from 34 to 36. Mr. Slater contends as a matter of due process we should remand for resentencing because Mr. Young's testimony was unreliable and provided the district court with only imprecise estimates. 60 The guidelines provide otherwise, however, and require the district court to include quantities of drugs not specified in the count of conviction ... in determining the offense level if they were part of the same course of conduct or part of a common scheme or plan as the count of conviction. U.S.S.G. § 1B1.3, Commentary--Background. We review the calculation of those quantities for clear error, United States v. Havens, 910 F.2d 703, 704 (10th Cir.1990), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 111 S.Ct. 687, 112 L.Ed.2d 678 (1991), and the application of U.S.S.G. § 1B1.3(a)(1), that the quantities constitute relevant conduct, for an error of law. 61 Mr. Young testified at trial that he had dealt with Harold and Bryant fifteen or twenty times before and connected those dealings to the convicted offense without contest from defense counsel. This testimony added to the information in the PSR satisfies the prosecutor's duty to prove the additional quantities by a preponderance of the evidence. United States v. Ross, 920 F.2d 1530, 1538 (10th Cir.1990); United States v. Boyd, 901 F.2d 842, 845 (10th Cir.1990). On this basis, we cannot say the district court's finding was clearly erroneous.