Opinion ID: 712131
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Evidence of Defendant's Prior Possession of Cocaine

Text: 26 The two substantive counts upon which defendant was convicted involve transactions which occurred on January 8 and 9, 1990. Roulette claims that the trial court erred in admitting the following testimony of Trooper James Ripley concerning an incident which occurred on November 21, 1989. Ripley stopped Roulette's car because of expired license plate tags, and then discovered that Roulette was driving with a suspended driver's license. In searching the vehicle, Ripley found .059 grams of powder cocaine wrapped in plastic bags inside the pocket of Roulette's jacket. The indictment upon which defendant was convicted charged that the conspiracy involving Roulette and Harrison began on March 20, 1989. Thus the evidence of Roulette's possession of cocaine powder on November 21, 1989 falls within the period of the charged conspiracy. 27 In fact, the possession occurred only a few weeks prior to Tisinger's initial meeting with Barker, and less than one month before Tisinger purchased crack cocaine from Roulette. The trial court thus did not err by admitting evidence of the possession of drugs on a date prior to the two incidents charged in the substantive counts, but within the conspiracy period, as direct evidence of the charged conspiracy. Any drug activity by a conspirator during the conspiracy is relevant evidence of the existence of the conspiracy. See United States v. Brown, 956 F.2d 782, 786 (8th Cir.1992) (citing United States v. Jones, 880 F.2d 55, 59 (8th Cir.1989)).