Opinion ID: 727620
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Hearsay Statements of Vivian Earsery

Text: 33 Gerald's Presentence Report indicates that following Vivian Earsery's arrest on July 14, 1993, she told the police that she had accepted the package on behalf of Gerald, who promised to pay her $100 to bring it to him. Earsery, who died prior to Gerald's sentencing, further advised the police that she had previously received three other packages for Gerald under the same arrangement. Gerald contends that the district court erred in considering these statements in order to hold him responsible at sentencing for the crack cocaine contained in the package delivered to Earsery. 34 We have specifically held that courts may  'consider hearsay evidence in determining sentence [so long as] the evidence bear[s] some minimal indicia of reliability in respect to the defendant's right to due process.'  United States v. Silverman, 976 F.2d 1502, 1512 (6th Cir.1992) (en banc) (quoting United States v. Robinson, 898 F.2d 1111, 1115 (6th Cir.1990)), cert. denied, 507 U.S. 990 (1993). In challenges to the evidence considered by the sentencing judge, the defendant must establish that the challenged evidence is materially false or unreliable, and that such false or unreliable information actually served as the basis for the sentence. Robinson, 898 F.2d at 1116. 35 Gerald maintains that Earsery's statements are unreliable because, as she had just been arrested for drug trafficking, the statements were merely an attempt to shift the blame to someone else. Furthermore, Gerald asserts that the government established no connection between Earsery and himself at trial. The government responds that Earsery's statements were sufficiently reliable because: (1) it was against her penal interest to admit that she had agreed to deliver the package in exchange for cash; (2) Earsery, consistent with her asserted role as a courier, left her residence with the unopened package shortly after receiving it; and (3) Earsery uttered the statements at issue with knowledge that she was dying, making it unlikely that she was attempting to avoid liability. Under all of the circumstances, we conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in considering Earsery's statements. 36