Opinion ID: 775590
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Khamis's Conviction for Transporting Illegal Aliens

Text: 73 Khamis argues that there was insufficient evidence to support her conviction for transporting illegal aliens. When viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, a rational jury could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. 74 To convict Khamis for transporting an alien under section 1324(a)(1)(A)(ii), the United States had to prove that the aliens named in the indictment were not lawfully in the United States, that Khamis knew or recklessly disregarded the fact that the aliens were not lawfully in the United States, and that Khamis knowingly transported the aliens in order to help them to remain in the United States illegally. See 9th Cir. Crim. Jury Instr. 9.2 (2000); see also United States v. Hernandez, 913 F.2d 568, 569 (8th Cir. 1990). 75 There is no question that the aliens transported by the defendants were in the United States illegally, and there can be little doubt that Khamis knew or recklessly disregarded the fact that the aliens were not lawfully in the United States. After all, Khamis admitted in her statement to USBP agents that she was aware of the aliens' presence, and the manner in which the aliens entered the motorhome was sufficiently suspicious for a jury to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that Khamis knew or recklessly disregarded the fact that the aliens were illegally in the country. See United States v. Loya, 807 F.2d 1483, 1486 (9th Cir. 1987) (holding that circumstantial and indirect evidence such as the place of entry and the furtive behavior of aliens may support an inference that a defendant knew that aliens were illegally in the United States). This defendant is therefore already distinct from defendants charged with alien smuggling who are at least arguably unaware of an alien's presence. See, e.g., United States v. Esparza, 876 F.2d 1390, 1393 (9th Cir. 1989)(finding that there was insufficient evidence to support a conviction where the defendant was present but there was no evidence that the defendant knew that aliens were hidden in a moving van). 76 The element that presents a closer question is whether Khamis knowingly transported the aliens in order to help them remain in the United States illegally. Khamis contends that her mere physical accompaniment of Angwin, her awareness of the aliens' presence, and her silence at the USBP checkpoint when asked whether there were other people in the vehicle are insufficient collectively to prove that she intended to help the aliens remain in the United States illegally. In her view, that evidence also supports an inference that she was duped into accompanying Angwin and did not intend to assist him in transporting the aliens. 77 Standing alone, Khamis' presence in the motorhome would not constitute sufficient evidence to support her conviction. See 9th Cir. Crim. Jury Instr. 6.9 (noting that mere presence at the scene of a crime or mere knowledge that a crime is being committed is not sufficient to establish that the defendant committed the crime . . . unless you find that the defendant was a participant and not merely a knowing spectator); Esparza, 876 F.2d at 1392 (finding that a defendant's presence in one vehicle was not a sufficient basis to infer that he was aware of or participated in a conspiracy to transport aliens in a second accompanying vehicle where there was no evidence that the defendant knew that aliens were hidden in the second vehicle). Even Khamis' presence in the motorhome combined with her knowledge of the aliens' presence might not in itself provide sufficient evidence to persuade a jury beyond a reasonable doubt that she knowingly aided and abetted the transportation of the aliens in order to help them remain in the United States illegally. If the only additional piece of evidence against Khamis had been her failure to reveal the aliens' presence at the checkpoint when asked whether she and Angwin were the only passengers in the motorhome, we would be compelled to decide whether her presence, knowledge, and silence constituted sufficient evidence. 78 This Court need not make that determination, however, as there was other evidence against Khamis from which a reasonable jury could have found beyond a reasonable doubt that Khamis knowingly aided and abetted the transportation of the aliens with the intent to help them remain in the United States illegally. 79 First, Khamis exhibited nervousness at the checkpoint through her failure to make eye contact with Agent Mikuski. When Mikuski asked Angwin and Khamis if they were United States citizens, Angwin answered but Khamis did not until Mikuski posed the question to her directly. Mikuski also noted that Khamis looked straight ahead and never looked at him, even when he was talking to her. Khamis was also silent when Mikuski asked if the defendants were the only occupants of the vehicle. Because Khamis was not yet in custody, it was proper for the prosecutor to comment on her silence at the primary inspection area as constituting substantive evidence of her guilt. See United States v. Oplinger, 150 F.3d 1061, 1066-67 (9th Cir. 1998). 6 80 Second, Khamis made a statement to Agent Searle that was inconsistent with Angwin's testimony at trial with respect to certain details about their travel such as the time they left the rest area and why they stopped along the highway and that otherwise failed to corroborate Angwin's version of the events. 81 Third, there was indirect evidence that Khamis waved to the aliens as if to encourage them to enter the motorhome. When the defendants stopped along the highway, Khamis exited on the passenger side and toward the front of the vehicle, as evidenced by her statement to Searle, Angwin's testimony, and Vincente-Morales' testimony. Vincente-Morales testified that he saw a hand near the front and to the side of the motorhome that was signaling to the group. While Vincente-Morales admittedly could not tell whether the person was a man or a woman because he was moving quickly, combined with Angwin's testimony regarding his own location, the location of the Latino men who were speaking with Angwin, and Khamis's location, a rational jury could have believed that Khamis was the person waving the aliens toward the motorhome. That Angwin and the guide were also waving at various times would not preclude an inference that Khamis was the person waving toward the aliens, especially given Angwin's testimony that he was near the rear of the motorhome when the aliens entered the vehicle. 82 From this range of evidence--Khamis' accompaniment of Angwin, her knowledge of the aliens' presence, her nervousness and failure to disclose the aliens' presence at the checkpoint, the inconsistencies between Angwin's testimony and Khamis' statement to Searle, and the indirect evidence that Khamis waved to the aliens--a rational jury could have found beyond a reasonable doubt that Khamis intended to provide cover for Angwin and that she acted with the intent of helping the aliens remain in this country illegally. Indeed, our court and others have upheld convictions under 8 U.S.C. section 1324 that were challenged on sufficiency of evidence grounds with similar indicia of guilt. See United States v. Hernandez-Guardado, 228 F.3d 1017, 1023 (9th Cir. 2000) (The Government need not prove by direct evidence a defendant's intent to further the presence of an illegal alien.); Hernandez-Franco, 189 F.3d 1151, 1155-56 (9th Cir. 1999) (finding that a jury could have inferred that a defendant knowingly transported aliens where a witness testified that a person matching the defendant's description observed aliens being loaded into the vehicle); id. at 1158 (Duress does not negate the mens rea required for a violation of section 1324(a)(1)(A)(ii). Appellant could intend to drive a truck with undocumented aliens to further their illegal presence in the United States, but act in that manner because someone had a gun to his head.); United States v. Chavez-Palacios, 30 F.3d 1290, 1294 (10th Cir. 1994) (finding that a defendant's presence in a vehicle, knowledge that aliens were present, and awareness that he knew that he might get in trouble for driving the van constituted sufficient evidence); id. (Although the defendant offered evidence of his so-called 'mere presence' defense, our task is not to review matters of credibility and assess the weight of the evidence . . . . The jury's finding of guilt means that it found that the defendant had the intent to further the aliens' presence in this country.). Her conviction was therefore supported by sufficient evidence. 83