Court Opinion

ID: 9914040
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-12-29 15:00:42.738227+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:09:55.503353
License: Public Domain

USCA11 Case: 23-11167    Document: 25-1      Date Filed: 12/29/2023   Page: 1 of 16

                                                    [DO NOT PUBLISH]
                                    In the
                 United States Court of Appeals
                         For the Eleventh Circuit

                           ____________________

                                 No. 23-11167
                           Non-Argument Calendar
                           ____________________

        UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
                                                       Plaintiﬀ-Appellee,
        versus
        ERIC LAMAR WHITE,

                                                    Defendant-Appellant.

                           ____________________

                  Appeal from the United States District Court
                     for the Northern District of Alabama
                   D.C. Docket No. 4:21-cr-00309-CLM-JHE-2
                           ____________________
USCA11 Case: 23-11167       Document: 25-1    Date Filed: 12/29/2023     Page: 2 of 16

        2                      Opinion of the Court                23-11167

        Before JILL PRYOR, BRANCH, and HULL, Circuit Judges.
        PER CURIAM:
                After a jury trial, Eric Lamar White was convicted of
        (1) aiding and abetting a carjacking, in violation of 18 U.S.C.
        §§ 2119 and 2 (“Count One”), and (2) aiding and abetting the
        brandishing of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, in
        violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 924(c)(1)(A)(ii) and 2 (“Count Two”). On
        appeal, White argues that there was insufficient evidence to
        support his convictions. After review of the record and the briefs,
        we conclude there was ample evidence to convict White of both
        crimes, and thus we affirm his convictions.
                       I.    FACTUAL BACKGROUND
               We set forth the trial evidence that showed Kendarian
        Lamontae Toran (“Toran”) and defendant-appellant Eric Lamar
        White (“White”) were in a stolen Chevrolet Equinox that had
        mechanical issues, and they then carjacked an Acura vehicle driven
        by victim Kristin Walker (“Walker”) and abandoned the Equinox.
        A.    Witnesses and Videos
               The government presented testimony from: (1) Michael
        Ray, the bystander who called 911 after the carjacking; (2) Walker,
        the victim; (3) Brittany Trunnell, the owner of the stolen Equinox;
        (4) Troy Dunlap, a detective with the Moody Police Department
        who was dispatched to the abandoned Equinox in a parking lot;
        (5) Sergeant Jeff Pitts of the Scott County Sheriff’s Department, one
USCA11 Case: 23-11167      Document: 25-1     Date Filed: 12/29/2023     Page: 3 of 16

        23-11167               Opinion of the Court                        3

        of the initial officers involved in the pursuit of the stolen Acura;
        (6) Robert Sanders, Assistant Chief of the Madison Police
        Department and an officer with the Rankin County Sheriff’s
        Department who was involved in the Acura pursuit and arrest of
        Toran; (7) Ricky Davis, an investigator with the Rankin County
        Sheriff’s Department who was involved in the arrest of White and
        Toran; (8) Christian Dedmon, an officer in the Rankin County
        Sheriff’s Office narcotics division who was involved in the arrest of
        White; (9) Special Agent Casey Smith of the Bureau of Alcohol,
        Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives who investigated the
        carjacking; and (10) Special Agent Christopher Baker of the Bureau
        of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives who investigated
        the carjacking.
               The government also presented video surveillance footage
        from: (1) a Logan’s Steakhouse parking lot; (2) the Circle K where
        the carjacking occurred; and (3) the ADESA parking lot where the
        stolen Equinox was abandoned. The government also presented
        Ray’s 911 call regarding the carjacking, recordings of defendant
        White’s jail phone calls, dash camera footage from Officer
        Sanders’s vehicle, White’s Glock .45 firearm, a photo of White’s
        gun taken by Officer Dedmon, White’s cell phone and cell phone
        records, a photo of the clothing White wore at his arrest, photos of
        the recovered Equinox, a photo from the state tag readers on I-20
        at the Alabama/Mississippi line, and Toran’s cell phone and cell
        phone records. We now review the evidence of the crimes and the
        witnesses’ testimony about what the video surveillance and cell
        phone records showed.
USCA11 Case: 23-11167         Document: 25-1        Date Filed: 12/29/2023        Page: 4 of 16

        4                         Opinion of the Court                      23-11167

        B.     Preparation for Trip to Atlanta
               In early January 2021, White and Toran planned a trip from
        Jackson, Mississippi to Atlanta, Georgia. On January 3, 2021, prior
        to their trip, Toran informed White that he was at the Park at Moss
        Creek apartments in Jackson, Mississippi. Both White and Toran
        were at this apartment complex before. The next day, after making
        sure Toran was alone, White texted Toran in advance of their trip,
        “Need to find us a whip so we can go to the A.” “Whip” is a term
        commonly used to refer to a vehicle. That is exactly what Toran
        did.
               On the morning of January 6, 2021, a 2008 burgundy
        Chevrolet Equinox was stolen from the Park at Moss Creek
        apartments. Within an hour of the theft of the Equinox, Toran
        called White. White answered the call, which lasted 46 seconds.
        Three minutes later, Toran sent White a text reading “Send it.”
        White responded by sending a map pin. Within the next 20
        minutes, White and Toran had two additional short phone calls.
               Approximately an hour later, White texted “Kalungano,” a
        third party, asking “Aye KT straight? He with me. We just came up
        on a lil lick.” 1 “Lick” is commonly used to refer to a robbery or

        1 During his trial testimony, White confirmed that he used “KT” to refer to his

        co-defendant, Toran. White also stated that a “lick” “didn’t necessarily have
        to be a robbery” and that it could have meant “any type of financial gain or
        something to better your situation at the moment.” But on cross examination,
        White stated that, as used in the text message, “lick” was something
        “[n]egative but not illegal.”
USCA11 Case: 23-11167     Document: 25-1    Date Filed: 12/29/2023   Page: 5 of 16

        23-11167             Opinion of the Court                      5

        theft. Kalungano expressed concerns about Toran, responding
        “Nall cuz i told them stop coming to my house after licks.” That
        did not deter White from taking the trip with Toran. Instead,
        White responded “We already dropped it off out west. My girl was
        finna bring us out there.”
        C.    Trip to Atlanta
               Early in the morning on January 7, 2021, White and Toran
        began their trip to Atlanta driving the stolen burgundy Equinox.
        White took his black Glock .45 caliber pistol with him and had
        always known Toran to carry a gun with him. While on the way
        to Atlanta, the Equinox began to experience mechanical issues, so
        White and Toran stopped in Moody, Alabama. White was driving
        the stolen Equinox.
        D.    Logan’s Parking Lot from Video Surveillance
              After exiting the highway, they first stopped at a Logan’s
        Steakhouse restaurant. They pulled into the parking lot at
        approximately 1:19 PM, following closely behind a silver BMW
        sedan. The BMW parked and two individuals got out of the car
        almost immediately. The Equinox circled around the BMW and
        parked. In doing so, the Equinox passed a number of available
        parking spaces. No one ever got out of the Equinox. At
        approximately 1:21 PM, the Equinox left the parking lot. The
        Equinox then pulled into a nearby Circle K gas station at
        approximately 1:23 PM.
USCA11 Case: 23-11167      Document: 25-1     Date Filed: 12/29/2023     Page: 6 of 16

        6                      Opinion of the Court                23-11167

        E.    Circle K Carjacking from Video Surveillance
               Initially, the Equinox pulled into the gas station and parked
        in front of the pumps to the far left, with the pumps on the driver’s
        side of the vehicle. The gas tank on a 2008 Equinox is on the
        passenger side. No one got out of the Equinox. After about 2 and
        a half minutes, the driver’s door opened and then closed almost 15
        seconds later.
               Then, at approximately 1:26 PM, a white 2008 Acura TL
        pulled into the parking lot and parked at pump number 9, two rows
        over from the pumps where the Equinox was parked. The Acura
        was driven by Walker, who was three months pregnant. Walker’s
        two children, aged nine and six, were in the backseat. Nothing
        blocked the view of the Acura from the Equinox.
               Approximately two minutes later, a large white van pulled
        up to the pumps between the Acura and the Equinox. Walker got
        out of her car and started pumping gas. Within 15 seconds, the
        Equinox backed up and then pulled forward. The Equinox drove
        all the way around the parking lot, past all of the pumps, circled
        around, and then stopped in front of pump number 10, the pump
        on the opposite side of the gas pump the Acura was using. Again,
        the gas tank on the Equinox was on the opposite side as the gas
        pump. Walker then got back into her car and waited for her gas to
        finish pumping.
               After Walker returned to the Acura, it appears that the rear
        driver’s side door of the Equinox opened briefly and then closed.
        Then, at approximately 1:30 PM, the Equinox reverses a short
USCA11 Case: 23-11167     Document: 25-1      Date Filed: 12/29/2023    Page: 7 of 16

        23-11167              Opinion of the Court                        7

        distance. Immediately after reversing, White, who was driving,
        exited the vehicle. White walked over to a trash receptacle located
        between the Equinox and the Acura, leaned over, and then
        reentered the Equinox, without ever pumping gas.
               The Equinox repositioned itself again, pulling forward only
        a few feet and then reversing. The Equinox reversed just enough
        to allow a direct path from the Equinox’s backseat door to the
        Acura’s driver’s door.
                At 1:32 PM, once Walker’s gas finished pumping, Walker
        got out of her Acura to complete her transaction. Walker left her
        driver’s side door open and her keys in the ignition. While she was
        finalizing her transaction, Toran jumped out of the backseat of the
        Equinox and into the driver’s seat of Walker’s Acura. Walker
        jumped on top of him and attempted to grab the keys out of the
        ignition. After a very brief struggle over the keys, Toran pulled a
        gun, put it to Walker’s stomach, and told her to get out of the car.
        Walker told him that she would not leave without her children.
        Once her children were out of the car, Toran drove off in the
        Acura.
               As soon as Toran got into the driver’s seat of the Acura,
        White, in the Equinox, pulled out towards the gas station’s exit.
        The Equinox did not immediately turn out from the gas station. At
        1:33 PM, once Toran in the Acura pulled away from the pump, the
        Equinox made a right-hand turn out of the gas station with the
        Acura following immediately behind. Notably, the Acura drove
        past a closer, alternative exit to follow the Equinox.
USCA11 Case: 23-11167         Document: 25-1          Date Filed: 12/29/2023         Page: 8 of 16

        8                          Opinion of the Court                        23-11167

               Immediately following the carjacking, at 1:34 PM, Toran
        called White. White answered and the conversation lasted 17
        seconds.2 Toran and White then rendezvoused at an ADESA car
        auction parking lot.
        F.      The Rendezvous at ADESA from Video Surveillance
               At 1:35 PM, Toran and White pulled into an ADESA car
        auction parking lot. Toran, driving the white Acura, was in front
        with White, driving the Equinox, following closely behind. White
        got out of the Equinox, walked over to the Acura, opened the door,
        and leaned into the Acura. Approximately 20 seconds later, White
        got into the Acura and shut the door. At 1:36 PM, Toran and White
        in the Acura drove away, leaving the Equinox in the ADESA lot.
        G.      Car Chase and Arrest
               Toran and White left the ADESA parking lot and started
        driving back home to Jackson, Mississippi. After about two and a
        half hours, around the Mississippi state line, the two switched
        places and White took over driving the stolen Acura.
               After Toran and White crossed into Mississippi, Sergeant
        Pitts was alerted about a possible carjacking with the tag number
        and description that matched the Acura. He set up on the interstate

        2 When asked about this call at trial, White testified “I don’t really remember

        a phone call.” White also testified that he did not have any service at the Circle
        K but noticed that he had service in the ADESA parking lot. According to
        White, he did not have cell phone service until he was in the Acura with
        Toran.
USCA11 Case: 23-11167         Document: 25-1        Date Filed: 12/29/2023         Page: 9 of 16

        23-11167                  Opinion of the Court                                9

        and began observing traffic. Once Sergeant Pitts observed a vehicle
        matching the description of the stolen Acura, he pulled out and got
        behind the vehicle and confirmed the tag number. Instead of
        initiating a stop, Sergeant Pitts radioed for several marked units
        from the Forest Police Department to head towards the interstate.
        With three additional sheriff’s department vehicles behind him,
        Sergeant Pitts initiated a stop of the Acura.
               White did not pull the Acura over once the police lights
        were initiated. Instead, White immediately sped up. At that point,
        Sergeant Pitts initiated pursuit of the Acura. White, in the Acura,
        continued to flee, weaving in and out of traffic at a very high rate
        of speed, approximately 130-plus miles an hour at the fastest, for 25
        to 30 miles. There were numerous attempts to spike the vehicle,
        but they were not successful.3 Eventually White stopped after a
        PIT maneuver was performed.4
               Once the Acura stopped, officers approached. White was
        given orders to exit the vehicle, but did not comply. Eventually,
        an officer was able to open the door and White exited the vehicle.
        Another officer grabbed White by the shoulder and White “went

        3 Spike strips are a tool used by law enforcement. The spike strips are thrown

        out in the middle of the road. Once a vehicle drives over the strips, spikes are
        inserted into the tires and the tires will deflate slowly. They are used to slow
        the vehicle down.
        4 A PIT maneuver is a technique used by law enforcement when a vehicle is

        fleeing. The police vehicle bumps the rear of the fleeing vehicle and makes
        the fleeing vehicle spin and go off the road one way or the other.
USCA11 Case: 23-11167     Document: 25-1      Date Filed: 12/29/2023    Page: 10 of 16

        10                     Opinion of the Court                23-11167

        on the ground onto his belly.” While on his stomach, White began
        pushing his hands under the Acura in a swimming motion. In
        response, Dedmon deployed his Taser, shooting White in the back.
        White then took his hands out from under the Acura and was
        placed in hand constraints.
               In White’s pockets, officers found an Alabama driver’s
        license of a white female, along with other cards. A gun was found
        on the ground under the frame of the Acura on the driver’s side.
        That gun was purchased by White. Officers did not find a gun on
        Toran, nor any other firearms inside the Acura. Toran and White
        were arrested.
        H.    Motion for Judgment of Acquittal
                At the conclusion of the government’s case, White moved
        for a judgment of acquittal on both counts. White argued that the
        government failed to present sufficient evidence that White
        intended to rob or carjack the Acura from Walker. The district
        court denied White’s motion.
               Then, White testified in his own defense. White testified
        that Toran told him that “he had found a ride for us to go to Atlanta
        and that they would let us borrow the car for the day or however
        long we were planning on staying gone.” White also testified that:
        (1) he had his firearm with him on the trip to Atlanta; (2) he has
        “always known [Toran] to have a gun”; (3) he did not know Toran
        was going to steal the Acura; and (4) he had no intent, knowledge,
        or plan to aid and abet Toran in carjacking a car.
USCA11 Case: 23-11167      Document: 25-1      Date Filed: 12/29/2023      Page: 11 of 16

        23-11167                Opinion of the Court                         11

              White testified that he only learned the Equinox was stolen
        during his conversation with Toran in the ADESA lot. According
        to White, Toran told him that he “was either going to be a sitting
        duck there having to answer for the car that [Toran] just stole and
        the Equinox or either [he] could at least try to make it home. And,
        you know, [they] wouldn’t have to worry about that again. You
        know, [Toran] would take the blame for it himself.”
               White also testified that he was “just sitting at the pump, . . .
        trying to connect to some WiFi,” when Toran opened the door and
        got out of the truck. White testified that shortly thereafter: (1) he
        heard screams and “pulled off”; (2) he “didn’t really know what was
        going on”; (3) Toran “didn’t explain to [him] what was about to go
        down, what [Toran] was about to do”; (4) he was “kind of
        frightened”; and (5) during the carjacking, his gun was in his
        possession—“maybe in [his] lap or in [his] hoodie pocket.”
                After the carjacking, White fled from the police because he
        was spooked and realized at that point how serious the situation
        was. White stated “[i]t was a little bit of being scared. At the same
        time, I guess, trying to help out a friend, realizing how much
        trouble he was in.” White claimed that once the police activated
        their lights, Toran threw his gun out of the window. The officers
        involved in the Acura pursuit testified that they never saw a gun be
        thrown out of the vehicle. White also testified that he did not
        know “anything about a pistol being brought up or anything of that
        nature.”
USCA11 Case: 23-11167         Document: 25-1   Date Filed: 12/29/2023    Page: 12 of 16

        12                       Opinion of the Court               23-11167

               At the conclusion of White’s testimony, the defense rested.
        The district court noted that White’s motion for judgment of
        acquittal was preserved as to both counts. After deliberating, the
        jury found White guilty as to both counts.
               The district court sentenced White to a term of 60 months’
        imprisonment on his Count One conviction for aiding and abetting
        a carjacking and a consecutive 84 months on his Count Two
        conviction for aiding and abetting the brandishing of a firearm in
        furtherance of a crime of violence, followed by 36 months of
        supervised release for each count to be served concurrently.
                        II.     STANDARD OF REVIEW
                We generally review challenges to the sufficiency of the
        evidence de novo, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable
        to the government. United States v. Godwin, 765 F.3d 1306, 1319
        (11th Cir. 2014); see also United States v. House, 684 F.3d 1173, 1196
        (11th Cir. 2012). Whether the evidence is direct or only
        circumstantial, we will accept all reasonable inferences and
        credibility choices that support the jury’s verdict. House, 684 F.3d
        at 1196; United States v. Williams, 390 F.3d 1319, 1323-24 (11th Cir.
        2004). We will not overturn a guilty verdict unless, based on the
        record evidence, no rational trier of fact could have found the
        defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. United States v.
        Silvestri, 409 F.3d 1311, 1327 (11th Cir. 2005).
                                III.   DISCUSSION
              The federal aiding-and-abetting statute provides that a
        person who aids or abets the commission of an offense is liable as
USCA11 Case: 23-11167     Document: 25-1      Date Filed: 12/29/2023    Page: 13 of 16

        23-11167               Opinion of the Court                       13

        a principal. 18 U.S.C. § 2. For an aiding-and-abetting crime, the
        government must prove that the defendant “associated himself”
        with the underlying crime, “wished to bring it about,” and
        otherwise sought to make the crime succeed by his actions. United
        States v. Sosa, 777 F.3d 1279, 1292 (11th Cir. 2015). To convict
        under an aiding-and-abetting theory, the government must prove
        three elements: “(1) someone committed the substantive offense;
        (2) the defendant contributed to and furthered the offense; and
        (3) the defendant intended to aid in its commission.” Id. A
        defendant can be convicted of aiding and abetting even if he “has
        not personally committed all the acts constituting the elements of
        the substantive crime.” Id. at 1293 (quotation marks omitted). The
        defendant must take an affirmative act in furtherance of the crime
        with the intent to facilitate its commission. Id. at 1292.
        A.    The Substantive Offenses
                To convict a defendant of carjacking under 18 U.S.C. § 2119,
        the government must prove that the defendant “(1) with intent to
        cause death or serious bodily harm (2) took a motor vehicle (3) that
        had been transported, shipped or received in interstate or foreign
        commerce (4) from the person or presence of another (5) by force
        and violence or intimidation.” United States v. Diaz, 248 F.3d 1065,
        1096 (11th Cir. 2001); see 18 U.S.C. § 2119. To convict a defendant
        of brandishing a firearm under 18 U.S.C. § 924(c), the government
        must prove that the defendant (1) knowingly (2) brandished a
        firearm (3) during and in relation to a crime of violence. See United
        States v. Isnadin, 742 F.3d 1278, 1307 (11th Cir. 2014).
USCA11 Case: 23-11167      Document: 25-1       Date Filed: 12/29/2023      Page: 14 of 16

        14                      Opinion of the Court                   23-11167

                As an initial matter, White does not dispute that the
        elements of the underlying offenses of carjacking and brandishing
        a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence were met. See United
        States v. Campbell, 26 F.4th 860, 873 (11th Cir.) (en banc), cert denied,
        143 S. Ct. 95 (2022). White also does not argue that his actions did
        not contribute to or further the offenses. Instead, White’s appeal
        challenges the sufficiency of the evidence regarding his intent
        under the federal aiding-and-abetting statute.
        B.     Intent
               To satisfy the intent required for aiding and abetting, a
        defendant must, independent of the affirmative act requirement,
        actively participate in the commission of the crime, “with full
        knowledge of the circumstances” that constitute the whole offense.
        Rosemond v. United States, 572 U.S. 65, 77 (2014). A person is
        “responsible for a crime he has not personally carried out if he helps
        another to complete its commission.” Twitter, Inc. v. Taamneh, 598
        U.S. 471, 488 (2023) (quoting Rosemond, 572 U.S. at 70).
               Where the defendant is charged with aiding and abetting an
        18 U.S.C. § 924(c) firearm offense, full knowledge will constitute
        “advance knowledge” that the firearm will be brought to carry out
        the crime. Rosemond, 572 U.S. at 78. Having advance knowledge
        allows the defendant to make a choice to continue to participate in
        the commission of the crime or withdraw. Id. Thus, if a defendant
        has continued with the commission of a crime even after a gun has
        been drawn or used, a jury may reasonably infer that he had such
USCA11 Case: 23-11167     Document: 25-1     Date Filed: 12/29/2023    Page: 15 of 16

        23-11167              Opinion of the Court                       15

        advance knowledge from his failure to object or withdraw. Id. at
        78 n.9.
               Here, there was more than ample evidence to convict White
        of both crimes because the government presented a plethora of
        evidence from which a reasonable jury could have readily inferred
        White’s willful participation in the carjacking and that White had
        advance knowledge that a gun would be used in the commission
        of the carjacking. For instance, the evidence showed: (1) White
        always knew Toran to have a gun on him; and (2) White drove the
        stolen Equinox from which Toran emerged with a gun. The video
        surveillance footage even suggests that Toran and White were
        scouting for a victim. Then, after the carjacking and brandishing
        of a firearm, White continued participating in the crime and
        attempted to flee the police in the stolen Acura. Further, the only
        gun recovered was White’s gun.
               White stresses his own trial testimony in support of his
        arguments on appeal. But “when a defendant takes the stand in a
        criminal case and exposes his demeanor to the jury, the jury may
        make adverse determinations about his credibility and reject his
        explanation as a complete fabrication.” United States v. Vazquez, 53
        F.3d 1216, 1225 (11th Cir. 1995). The testifying defendant “runs the
        risk that if disbelieved the jury might conclude the opposite of his
        testimony is true.” United States v. Brown, 53 F.3d 312, 314 (11th
        Cir. 1995) (quotation marks omitted). If the jury disbelieves the
        defendant on a point, the jury may consider that testimony
        “substantive evidence of the defendant’s guilt,” and that testimony
USCA11 Case: 23-11167        Document: 25-1        Date Filed: 12/29/2023     Page: 16 of 16

        16                        Opinion of the Court                    23-11167

        “may establish, by itself, elements of the offense.” Id. at 314-15.
        “This rule applies with special force where the elements to be
        proved for a conviction include highly subjective elements: for
        example, the defendant’s intent or knowledge.” Id. at 315.
                Here, the jury was free to discredit White’s testimony and
        consider it as substantive evidence of his guilt. See Vazquez, 53 F.3d
        at 1225; Brown, 53 F.3d at 314-15. And, based on the government’s
        substantial evidence implicating White, we cannot disturb the
        jury’s credibility determinations on appeal. See United States v.
        Feliciano, 761 F.3d 1202, 1206 (11th Cir. 2014).
                                 IV.     CONCLUSION
              For the reasons stated above, we affirm White’s two
        convictions.5
               AFFIRMED.

        5 On appeal, White does not raise any issue as to his sentence.