Court Opinion

ID: 9474173
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 04:49:57.569325+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:43:56.558045
License: Public Domain

ROBERT MADDEN HILL, Circuit Judge,
dissenting:
I respectfully dissent from the majority’s holding in this case that the evidence is insufficient to support the convictions of Antonio Reyes Espinoza for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana and aiding and abetting one another in the substantive offense of possession with intent to distribute marijuana.
The standard of review in this case is a familiar one. It is set out in United States v. Jackson, 700 F.2d 181, 184-85 (5th Cir.1983), as follows:
We must, of course, give deference to the findings of the jury. United States v. White, 5 Cir., 569 F.2d 263, 268, cert. denied, 1978, 439 U.S. 848, 99 S.Ct. 148, 58 L.Ed.2d 149. We must view the evidence presented in the case and the inferences that may be drawn from it in a light most favorable to the government and ask whether “a reasonable trier of fact could find that the evidence establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.” United States v. Bell, 5 Cir.1982, 678 F.2d 547, 549. “We will reverse only if a reasonably minded jury must necessarily have entertained a reasonable doubt of a defendant’s guilt.” United States v. Vergara, 5 Cir.1982, 687 F.2d 57, 60; see also United States v. Galvin, 5 Cir.1982, 693 F.2d 417, 419. Nevertheless, we must not hesitate to overturn a jury verdict when it is necessary to “guard against dilution of the principle that guilt is to be established by probative evidence and beyond a reasonable doubt.” Estelle v. Williams, 1976, 425 U.S. 501, 503, 96 S.Ct. 1691, 1693, 48 L.Ed.2d 126, 130. Juries must not be allowed to convict on mere suspicion and innuendo. United States v. Littrell, 5 Cir.1978, [574] F.2d 828, 833. The test is whether the jury “could reasonably, logically, and legally infer from the evidence presented that the appellant was guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.” United States v. White, 569 F.2d at 266.
In drug conspiracy cases, the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a conspiracy existed, that the accused knew of the conspiracy, and that
*551he knowingly and voluntarily joined it.1 United States v. Bright, 5 Cir.1978, 550 F.2d 240, 242; United States v. White, 569 F.2d at 267. We have previously stressed that we will not lightly infer a defendant’s knowledge and acquiescence in a conspiracy. Id. at 267; United States v. Johnson, 5 Cir., 439 F.2d 885, 888, cert. denied, 1971, 404 U.S. 880, 92 S.Ct. 213, 30 L.Ed.2d 161. The government must show beyond a reasonably doubt that the defendant had the deliberate, knowing, and specific intent to join the conspiracy. United States v. Galvan, 693 F.2d at 419; United States v. DeSimone, 5 Cir.1981, 660 F.2d 532, 537, cert. denied sub nom. Butler v. United States, 1982, 455 U.S. 1027, 102 S.Ct. 1732, 72 L.Ed.2d 149. A showing that the defendant merely associated with those participating in a conspiracy is insufficient. United States v. Fitzharris, 5 Cir.1980, 633 F.2d 416, 423, cert. denied, 1981, 451 U.S. 988, 101 S.Ct. 2325, 68 L.Ed.2d 847; United States v. Littrell, 574 F.2d at 833; United States v. White, 569 F.2d at 268. Similarly, the government cannot prove a conspiracy by presenting evidence that only places the defendant in “a climate of activity that reeks of something foul.” United States v. Galvan, 693 F.2d at 419; United States v. DeSimone, 660 F.2d at 537.
In order to apply the above standard to this case, I feel compelled to repeat the facts set out in the majority opinion as they relate to Espinoza’s conduct and at the same time add thereto some other facts dealing with Espinoza’s involvement in the charges in this case that I have deduced from a reading of the record.
The facts in this case as they relate to the role played by Espinoza are as follows:
On June 3rd, 1983, Espinoza, defendant Ricardo Alonza Gomez and Juan Frank Garcia checked into the Marriott Hotel in San Antonio; Garcia registered for rooms 1406 and 1408. At the time Garcia was ' wearing some expensive gold jewelry and a watch. On June 6th at 11:28 a.m. Espinoza left room 1406 accompanied by an unidentified Hispanic female and drove her in a 1981 Ford to the San Antonio Airport. At the airport the female boarded an airplane destined for Harlingen, Texas, via Houston, Texas. About noon Espinoza returned to the Marriott Hotel. He entered the lobby and made a telephone call.2 He then returned to room 1406.
Shortly thereafter the defendant Gomez removed some luggage from room 1408 to room 1406. At about this time the group checked out of room 1408. At 12:15 p.m. Espinoza left room 1406 and drove the Ford automobile from the Marriott Hotel to a Holiday Inn Hotel located a short distance away. He met defendant Gilbert Barnett Hartman who entered the Ford automobile and was driven by Espinoza back to he Marriott Hotel; Espinoza and Hartman then entered the Marriott Hotel. At 12:45 p.m. Espinoza, Gomez and Hartman left the Marriott Hotel. They traveled in the Ford automobile to a place to fuel the Ford; they then drove to the Holiday Inn. Gomez exited the Ford, whereupon Espinoza and Hartman, with Espinoza still driving, proceeded in an easterly direction out of San Antonio towards Seguin, Texas. During the course of this trip they rendezvoused with a U-Haul truck being driven by Gomez; the Ford and the truck then proceeded together. After traveling approximately forty miles, the two vehicles reached Seguin. Espinoza and Hartman stopped at a Kentucky Fried Chicken res*552taurant; Gomez continued on to a rural area and parked his truck next to a metal shed adjoining a rural residence. After about one-half hour, at 3:15 p.m., Gomez drove the truck to the Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant where he met Espinoza and Hartman.
The three parties visited with each other for a few moments and they then walked out to the parking lot where the truck was located. Hartman entered the truck and drove it in an easterly direction toward Houston. Espinoza and Gomez entered the Ford automobile, with Espinoza again driving, and they proceeded in a westerly direction towards San Antonio. Shortly after the truck left Seguin it was stopped by law enforcement officials and Hartman was placed under arrest. The officers observed marijuana on the back tailgate of the truck and also detected the odor of marijuana being emitted from the truck. The truck was searched and 1181 pounds of marijuana was found. At about the same time Espinoza and Gomez were stopped by law enforcement officials and were placed under arrest. A small amount of marijuana was found in Gomez’s boot when he was searched.
On June 7th room 1406 was checked out of and the bill for both rooms, amounting to $729.92, was paid in cash. Also, on June 7th a search warrant was executed on room 1406. The search of this room, in addition to disclosing some personal clothing and gold jewelry, disclosed hotel stationary from the Holiday Inn and notes on graph paper consisting of figures that converted kilograms to pounds, multiplied pounds by dollars, subtracted expenses, and left a net profit figure. The notes also contained words written in Spanish and “Tex-Mex.” Also found was a Texas map and a drawn map of an area near Houston. Expert testimony offered by the government was to the effect that the figures and information contained in these notes related to four drug transactions, one of which was consistent with a twelve hundred pound transaction involving marijuana like that involved in this case. The expert further testified that the notes were prepared while the parties involved in the transaction were negotiating the sale of marijuana.
I am compelled to conclude that this evidence was sufficient to support the conviction of Espinoza. The evidence would permit the jury to find or reasonably infer that Garcia, Espinoza and Gomez possessed marijuana which was sold to Hartman and that the negotiations for the sale of the marijuana took place in room 1406 at the Marriott Hotel, which had been occupied by Espinoza. Additionally, it was well within the jury’s prerogative based on the evidence to conclude that the use of Espinoza’s 1981 Ford automobile was essential to the marijuana transaction. His motor vehicle in fact operated as a life line through out this transaction, tying the parties and the places together in their negotiations and in the ultimate transfer of the marijuana to Hartman in Seguin.
Espinoza’s role has to be classified as more than that of a bystander. He drove from the Marriott Hotel to the Holiday Inn, picked up Hartman, transported him back to the Marriott, and then transported Gomez and Hartman back to the Holiday Inn. He then drove Hartman to Seguin, and after the delivery of the marijuana to Hartman, he began to drive Gomez back to San Antonio.
Additionally the evidence found in room 1406 was significant in connecting Espinoza with the other parties in this scheme and revealing his knowledge of this conspiracy. The government’s evidence as to the notes found in room 1406 and the expert witnesses’ interpretation of those notes as involving a drug deal of approximately the same amount of marijuana involved in this case would reasonably permit a jury to draw the conclusion that a drug transaction was discussed in Espinoza’s room. The map of the Houston area also tied into the overall events as this was the direction Hartman was headed after he took possession of the truck loaded with marijuana. The argument by Espinoza that the notes could have been those of other persons later occupying room 1406 after he abandoned it is rebut*553ted by the fact that Spanish and “Tex-Mex” words were present on the notes and that the jewelry found in the room was similar to that worn by Garcia when he checked into the Marriott Hotel on June 3rd.
Further, the conduct of the parties upon their arrival in Seguin is itself indicative of a drug transaction. Immediately upon arrival Gomez in the truck parted company from Espinoza and Hartman in the Ford automobile, only to return a short time later. The truck was then delivered to Hartman. Espinoza’s proximity on the same parking lot where the truck was located, the presence of marijuana on the tailgate of the truck, and the odor of marijuana, along with the earlier attendant circumstances, would reasonably support a jury’s conclusion that a drug transaction had been accomplished. The majority in its opinion discussing the merits of the fourth amendment issues acknowledges this. The opinion states: “[o]n arriving in Seguin, the individuals undertook activity which reeked not only of the strange but more particularly of a drug purchase.” At 547.
The majority’s emphasis on the lack of evidence that Espinoza actually “knew drugs were in the truck picked up by Gomez and delivered to Hartman,” at 549, too narrowly restricts the burden on the government in this case. Espinoza’s conviction can be sustained even if he never actually knew that the truck contained marijuana. All that the government had to prove was that there existed an agreement by other parties for the unlawful purpose to possess marijuana with intent to distribute, that Espinoza knew of the agreement and its unlawful purpose, and that Espinoza knowingly and voluntarily joined the agreement. United States v. Alvarez, 625 F.2d 1196, 1198 (5th Cir.1980) (en banc); United States v. Jackson, 700 F.2d 181, 185 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 464 U.S. 842, 104 S.Ct. 139, 78 L.Ed.2d 132 (1983). It need not be proved that Espinoza knew all of the details of the conspiracy or each of its members, or that he participated in every phase of the criminal venture. United States v. Grassi, 616 F.2d 1295, 1303 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 449 U.S. 956, 101 S.Ct. 363, 66 L.Ed.2d 220 (1980). Espinoza’s role, as well, in the conspiracy could have been a minor one. United States v. Aguirre Aguirre, 716 F.2d 293, 297 (5th Cir.1983). Further, it was not a requirement that Espinoza be shown to be present at the time and location of the sale of a controlled substance. United States v. Parrish, 736 F.2d 152, 157 (5th Cir.1984); United States v. James, 528 F.2d 999, 1012 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 429 U.S. 959, 97 S.Ct. 382, 50 L.Ed.2d 326 (1976); cf. United States v. Aguirre Aguirre, 716 F.2d at 298. Thus knowledge by Espinoza of the fact that when the truck was delivered to Hartman in Seguin it contained marijuana was not necessary in order to convict Espinoza. His playing out a chauffeur’s role as a member of and in furtherance of the conspiracy, and nothing more, was all that was required to support his conviction.
The facts in this case are akin to those in United States v. Alvarez, 625 F.2d 1196 (5th Cir.1980) (en banc). In Alvarez the question presented was whether there was sufficient evidence to support the defendant’s convictions of a conspiracy to import marijuana. A panel concluded there was not; however, the en banc court held otherwise.
In Alvarez the importation of marijuana from a farm in Columbia was discussed by two individuals with undercover agents. The owner of the farm was shown to have spent a night with Alvarez. The next morning Alvarez drove the owner to an airport where they met one of the individuals planning to import the marijuana and who directed them to an airplane to be used in the operation. Alvarez and the farm owner were identified by the importer to the undercover agents as the farm owner and the one who would be present at the off-loading site when the marijuana was flown in from Columbia. Upon being asked by one of the agents if he was going to be at the unloading site, Alvarez nodded affirmatively, smiled, and asked the agent if he was going on the plane. After loading some appliances that had been stored at Alvarez’ apartment on to the plane, Al*554varez was arrested. The Alvarez court also noted two additional incidents that were significant to Alvarez’ involvement in the scheme. A person who had access to the landing field to be used by the plane resided in the same apartment house as did Alvarez; and the landing site was not a likely place for a plane to land and two trees had to be removed to make it so.
In finding that Alvarez’ complicity in the drug importation scheme by reason of his knowledge of its unlawful purpose and of the agreement between the parties to accomplish it had been established, the court emphasized these facts: Alvarez’ friendship with the Columbian farmer who was the supplier; the farmer’s overnight stay with Alvarez in his apartment; the storage of the appliances at the apartment, their transportation in Alvarez’ truck, and their being loaded on the plane; the person having access to the landing field resided in Alvarez’ apartment; lastly, and critical to the sufficiency of the evidence, Alvarez’ and the importer’s assurance that Alvarez would be at the off-loading site.
The Alvarez court went on to hold that from the overall conduct of the parties in the scheme, it was sufficient to infer that Alvarez knew criminal activity was afoot and that “it must also have been obvious to him that there was conspiracy to import contraband because prior planning and concerted action would be required to load marijuana in Columbia, fly it into this country, and unload it upon its arrival.” 625 F.2d at 1198. Alvarez’ joinder in the illicit scheme was deemed inferable from evidence that he intended to be at the off-loading site, from which a jury could deduce that his intended presence manifested an agreement to assist in the unloading, and, alternatively, the nodding of his head was an assurance to the agent that he would be present to assist off-loading the plane rapidly.
Like the holding in Alvarez that the defendant’s intent to be at the off-loading site was a confirmation of an agreement to assist in the unloading of the marijuana from the plane, here, too, Espinoza’s critical role as a chauffeur transporting the parties between the hotels in San Antonio, and then Hartman to Seguin, and Gomez back to San Antonio, supports the reasonable inference that Espinoza was fulfilling a prior agreement to accomplish this unlawful conspiracy.
In addition, knowledge on the part of Espinoza of the scheme and an explanation of the role he played as chauffeur is buttressed by the notes found in the room he occupied at the Marriott Hotel which evidenced this particular drug deal. Like an affirmative nod of the head and a smile, these notes and the story they told would permit a reasonable jury to infer that Espinoza was not innocent of knowledge of “activity which reeked not only of the strange, but more particularly of a drug purchase.”
Although mere presence at the scene of illegal conduct is insufficient to support a defendant’s conviction of criminal conduct, United States v. DeSimone, 660 F.2d 532, 537 (5th Cir.1981), cert. denied, 455 U.S. 1027, 102 S.Ct. 1732, 72 L.Ed.2d 149 (1982), “a conviction of a criminal conspiracy will be upheld ... when the circumstances surrounding a person’s presence at the scene of conspiratorial activity are so obvious that knowledge of its character can fairly be attributed to him.” United States v. Figueroa, 720 F.2d 1239, 1246 (11th Cir.1983) (citations omitted). We have recognized this principle as well. In United States v. Dean, 666 F.2d 195, 201 (5th Cir.1982), we held that a conspiracy may be inferred from the concerted action of the parties charged as members. The Supreme Court in Glasser v. United States, 315 U.S. 60, 80, 62 S.Ct. 457, 469, 86 L.Ed. 680 (1972), also gave credence to the proposition that a conspiracy is inferrable from “a development and a collocation of circumstances.” See also United States v. Aguirre Aguirre, 716 F.2d at 297.
Considering the totality of the circumstances here, to wit, Espinoza’s presence with some of the parties for four days, some of this time being spent together in Espinoza’s room, the use of Espinoza’s *555automobile and his chauffeuring the parties during the playing out of their roles in the scheme, his presence when the truck was delivered to Hartman with the undeniable presence of marijuana on the rear area of the truck and the odor of marijuana, coupled with the telltale notes descriptive of this conspiracy found in Espinoza’s room, leads inescapably to the conclusion that Espinoza was shown to have been guilty as charged of conspiracy to possess marijuana with intent to distribute and with aiding and abetting his fellow defendants to possess with intent to distribute a quantity of marijuana.
The eases relied upon by Espinoza to show that the government’s evidence against him fails to support his conviction are factually distinguishable from this case. In United States v. Jackson, 700 F.2d 181 (5th Cir.1983), the court held that the conviction of drug conspiracy of the defendant Whitley lacked support in the evidence. The evidence as it related to Whitley’s involvement in the conspiracy simply showed that he joined the presence of two persons in a restaurant who were then involved in a drug transaction. There was no evidence that Whitley knew the nature or purpose of the meeting, or that a large amount of money was then present. Further, although there was evidence Whitley had on several earlier occasions been in the presence of two of the parties to the drug deal, there was no proof that he was ever present when terms of a drug deal were discussed. With this limited involvement, the court held that Whitley had only been shown to have associated with others involved in the conspiracy and that this was insufficient proof to support his conviction of knowingly and voluntarily participating in a conspiracy to possess drugs with intent to distribute. Significant in Jackson is the lack of any activity on the part of the defendant in furtherance of the conspiracy, whereas Espinoza played a crucial role in this case.
In United States v. Longoria, 569 F.2d 422 (5th Cir.1978), the defendant merely accepted a ride in a vehicle, after which the driver made known the fact that there was marijuana in the vehicle. The defendant thereafter received $300 from the driver along with a request to keep calm as they approached a check point; these facts, coupled with her silence at the checkpoint and with the finding of traces of marijuana in the defendant’s handbag, were deemed to be insufficient to implicate the defendant of aiding and abetting possession of marijuana with intent to distribute. Again, there was no showing that the defendant did anything beyond “negative acquiescence,” a description which does not describe the activities of Espinoza, an individual who played an “affirmative” role to make this illegal conspiracy succeed.
Also relied upon by Espinoza is United States v. Blessing, 727 F.2d 353 (5th Cir. 1984). In Blessing the evidence as to the defendant’s guilt was that he arrived in town where a drug deal was scheduled with one of the parties to the deal after the party had announced he would arrive with his partner, without specifying the defendant as the partner; they then checked into the same room of a motel; the defendant thereafter rented two vehicles that were used by the coconspirators in a drug transaction; the defendant and the other party checked out of the motel at the time the other party went to deliver some drug purchase money to an undercover agent who was supplying drugs. However, the defendant was never shown to have participated in the negotiations for the sale of the drugs, and had never had any contact with the undercover agent during the crucial period of time the drug deal was effected. Nor was the defendant present during other critical aspects of the transaction. It was shown that the defendant rented the two vehicles because he alone had a credit card and the rental agency required a credit card.
The Blessing court held the evidence of the defendant’s activities was insufficient to support his conviction for conspiring to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance. The court stated that it required that something more than placing the defendant “in a ‘climate of activity that *556reeks of something foul.’ ” 727 F.2d at 356 (quoting United States v. Galvan, 693 F.2d 417, 419 (5th Cir.1982)). Although the court concluded that the defendant’s “rental of the van and the car do tend to establish his connection with the conspiracy ... [b]ut with no more than what the government has proven here, renting two vehicles cannot sustain Blessing’s conviction.” 727 F.2d at 356 (citations omitted). Blessing is distinguishable because, first, he had a plausible explanation for his rental of the two vehicles in that he was the only possessor of a required credit card, and, second, he took no other action in furtherance of the charged conspiracy. In contrast, Espinoza also furnished a vehicle that was used in the conspiracy, but in addition he furnished a vehicle, played an affirmative role in furtherance of the scheme to deal in marijuana, and was shown to have the opportunity to be privy to the negotiations regarding the scheme. Thus, Blessing fails to support Espinoza’s challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence in support of his convictions.
The majority also overlooks the fact that at the time the truck was delivered to Hartman at the restaurant in Seguin there had to be a residue of marijuana on the tailgate area and the truck was emitting an odor of marijuana. It seems reasonable for a jury to infer because of the condition of the truck that Espinoza at this point became aware of the presence of marijuana in the truck, just as the officers who stopped the truck on its way to Houston for the same reasons became aware of the existence of marijuana when they approached the truck.
What has been said regarding the sufficiency of the evidence as to Espinoza’s conviction for conspiracy would apply as well to support his conviction for aiding and abetting. The crime of aiding and abetting possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute does not require a defendant to commit all elements of the underlying substantive offense if he aided and abetted each element; nor is it required that there be proof that he was present at the actual distribution. It only “requires proof of (1) aiding and abetting the possession and (2) aiding and abetting with intent to distribute.” United States v. Aguirre, 716 F.2d at 298; United States v. Pozos, 697 F.2d 1238, 1242 (5th Cir.1983). Once a conspiracy was established, Espinoza could be found guilty as well of all offenses committed by the parties to the conspiracy in furtherance of the conspiracy while Espinoza was a member of the conspiracy, “as long as the offenses were in the scope of or were a foreseeable consequence of the conspiracy.” United States v. Parrish, 736 F.2d at 157 (citing Pinkerton v. United States, 328 U.S. 640, 66 S.Ct. 1180, 90 L.Ed. 1489 (1946)).
The evidence in this case as it relates to Espinoza calls for the affirmance of his conviction. Therefore I dissent from the majority’s contrary holding.

. Unlike some criminal conspiracies, proof of an overt act in furtherance of a conspiracy is not necessary to establish a conspiracy in violation of the Drug Control Act, 21 U.S.C. §§ 841 & 846 (1976). United States v. Kupper, 5 Cir.1982, 693 F.2d 1129, 1134; United States v. Brown, 5 Cir.1982, 692 F.2d 345, 348; United States v. Rodriguez, 5 Cir. 612 F.2d 906, 919 n. 37, cert. denied sub nom. Albernaz v. United States, 1980, 449 U.S. 835. 101 S.Ct. 108, 66 L.Ed.2d 41.

. A government agent testified at a suppression hearing that he overheard Espinoza state in this telephone conversation that the “deal" would take place at approximately 1:30 p.m. This testimony, however, was not offered in the government’s case in chief at the trial of these defendants.