Court Opinion

ID: 9461535
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-04 22:16:35.251964+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:31:56.204933
License: Public Domain

WEIS, Circuit Judge
(dissenting):
As the majority opinion indicates, it relies principally upon United States v. Bueno, 447 F.2d 903 (5th Cir. 1971), cert. denied, 411 U.S. 949, 93 S.Ct. 1931, 36 L.Ed.2d 411 (1973). That case stands for two important propositions, both of which are relevant here — one substantive and the other procedural.
From a substantive viewpoint, Bueno stands for the premise that entrapment, as a matter of law, is established when a government informer supplies narcotics to the defendant for sale to an undercover agent. The validity of this proposition has been subject to question since the Supreme • Court’s decision in United *1088States v. Russell, 411 U.S. 423, 93 S.Ct. 1637, 36 L.Ed.2d 366 (1973). See United States v. Hampton, 507 F.2d 832 (8th Cir. 1974); United States v. McGrath, 494 F.2d 562 (7th Cir. 1974); United States v. Jett, 491 F.2d 1078 (1st Cir. 1974); United States v. Johnson, 484 F.2d 165 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 414 U.S. 1112, 94 S.Ct. 842, 38 L.Ed.2d 739 (1973); United States v. Ewbank, 483 F.2d 1149 (9th Cir. 1973); United States v. Pollard, 483 F.2d 929 (8th Cir. 1973), cert. denied, 414 U.S. 1137, 94 S.Ct. 882, 38 L.Ed.2d 762 (1974); and United States v. Hayes, 477 F.2d 868 (10th Cir.' 1973). Cf. United States v. Soto, 504 F.2d 557 (5th Cir. 1974); United States v. Mosley, 496 F.2d 1012 (5th Cir. 1974); and United States v. Oquendo, 490 F.2d 161 (5th Cir. 1974). See also Judge Friendly’s discussion in United States v. Archer, 486 F.2d 670, 674-77 (2d Cir. 1973). Generally, the division of opinion represents a continuation of the debate whether “objective” or “subjective” tests should be applied to the entrapment defense.1 It is this dispute which underlies the 5-4 division of the Supreme Court in Russell, supra.2 Although I have some doubt that the Russell decision left any viability to the substantive law in Bueno, I focus my dissent on the procedural aspects of that opinion.
The Bueno court held that when a defendant testifies to facts which would establish an objective type of entrapment, the government must come forth with contrary evidence if it is to carry its burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. As another panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals explains it, “ . . . when a defendant testified that he obtained the contraband from a government undercover agent, the Government must produce the undercover agent to contradict the defendant’s allegations in order to take the case to the jury. Ms. Reaves, the undercover agent, did in fact testify in this case. Then the jury must find beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant did not obtain the contraband in question from the undercover agent.” United States v. Mosley, supra, 496 F.2d at 1015.
Neither Bueno nor Mosley discussed the holding of the Supreme Court in United States v. Masciale, 356 U.S. 386, 78 S.Ct. 827, 2 L.Ed.2d 859 (1958). That case involved a claim of subjective entrapment where criminal predisposition is a prominent element. The informant was not called to testify, but the entrapment contentions were established by the testimony of the defendant. The Court held, “Petitioner argues that this undisputed testimony explained why he was willing to deal with Marshall [the undercover agent] and so established entrapment as a matter of law. However, his testimony alone could not have this effect. While petitioner presented enough evidence for the jury to consider, they were entitled to disbelieve him in regard to Kowel [the informant] and so find for the Government on the issue of guilt. Therefore, the trial court properly submitted the case to the jury.” 3 356 U.S. at 388, 78 S.Ct. at 829.
*1089In United States v. Jett, supra, in a factual situation almost identical to the one sub judice, the court refused to accept the rationale of Bueno on the ground that it had failed to consider the effect of Masciale. The Jett court followed the general rule that “ . where the law attaches some inferential consequence to the introduction of evidence, this means credited evidence — if the jury disbelieves it, it becomes, in effect, no evidence.” 491 F.2d at 1080. This view is in agreement with the principle set out in YII Wigmore on Evidence § 2034, “(3) Conversely, the mere assertion of any witness does not of itself need to be believed, even though he is unimpeached in any manner; because to require such belief would be to give a quantitative and impersonal measure to testimony.” Accord, United States v. Johnson, 495 F.2d 242 (10th Cir. 1974); United States v. Saka, 339 F.2d 541 (3d Cir. 1964); and Wooley v. Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., 281 F.2d 78 (3d Cir. 1960).
In the instant case, the majority places upon the prosecution the burden “to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the government informer did not supply the drugs.” If the informer is not produced, then the uncontradicted (and uncorroborated) testimony of the defendant establishes a fact which, in turn, leads to a finding of entrapment as a matter of law. In this, I believe the majority opinion is contrary to Masciale and unduly inhibits the scope of the fact finder’s competence.4
The trial here was non jury, and although the defendant argued entrapment upon a factual pattern similar to Bueno, he did not cite that case to the district court. In his memorandum opinion, the trial judge discussed United States v. Russell, supra, and the cases relied upon by the defendant — Sherman v. United States, 356 U.S. 369, 78 S.Ct. 819, 2 L.Ed.2d 848 (1958) and Sorrells v. United States, 287 U.S. 435, 53 S.Ct. 210, 77 L.Ed. 413 (1932). In finding against the defendant West, the district court stated:
“It is true that when the defense of entrapment is properly raised the burden of proof is on the Government to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant was not entrapped. United States v. Silver, 457 F.2d 1217 (3d Cir. 1972). Here, the evidence indicates beyond a reasonable doubt that there was no entrapment and that defendant was predisposed to commit the crime.”
And again:
“Although the defendant has claimed solicitation by the government agent and lack of disposition on his part to deal in drugs, his ‘course of conduct’ in the series of transactions with Officer Laguins indicates to the contrary. The Court, as trier of the fact, evaluated the defendant’s credibility and found the defendant’s testimony concerning his alleged entrapment by the government officials not worthy of belief.”
It is arguable that these findings do not specifically pass upon the defendant’s contention that the heroin was supplied by the informant. This is understandable since the Bueno issue was not presented to the trial judge. So that there could be no doubt about this important factual matter, I would remand to the district court for further findings.
I concur with the affirmance on Count
3.

. In entrapment cases, the “objective” theory, also known as the “creative activity” doctrine, directs the court’s attention to misconduct of government agents rather than the particular defendant’s conduct and criminal predisposition. See Bergan, Criminal Law— Entrapment in the Federal Courts — Subjective Test Reaffirmed Against Lower Court Departures, 42 Fordham L.Rev. 454 (1973).

. The majority opinion in Russell left open for future consideration “a situation in which the conduct of law enforcement agents is so outrageous that due process principles would absolutely bar the government from invoking judicial processes to obtain a conviction . . .”411 U.S. at 431-32, 93 S.Ct. at 1643.

. In United States v. Workopich, 479 F.2d 1142 (5th Cir. 1973), a panel of the Fifth Circuit did analyze the Masciale decision. In an opinion which I am unable to reconcile with the procedural holdings in Bueno and Mosley, the court said, “Thus, when the undisputed testimony of a defendant is the sole basis for an entrapment defense, entrapment is not established as a matter of law but rather is an issue for the jury to decide. Accord, United States v. Burgess, 5 Cir. 1970, 433 F.2d 987. Cf. United States v. Bueno, 5 Cir. 1971, 447 F.2d 903, where, when the government supplied contraband to the defendant, his uncontradicted testimony established entrapment as a matter of law.” 479 F.2d at 1146. If the Fifth Circuit thus means *1089to establish a different procedural rule for the objective type of entrapment as distinguished from the subjective, it gave no reasons for doing so, and I am unable to understand why such disparity should exist.

. For a discussion of the quantum of evidence required to make entrapment a jury question, see United States v. Watson, 489 F.2d 504 (3d Cir. 1973).