893 F.3d 480
7th Cir.2018Background
- Defendants Jose Maldonado and Francisco Masias were indicted on a seven-count indictment including a §846 drug-distribution conspiracy charge and related drug and firearms counts; Rodriguez was a cooperating witness and co-defendant whose relationships with both were at issue.
- Rodriguez testified he learned to "rerock" cocaine from Maldonado, that Maldonado stored cocaine and guns at Rodriguez's home, and that Masias fronted cocaine to both men on multiple occasions.
- Surveillance, intercepted calls, and transactions showed repeated large-quantity sales, fronting (sales on credit), coordinated deliveries (e.g., Jan. 11 and Jan. 14, 2010 deals), sharing use of vehicles with hidden compartments, and movement/storage of firearms and cocaine after Rodriguez’s arrest.
- At trial the court gave a multiple-conspiracies jury instruction (pattern instruction 5.10(B), slightly modified) after defense counsel raised the possibility of multiple conspiracies; Masias requested, and the court refused, a "meeting of the minds" instruction.
- Jury convicted both defendants on all counts; they appealed arguing (1) insufficiency of evidence as to certain conspiracies (alleged buyer-seller relationships only) and (2) errors in jury instructions (improper multiple-conspiracies instruction and refusal to give a meeting-of-the-minds instruction).
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sufficiency of evidence that Maldonado and Masias formed a conspiracy | Government: repeated large-quantity sales, fronting, coordinated deals, shared objectives show agreement to distribute | Defendants: mere buyer-seller relationship; repeated sales alone insufficient | Affirmed — evidence supported a conspiracy (fronting, coordination, shared activity) |
| Sufficiency of evidence that Maldonado and Rodriguez formed a conspiracy | Government: mentor-like business relationship, storage of drugs/guns, coordination after arrest show joint venture | Defendants: relationship was familial/brother-like, not conspiratorial | Affirmed — evidence permitted inference of conspiracy (business advice, storage, post-arrest coordination) |
| Multiple-conspiracies jury instruction | Government: instruction appropriate because evidence could show several distinct conspiracies and defense opened the door to that theory | Defendants: instruction inapplicable; no overarching hub connecting alleged conspiracies (Relies on Kotteakos hub-and-spoke concern) | Affirmed — instruction was accurate, supported by record, and properly given after defense raised multiple-conspiracies theory |
| Refusal to give "meeting of the minds" instruction | Masias: jury should be told deceit/false representations can negate a shared intent required for conspiracy | Government: deceit among participants does not negate their shared objective to distribute drugs | Affirmed — court correctly refused instruction because deceit did not negate a common objective and instruction was not a correct or necessary statement of law |
Key Cases Cited
- United States v. Dessart, 823 F.3d 395 (7th Cir. 2016) (standard for reviewing sufficiency-of-evidence challenges)
- United States v. Johnson, 592 F.3d 749 (7th Cir. 2010) (distinguishing buyer-seller transactions from conspiracies)
- United States v. Villasenor, 664 F.3d 673 (7th Cir. 2011) (characteristics indicating conspiracy: large/repeated transactions and prolonged relationship)
- United States v. Cruse, 805 F.3d 795 (7th Cir. 2015) (inference of conspiracy from multiple large-quantity purchases on credit)
- United States v. Rivera, 273 F.3d 751 (7th Cir. 2001) (repeated sales alone do not automatically prove conspiracy)
- United States v. Campos, 541 F.3d 735 (7th Cir. 2008) (defining characteristic of conspiracy is a shared common objective)
- Kotteakos v. United States, 328 U.S. 750 (1946) (hub-and-spoke and need for an overarching conspiracy connection)
- United States v. Nunez, 673 F.3d 661 (7th Cir. 2012) (post-arrest actions to warn/coordinate can indicate conspiracy)
- United States v. Carrillo, 435 F.3d 767 (7th Cir. 2006) (storage of drugs at a co-conspirator's home indicates participation in conspiracy)