United States v. Michael Manning
2014 U.S. App. LEXIS 76
| 8th Cir. | 2014Background
- Manning was convicted of receipt (18 U.S.C. § 2252A(a)(2)) and possession (18 U.S.C. § 2252A(a)(5)(B)) of child pornography; district court sentenced him to 240 and 120 months respectively, consecutively (360 months total) plus lifetime supervision.
- Evidence linked Manning to child-pornography materials found on his laptop and Memorex disc; IP address associated with Manning and chat conversations on his laptop identified him as speaker under usernames boost_virgin and mem659.
- Law enforcement recovered 1,029 images and 49 videos of child pornography; chats discussed types of pornography, sugars of sexual abuse, and Manning’s involvement; younger son later disclosed abuse by Manning.
- Manning claimed a remote-access theory, suggesting others planted material; he testified ownership of laptop but wife’s access and possible intrusions were posited.
- At sentencing, the government introduced excluded chat transcripts and a son’s videotaped interview; court imposed concurrent receipt and possession sentences, plus life supervised release; Manning appealed.
- The court’s resolution on appeal affirms conviction and sentences and addresses evidentiary challenges, sufficiency of the evidence, double jeopardy, and sentencing reasonableness.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Evidentiary admissibility of chats | Manning; chats were hearsay and failed to show Manning as speaker | Manning; insufficient identifications and hearsay concerns | Chats admitted; identifying information and circumstantial relevance supported admission |
| Memorex disc admissibility and chain of custody | Disc authenticity/chain-of-custody flaws | Presumption of integrity; no bad faith shown | Disc admitted; no reversible chain-of-custody error |
| Sufficiency of evidence for receipt | Evidence failed to show Manning knowingly downloaded files | Jury could credit online chats and laptop login as proof | Evidence sufficient to support receipt conviction beyond a reasonable doubt |
| Sufficiency of evidence for possession | Memorex disc contained child pornography; possession proven | Possession theory weak as he claimed wife planted disc | Evidence sufficient to prove knowing possession beyond a reasonable doubt |
| Double jeopardy | Receiving and possessing are same offense; multiplicitous | Charges based on different facts/images; permissible | No plain-error; charges based on separate facts/images; no violation |
Key Cases Cited
- United States v. Koch, 625 F.3d 470 (8th Cir. 2010) (evidence identifying documents admissible as circumstantial link to defendant)
- United States v. Cooke, 675 F.3d 1153 (8th Cir. 2012) (unknown-party statements not offered for their truth can provide context)
- United States v. Huether, 673 F.3d 789 (8th Cir. 2012) (possession and receipt distinctions; greater/lesser offenses; separate facts)
- United States v. Brumfield, 686 F.3d 960 (8th Cir. 2012) (chain-of-custody concerns; weight vs. admissibility)
- United States v. Yarrington, 634 F.3d 440 (8th Cir. 2011) (standard of review for evidentiary rulings)
- United States v. Beasley, 688 F.3d 523 (8th Cir. 2012) (presumption of reasonableness for within-Guidelines sentence)