United States v. Michael Gradney

MEMORANDUM

Michael Paul Gradney appeals from his conviction following a jury trial of possession and distribution of cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841 (a)(1), (b)(1)(C), as well as being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 922 (g)(1), 924(e). We affirm.

(1) The warrant was not impermissibly based on stale information. The affidavit filed with the warrant application contained information suggesting that Gradney had engaged in crack cocaine distribution as early as November 2010, and as recently as two nights before the warrant issued. There was thus evidence that Gradney “was more than a one-time drug seller.” United States v. Pitts, 6 F.3d 1366, 1370 (9th Cir.1993). Gradney’s “continuing pattern” of drug dealing, including two nights before the warrant issued, provided evidence sufficiently “closely related to the time of the issue of the warrant as to justify a finding of probable cause at that time.” United States v. Lacy, 119 F.3d 742, 745-46 (9th Cir.1997) (citations and quotation marks omitted).

(2) Nor did the district court err in concluding that there was sufficient evidence to establish “a reasonable nexus between the…