John Henry Williams and Henry Dennis Stamp v. United States

Appellants, convicted of transportation and concealment of heroin in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 174 , have appealed judgment of conviction. Upon their assignments of error we rule as follows:

1. The evidence was sufficient to support the jury verdict. Although appellants’ codefendant was the only one proved to have been in actual, physical possession of the heroin, the evidence was sufficient to establish joint venture.

2. Failure of the court to strike testimony respecting the field test of the heroin for lack of sufficient foundation was, in absence of motion to strike, not plain error. The nature of the substance in any event was later proved by competent expert testimony.

3. The custody of the heroin exhibit, while inexcusably lax and subject to court criticism on that ground, did not here result in such absence of control as to render the exhibit inadmissible as matter of law. See Gallego v. United States, 276 F.2d 914 (9th Cir. 1960). Nor did the discrepancy in description of the substance by two witnesses (“white” in one instance; “tan” or “light tan” in another) render it inadmissible. The court did not exclude the possibility of tampering, but properly left the question…