United States v. Walter Johnson

Appellant was convicted by a jury of the offense of knowingly smuggling four ounces of heroin, a narcotic drug, into the United States from Mexico, and was sentenced to the custody of the Attorney General of the United States for a period of ten years, to be served concurrently with an existing sentence from an unrelated conviction.

Appellant, and one Muriel Eugene Williams, were accused in a one-count indictment, charging that said persons “knowingly imported and brought approximately four ounces of heroin, a narcotic drug, into the United States from Mexico, contrary to Title 21, United States Code, Section 173 .” The indictment caption included:

The case of the defendant, Williams, was severed and a jury trial was had in respect to the appellant. The defendant, Williams, appeared as a prosecution witness.

The facts presented to the jury are not in dispute, and the following statement of facts has been taken from appellant’s opening brief.

“Appellant drove a 1953 De Soto automobile with an Oregon license into the United States at San Ysidro, California on November 11, 1967, at about 1:30 A.M. Muriel Williams was a passenger in the car and both appeared nervous to the customs…