United States of America, and v. Ronald Holm, And

In May of 1975 the grand jury for the Southern District of California charged the defendant Holm and others with conspiracy to possess amphetamines with intent to distribute them, a violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841 (a)(1) and 846. The indictment was superseded in November, 1975, by a new indictment which named two additional defendants and added two additional counts not pertaining to Holm.

Holm filed a motion alleging that the delay in bringing the indictment violated his fifth amendment right to a fair trial, and the District Court denied the motion. However, the motion was granted as to a co-defendant who had filed an affidavit alleging death of one of his principal defense witnesses. Subsequently, a third indictment labeled “Superseding Indictment” was returned on December 11,1975, realleg-ing the conspiracy involving Holm. For some reason not explained in the record, Holm was tried on the November, rather than on the December indictment. In January, 1976, he was found guilty after a jury trial.

I.

Holm first attacks his conviction on the ground that he could not validly be tried on the superseded November indictment. His argument, based primarily on the dictionary definition…