United States v. C. E. Harrington

Harrington appeals his conviction on five counts of transporting illegal aliens in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324 (a)(2). We affirm.

I. Facts

The area around Douglas, Arizona, is notorious as a smuggling region. On October 25, 1979 Border Patrol Agent Foley observed Harrington (a California resident) driving aimlessly around Douglas in a blue van that had been rented in Los Angeles. On December 1, 1979 Harrington, once again in Douglas, this time driving a white van with commercial license plates, was stopped by Customs Officer Jennings. The white van also had been rented from a Los Angeles agency. Jennings asked Harrington for his driver’s license and to open the back of the van. A check of the license disclosed Harrington’s prior drug record. The back of the van contained only a gas can. The tread on the white van’s tires matched subsequently-discovered tracks left by a vehicle at a smuggling site. On December 2, 1979 a group of 14 illegal aliens were arrested at that same site. Three of the aliens told the arresting agent that they were supposed to be picked up by a van.

At the request of border patrol agents in Douglas, agents in Los Angeles periodically checked to determine…