United States v. Claret Echeverry

On September 25, 1981, defendant was found guilty after a jury trial of: conspiracy to distribute cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 846 ; the actual distribution of cocaine on three separate occasions as prohibited by 21 U.S.C. §§ 841 (a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(A) and 18 U.S.C. § 2 ; the use of a telephone to facilitate the distribution of cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 843 ; and aiding and abetting distribution of cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841 (a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(A) and 18 U.S.C. § 2 . Defendant received concurrent sentences on these counts amounting to three years to be followed by a special parole term of five years. Defendant’s co-conspirator, Pablo Ramirez, was found guilty only of distribution of cocaine on one occasion in December, 1980.

Defendant raises three issues on appeal. First, defendant claims that there was inadequate independent evidence of a conspiracy for the trial judge to have admitted hearsay statements of the defendant’s co-conspirators. We are fully satisfied that the trial judge did not err in concluding that, ignoring for the moment the co-conspirators’ statements themselves, there was substantial independent evidence of the predicate facts…