United States v. Danny Ray Triplin

15 F.3d 1094 NOTICE: Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3 provides that dispositions other than opinions or orders designated for publication are not precedential and should not be cited except when relevant under the doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, or collateral estoppel. UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Danny Ray TRIPLIN, Defendant-Appellant. No. 93-10018. United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. Argued and Submitted Nov. 3, 1993. Decided Jan. 4, 1994. Before: ALARCON, LEAVY, and KLEINFELD, Circuit Judges. 1 MEMORANDUM * 2 The appellant, Danny Ray Triplin, was convicted by a jury of one count of conspiracy to import heroin in violation of 21 U.S.C. Sec. 963 , one count of possession with intent to distribute heroin in violation of 21 U.S.C. Sec. 841 (a)(1), and one count of importation of heroin in violation of 21 U.S.C. Sec. 952 . An x-ray of Triplin's luggage revealed 2.6 kilograms of heroin secreted in a false side and smeared with a sticky substance that smelled like coffee. Throughout the second trial of this case, 1 Triplin maintained he did not know the heroin was concealed in the suitcase. No identifiable fingerprints were found on the packages of…