United States v. Lindley T. Geborde, AKA Seal A

Defendant Lindley Geborde manufactured and gave away to several teenagers a home-made designer drug called gamma hydroxy butyrate, commonly known as GHB. Geborde’s concoction killed one of the teenage boys who drank the stuff. Geborde was convicted- of manslaughter in state court and sentenced to prison. The present case involves the efforts of federal authorities to prosecute Geborde on drug charges arising out of the same events. Although GHB is now a controlled substance as defined by federal law, it wasn’t at the time, and therefore, wasn’t covered by the usual federal statutes dealing with illegal drugs. Unable to bring a conventional drug case, the government charged Geborde with various violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (“FDCA”), a regulatory scheme administered by the Food, and Drug Administration. The problem is that the FDCA was not designed to deal with the wholly gratuitous distribution of homemade substances. We now have to decide whether the square pegs of Geborde’s conduct can be pounded into the round holes of the FDCA.

Geborde was convicted of one count of operating an unregistered drug manufacturing facility with the intent to defraud or mislead in…