United States v. Joga Singh Johal

Joga Singh Johal appeals his conviction for selling and possessing large quantities of over-the-counter cold pills containing the ingredient pseudoephedrine “knowing or having reasonable cause to believe” that they would be used to manufacture methamphetamine, an illegal substance under 21 U.S.C. § 841 (c)(2). Johal argues that § 841(c)(2) impermissibly imposes criminal liability without a mens rea requirement and that it mandates that the illegal substance actually be produced, foreclosing his conviction under a sting operation. Jo-hal also alleges that the jury instructions failed to ensure a unanimous verdict and that the district court should have found him eligible for a sentence reduction because of his acceptance of responsibility.

We reject Johal’s contention that a “reasonable cause to believe” standard, as construed and applied here, permits a defendant to be convicted without a showing of any criminal intent. Instead, the standard incorporates both subjective and objective considerations to ensure the defendant had a sufficiently “guilty mind” in violating the statute. We further hold that a conviction under the statute does not require that the illegal drug actually…