United States v. Spotted Bear

MEMORANDUM **

Mary Ellen Spotted Bear (“Spotted Bear”) appeals her conviction of involuntary manslaughter and her resulting sentence. She contends that the district court committed error in the admission of evidence and that her sentence was unreasonable. Finding her contentions without merit, we affirm.

Spotted Bear contends that the district court erred in admitting evidence of her blood alcohol concentration (“BAC”) based on a blood sample taken several hours after the fatal automobile accident. She argues that her BAC taken several hours after the accident is not probative of her blood alcohol level at the time of the accident and therefore not relevant evidence and that its prejudicial effect outweighed its probative value. Fed.R.Evid. 401, 402, 403.

We review the district court’s evidentiary rulings for abuse of discretion. Old Chief v. United States, 519 U.S. 172 , 174 n. 1, 117 S.Ct. 644 , 136 L.Ed.2d 574 (1997); United States v. Parks, 285 F.3d 1133, 1138 (9th Cir.2002).

The BAC evidence was relevant to corroborate other evidence tending to show that Spotted Bear was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident, including the officer’s testimony that the…