In prosecution on drug conspiracy/money laundering charges, Dist. Ct. did not err in admitting evidence of cell-site information pursuant to Stored Communications Act, even though U.S. Supreme Ct. had issued opinion during instant trial in Carpenter, 138 S.Ct. 2206, that required govt. to obtain warrant prior to obtaining said information. Dist. Ct. could properly find that govt. had acted in good faith in obtaining court order prior to obtaining cell-site information, since no court of appeals had concluded at time govt. obtained court order that said information could be collected only through warrant. Also, Dist. Ct. erred in admitting evidence of murder/kidnapping of third-party, where murder/kidnapping had no link to contested evidence, defendants and/or charged offenses. However, defendant could not establish any prejudice with respect to said evidence, given overwhelming nature of evidence against defendants. Moreover, record failed to contain sufficient evidence to support charge of conspiracy to launder money with respect to one defendant, where evidence showed only that defendant was paid proceeds he collected from drugs that had been fronted to him and did not contain evidence that defendant had conducted separate financial transaction with respect to said proceeds. Too, Dist. Ct. did not violate 8th Amendment when sentencing one defendant to concurrent life sentences, even though: (1) said defendant was in his late thirties and had no prior record; and (2) defendant’s multiple concurrent life sentences were for non-violent offenses.
Federal 7th Circuit Court
Criminal Court
Evidence