U.S. v. Farias

Defendant was found guilty of conspiracy to distribute heroin and cocaine and possession of cocaine and was sentenced to 25 years in prison. On appeal, defendant argued that trial testimony identifying his voice on recorded calls violated his constitutional rights, that the district court incorrectly instructed the jury it could give independent weight to translated transcripts of the calls, that there was insufficient evidence to support his conviction, and the district court miscalculated his guidelines range at sentencing. The Seventh Circuit affirmed, finding that defendant failed to timely object to the jury instructions and that the district court did not otherwise err in the admission of evidence or in sentencing and that the evidence was sufficient to sustain the conviction. (EASTERBROOK and KIRSCH, concurring)