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Criminal Law Keyed to Kennedy
United States v. Recio
Citation:
537 U.S. 270 (2003)Facts
On November 18, 1997, police stopped a truck in Nevada. They found, and seized, a large stash of illegal drugs. With the help of the truck’s two drivers, they set up a sting. The Government took the truck to the drivers’ destination, a mall in Idaho. The drivers paged a contact and described the truck’s location. The contact said that he would call someone to get the truck. And three hours later, the two defendants, Francisco Jimenez Recio and Adrian Lopez-Meza, appeared in a car. Jimenez Recio drove away in the truck; Lopez-Meza drove the car away in a similar direction. Police stopped both vehicles and arrested both men.
They were charged with conspiracy to possess and to distribute unlawful drugs. A jury convicted them. The judge ordered a new trial and the new jury convicted the two men once again. They appealed, arguing that the evidence was insufficient at both trial to warrant the finding that they had joined the conspiracy before the Nevada stop. The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed their convictions.
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