Source: cases/21usc846/f2d-525-881-oviedo.case
Case source: https://www.neochart.com/catalog/cases/f2d/volume_525/0881_01/index.html
We thus take as fact Oviedo’s belief that the substance was heroin.
We cannot conclude that the objective acts of Oviedo apart from any indirect evidence of intent mark his conduct as criminal in nature.
casedsl 1 case /f2d/525/0881-01 name United States v. Oviedo cite 525 F.2d 881 (1976) court United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit date 1976-01-12 url catalog/cases/f2d/volume_525/0881_01/index.html source ir/caselaw/f2d_525.jsonl sha1=26394287c13eb82f37223a7d0987bebbe5210358 chars=18352 law 21usc846 role applied posture Appeal from attempted distribution conviction result claimant-lost element attempt-intent : satisfied [proved] scope merits variant belief/non-narcotic-substitute-believed-heroin fact @2033..2129 [supports] | Oviedo sold a substance he thought to be heroin, which in reality was an uncontrolled substance. held @1922..1989 | We thus take as fact Oviedo’s belief that the substance was heroin. gloss The court expressly accepts the jury’s belief finding; criminal intent alone still does not establish the required objective step. element substantial-step : not-satisfied [no-evidence] scope merits variant objective-corroboration/equivocal-substitute-sale fact @9876..10024 [supports] | First, Oviedo told the agent that the substance he was selling was heroin, and second, portions of the substance were concealed in a television set. fact @2033..2129 [cuts-against] | Oviedo sold a substance he thought to be heroin, which in reality was an uncontrolled substance. held @10599..10734 | We cannot conclude that the objective acts of Oviedo apart from any indirect evidence of intent mark his conduct as criminal in nature. gloss The Fifth Circuit reverses under its objective-corroboration approach on this record. It does not announce that every sham-drug transaction makes attempt impossible. misfit Intent is established but the objective conduct is insufficient under the cited circuit approach. The substitute drug is evidence with different polarity for different issues, not a universal impossibility defense. misfit Claimant outcome refers to the prosecuting government, not the defendant-appellant; remanded and mixed retain unresolved or split dispositions.