United States v. Seals

915 F.3d 1203 (2019) United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit 2019-02-15

criminal; jury convictions for distribution of heroin and fentanyl resulting in serious bodily injury and for possession with intent to distribute; Rule 29 motions denied; on appeal defendant challenges sufficiency of the evidence of but-for causation under Burrage; affirmed (result: claimant-won)

Facts

  1. 8 Death or serious bodily injury results from the use of such substance (§ 841(b)(1)(A)-(C) 20-year mandatory minimum) satisfied proved
    J.V. then returned to his truck to fill his tank with gasoline, where he lost consciousness and collapsed.
  2. 8 Death or serious bodily injury results from the use of such substance (§ 841(b)(1)(A)-(C) 20-year mandatory minimum) satisfied proved
    The first responders observed several symptoms of an opiate overdose : unconsciousness, shallow breathing, poor skin coloration, and pinpoint pupils. The paramedics administered Narcan to revive J.V. and, within 20 to 30 seconds, he regained consciousness.
  3. 8 Death or serious bodily injury results from the use of such substance (§ 841(b)(1)(A)-(C) 20-year mandatory minimum) satisfied proved
    The initial screening detected two opiates (morphine and codeine ) and a subsequent screening detected two more opiates (fentanyl and acetyl-fentanyl).
  4. 8 Death or serious bodily injury results from the use of such substance (§ 841(b)(1)(A)-(C) 20-year mandatory minimum) satisfied proved
    Karas further testified that, due to the low volume of blood sampled and his inability to perform additional testing, he was unable to determine precisely which drug caused J.V.'s overdose.
  5. 8 Death or serious bodily injury results from the use of such substance (§ 841(b)(1)(A)-(C) 20-year mandatory minimum) satisfied proved
    Finally, Dr. Pruitt confirmed Karas's testimony that it was medically impossible to determine the concentration of the various opiates in J.V.'s blood sample but, based on a total of roughly seven minutes from injection to collapse, the heroin-fentanyl mixture was the most likely cause of the overdose.
  6. 8 Death or serious bodily injury results from the use of such substance (§ 841(b)(1)(A)-(C) 20-year mandatory minimum) satisfied proved
    "at least where use of the drug distributed by the defendant is not an independently sufficient cause of the victim's death or serious bodily injury, a defendant cannot be liable under the penalty enhancement provision of 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C) unless [the drug distributed by the defendant] is a but-for cause of the death or injury."
  7. 8 Death or serious bodily injury results from the use of such substance (§ 841(b)(1)(A)-(C) 20-year mandatory minimum) satisfied proved
    Given that J.V. undisputedly injected the heroin in the bathroom, it was well-within the jury's province to draw the conclusion that the heroin was a but-for cause of the overdose.
  8. 8 Death or serious bodily injury results from the use of such substance (§ 841(b)(1)(A)-(C) 20-year mandatory minimum) satisfied proved
    Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the jury verdict, there was overwhelming evidence presented to the jury to establish but-for causation.