AND · 21usc846:knowledge
Knowing that others commit drug crimes does not itself establish that this defendant chose to join. Culpability as to the substance follows the chosen object offense; general association with offenders is insufficient.
Exact element source
conspiresSource:
docroot/ir/usc/title21.jsonl#title21_sec846; Unicode character offsets [56:65] (end exclusive); SHA-256 2e517c5d16d23f29a12a2ee674170178c593255445eb2bf7e8f112f4236ea1e1.Routes and case patterns
| Route | Definition | Merits instance blocks | Distinct merits cases | Examples (up to 3 cases per count group) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unclassified route provisional; provisional (1 case) | no definition yet | 0 Satisfied 0; not satisfied 0; excluded context 1 | 0 | Used only in non-merits blocks (1). Excluded context examples:United States v. Shabani — 513 U.S. 10 (1994) · Supreme Court of the United States · 1994 — not reached · basis not recorded (21usc846: author: Astra4 · not independently reviewed) · rule-announced/merits · not counted |
| _whole accepted; 2 observed cases | The element is decided as a whole: the reasoning turns on no narrower doctrinal sub-question that distinguishes it from any other application of this element. | 2 Satisfied 2; not satisfied 0; excluded context 0 | 2 | U.S. v. Montijo-Dominguez — 922 F.3d 1071 (2019) · United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit · 2019 — satisfied · proved (21usc846: author: Flash3 · QA: FIX (Fable, neov2/cases/TRIAGE-Flash.md)) · applied/merits · counted United States v. Potter — 927 F.3d 446 (2019) · United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · 2019 — satisfied · proved (21usc846: author: Astra4 · not independently reviewed) · applied/merits · counted |
How courts decided this element
| Case | Element | Holding and scope | Pattern | Exact source quotations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. v. Montijo-Dominguez — 922 F.3d 1071 (2019) · United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit · 2019 — satisfied · proved (21usc846: author: Flash3 · QA: FIX (Fable, neov2/cases/TRIAGE-Flash.md)) | Knowledge of the unlawful agreement and objective | satisfied Counted merits instance applied / merits basis: proved; party: Giovanni Montijo-Dominguez, the driver who claimed to believe the cash was an extortion payment; subject: party=Giovanni Montijo-Dominguez, the driver who claimed to believe the cash was an extortion payment Montijo's defense was ignorance that the deal involved narcotics. The court held the jury was entitled to credit the agents' account over his. | last-minute-driver/claimed-belief-in-extortion-payment-rejected-by-jury | There was also testimony that Mr. Montijo engaged in the conversation with the government agents, such that they believed him to be an experienced drug trafficker, id. at 969-70, 1133, and that he attempted to flee at the first sight of identifiable officers.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_922.jsonl#/f3d/922/1071-01; Unicode character offsets [15088:15347] (end exclusive); SHA-256 9d7bde1c5f0464d89c7b0eca9908fab9b197d14220920b961adeb5862bc0dac6.The agents declined, and Mr. Montijo handed cash, which was wrapped in clear plastic and in bundles, to them.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_922.jsonl#/f3d/922/1071-01; Unicode character offsets [3521:3630] (end exclusive); SHA-256 9d7bde1c5f0464d89c7b0eca9908fab9b197d14220920b961adeb5862bc0dac6.He told Mr. Montijo about needing to give drug cartel members his life savings, but he claimed not to have told Mr. Montijo that the transaction involved narcotics.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_922.jsonl#/f3d/922/1071-01; Unicode character offsets [2606:2770] (end exclusive); SHA-256 9d7bde1c5f0464d89c7b0eca9908fab9b197d14220920b961adeb5862bc0dac6.The jury thus heard (and credited) evidence that Mr. Montijo was both aware of the nature of the transaction and was intimately involved.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_922.jsonl#/f3d/922/1071-01; Unicode character offsets [15896:16033] (end exclusive); SHA-256 9d7bde1c5f0464d89c7b0eca9908fab9b197d14220920b961adeb5862bc0dac6. |
| United States v. Potter — 927 F.3d 446 (2019) · United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · 2019 — satisfied · proved (21usc846: author: Astra4 · not independently reviewed) | Knowledge of the unlawful agreement and objective | satisfied Counted merits instance applied / merits basis: proved; party: defendant Potter; subject: party=defendant Potter The court affirms sufficiency of the conspiracy evidence. Repeated distribution-scale purchases plus coordination and financing support the inferred agreement/knowing joinder; a buyer-seller transaction alone is not the stated rule. | tacit/repeated-distribution-purchases | Likewise, Potter continued his distribution efforts from jail by agreeing to front Hilliard funds to buy drugs from Hogan in exchange for a cut.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_927.jsonl#/f3d/927/0446-01; Unicode character offsets [20523:20667] (end exclusive); SHA-256 e2f6057ca05dfd945ac518e7765b2298d106e72992747e73d9d97250674a44c2.The evidence also could lead a rational jury to find § 846 's other elements-that Potter knowingly and voluntarily participated in (that is, joined) the conspiracy.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_927.jsonl#/f3d/927/0446-01; Unicode character offsets [20668:20832] (end exclusive); SHA-256 e2f6057ca05dfd945ac518e7765b2298d106e72992747e73d9d97250674a44c2. |
| United States v. Shabani — 513 U.S. 10 (1994) · Supreme Court of the United States · 1994 — not reached (21usc846: author: Astra4 · not independently reviewed) | Knowledge of the unlawful agreement and objective | not_reached Excluded from merits counts rule-announced / merits | Unspecified route | No source quotation recorded for this block. |
Court interpretations
interpretation
The elements of a drug distribution conspiracy are "(1) an agreement to violate drug laws ... ; (2) knowledge and intent to join the conspiracy; and (3) participation in the conspiracy."
United States v. Buchanan — 933 F.3d 501 (2019) · United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · 2019 (21usc846: author: Astra4 · not independently reviewed)
The elements of a drug distribution conspiracy are "(1) an agreement to violate drug laws ... ; (2) knowledge and intent to join the conspiracy; and (3) participation in the conspiracy."Source:
docroot/ir/caselaw/f3d_933.jsonl#/f3d/933/0501-01; Unicode character offsets [20686:20872] (end exclusive); SHA-256 d8ef780cfb5ac59cb14536a09f5f676824cdb333dad7e487bcb5e059ae417e56.Knowing that others commit drug crimes does not itself establish that this defendant chose to join. Culpability as to the substance follows the chosen object offense; general association with offenders is insufficient.