United States v. Chandler
United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
5 Fed. App’x 839 (2001)
Facts
Cecil Chandler (defendant) was charged with conspiracy to distribute cocaine. At trial, the prosecution (plaintiff) sought to admit a photograph of Chandler taken while he was serving a previous prison sentence. The photograph was found in a letter from Chandler to his girlfriend, Natasha Moore. The letter was found among other letters from Chandler to Moore in Moore’s home. In the picture, Chandler was surrounded by six other prisoners, one of whom was known drug convict Ron Espy. On the photograph was a handwritten caption stating, “I keep a Firm no matter where I’m at, baby.” The prosecution called three witnesses who testified that Chandler referred to his drug organization as “The Firm.” The trial court admitted the photograph and caption into evidence over Chandler’s objection. Chandler was convicted, and he appealed, arguing that the handwritten caption was not properly authenticated as written by him.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Anderson, J.)
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