United States v. Fountain
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
768 F.2d 790 (1985)
- Written by Rose VanHofwegen, JD
Facts
The maximum-security cell block at Marion federal penitentiary housed two masters of prison murder: Clayton Fountain and Thomas Silverstein (defendants). Each had already killed three people. Three guards escorted Fountain and Silverstein separately in handcuffs whenever either left his cell. The guards were unarmed; otherwise, the escorted prisoner might seize their weapons. As guards escorted Silverstein, he stopped in front of the cell of Randy Gometz (defendant) and stuck his hands inside. Gometz released the handcuffs and then raised his shirt, revealing a homemade shank. Silverstein grabbed the shank and repeatedly stabbed one of the guards, Clutts, killing him. Immediately afterward, Silverstein said the killing was personal revenge because Clutts had disrespected him. Gometz was convicted of aiding and abetting Silverstein. Gometz appealed, arguing the evidence did not prove he knew what Silverstein would do with the shank. [Ed.’s note: The casebook excerpt addresses only Gometz’s appeal, omitting Silverstein and Fountain’s consolidated appeals.]
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Posner, J.)
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