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United States v. Gomez-Norena

United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit

908 F.2d 497 (1990)

Facts

Jaime Leon Gomez-Norena (defendant) was arrested at the Los Angeles International Airport after agents discovered two kilograms of cocaine in his bag. He was charged under federal law for possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute. At trial, the prosecution (plaintiff) sought to elicit testimony from a customs agent, Inspector Espinoza. The testimony included statements made by Espinoza to other agents that Gomez-Norena fit the drug-courier profile. During this testimony, the defense counsel objected twice, once on hearsay grounds and once on improper-character-evidence grounds. The trial-court judge overruled both objections but instructed the jury to consider the testimony about the drug-courier profile as background material to convey the events of that day and not as evidence of the Gomez-Norena’s guilt. On appeal, Gomez-Norena claimed that Espinoza’s testimony should have been excluded at trial based on the separate objection that it was unfairly prejudicial.

Rule of Law

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Issue

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Holding and Reasoning (Hall, J.)

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