United States v. Hernandez
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
975 F.2d 1035 (1992)
- Written by Rose VanHofwegen, JD
Facts
A Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) task force set up two controlled buys from a suspected drug dealer in Washington, D.C. A surveillance team watched the dealer enter an apartment building where Xiomaro Hernandez (defendant) lived with Rodolfo Fernandez to obtain crack cocaine. The dealer pled guilty and implicated Fernandez and Hernandez in a drug-dealing conspiracy. Hernandez pled not guilty. At trial, a coworker testified that Hernandez said she knew a “special recipe” for cooking crack and “used to do that, sell that in New York.” The judge admitted the testimony with a limiting instruction. Hernandez testified she was out of town when the deals occurred, left someone else in charge of her apartment, had minimal contact with the dealer, and never sold him drugs. Hernandez did not claim no knowledge about or exposure to crack or drugs in general, only no knowledge of or involvement in the two controlled buys. The jury convicted, and Hernandez appealed, arguing the judge improperly admitted her coworker’s testimony.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Butzner, J.)
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