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U.S. v. Robinson, No. 97-2185 (1st Cir.) (144 F.3d 104) (May 8, 1998) (Judge Bruce M. Selya)

Article • July 1, 1998 • from P&J July, 1998

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Robinson, No. 97-2185 (1st Cir.) (144 F.3d 104) (May 8, 1998) (Judge Bruce M. Selya) by Here the Court held that because crack cocaine is chemically indistinguishable from other forms of cocaine base, lay testimony could be used for sentencing purposes to establish the nature of the substance. …

U.S. v. Martinez, No. 97-2350 (1st Cir.) (144 F.3d 189) (June 2, 1998) (Judge Bruce M. Selya)

Article • July 1, 1998 • from P&J July, 1998

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Martinez, No. 97-2350 (1st Cir.) (144 F.3d 189) (June 2, 1998) (Judge Bruce M. Selya) by Case held that the Government had adduced sufficient competent evidence through testimony of chemist that substance was crack cocaine, and not another form of cocaine base, even though they are chemically indistinguishable.

U.S. v. Kang, No. 97-3423 (8th Cir.) (143 F.3d 379) (April 23, 1998) (Judge Richard S. Arnold)

Article • July 1, 1998 • from P&J July, 1998

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Kang, No. 97-3423 (8th Cir.) (143 F.3d 379) (April 23, 1998) (Judge Richard S. Arnold) by Case held that under the Guidelines "cocaine base" and "crack" are synonymous and thus the defendant's argument that the rule of lenity warranted a lower sentence was unavailing.

U.S. v. Coleman, No. 96-1823 (6th Cir.) (138 F.3d 616) (March 11, 1998) (Judge Nathaniel R. Jones)

Article • May 1, 1998 • from P&J August, 1999

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Coleman, No. 96-1823 (6th Cir.) (138 F.3d 616) (March 11, 1998) (Judge Nathaniel R. Jones) by This decision is one more indication of the racial overtones behind much of the crack-cocaine prosecution policies of the Government. ATF Special Agent Joseph Secrete decided that the best way to pad …

U.S. v. Banks, No. 96-4822 (4th Cir.) (130 F.3d 621) (December 2, 1997) (Judge Frank J. Magill)

Article • January 1, 1998 • from P&J January, 1998

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Banks, No. 96-4822 (4th Cir.) (130 F.3d 621) (December 2, 1997) (Judge Frank J. Magill) by

U.S. v. Washington, No. 96-5196 (6th Cir.) (127 F.3d 510) (October 8, 1997) (Judge Richard F. Suhrheinrich)

Article • December 1, 1997 • from P&J December, 1997

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Washington, No. 96-5196 (6th Cir.) (127 F.3d 510) (October 8, 1997) (Judge Richard F. Suhrheinrich) by Case is cited for strong dissent by Judge Jones calling for re-analysis of unfair and racially discriminatory crack/cocaine sentencing scheme.

U.S. v. Washington, No. 96-5196 (6th Cir.) (127 F.3d 510) (October 8, 1997) (Judge Richard F. Suhrheinrich)

Article • December 1, 1997 • from P&J December, 1997

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Washington, No. 96-5196 (6th Cir.) (127 F.3d 510) (October 8, 1997) (Judge Richard F. Suhrheinrich) by Court rejected the use of any downward departure base on the crack-cocaine sentencing disparity.

U.S. v. Earnest, No. 97-1222 (7th Cir.) (129 F.3d 906) (November 14, 1997) (Judge Walter J. Cummings)

Article • December 1, 1997 • from P&J December, 1997

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Earnest, No. 97-1222 (7th Cir.) (129 F.3d 906) (November 14, 1997) (Judge Walter J. Cummings) by Even though defendant earlier admitted that the drug for which he was convicted was crack, because he was denied an evidentiary hearing to determine whether it was crack for sentencing purposes, the …

U.S. v. Washington, No. 96-5196 (6th Cir.) (127 F.3d 510) (October 8, 1997) (Judge Richard F. Suhrheinrich)

Article • December 1, 1997 • from P&J December, 1997

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Washington, No. 96-5196 (6th Cir.) (127 F.3d 510) (October 8, 1997) (Judge Richard F. Suhrheinrich) by QUOTE OF THE WEEK - Blind eyes and deaf ears: the crack/cocaine controversy "I recognize that this court has rejected a variety of constitutional challenges to the 100:1 [crack/cocaine] ratio, but I …

U.S. v. Weaver, No. 96-5849 (6th Cir.) (126 F.3d 789) (September 22, 1997) (Judge Karen Nelson Moore)

Article • November 1, 1997 • from P&J November, 1997

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Weaver, No. 96-5849 (6th Cir.) (126 F.3d 789) (September 22, 1997) (Judge Karen Nelson Moore) by Case held that a district court cannot rest a departure solely upon a disparity deliberately created by the Sentencing Commission that is not a result of atypical circumstances.

U.S. v. Johnson, No. Crim. 96-45 MMS (D.Del.) (976 F.Supp. 284) (August 13, 1997) (Judge Murray M. Schwartz)

Article • November 1, 1997 • from P&J November, 1997

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Johnson, No. Crim. 96-45 MMS (D.Del.) (976 F.Supp. 284) (August 13, 1997) (Judge Murray M. Schwartz) by United States v. Bowen, 127 F.3d 9 (1st Cir. 1997) (Judge Torruella) United States v. Johnson, 976 F.Supp. 284 (D.Del. 1997) (Judge Schwartz) Due to the advent of the Guidelines' Drug …

U.S. v. Adams, No. 96-2605 (7th Cir.) (125 F.3d 586) (September 24, 1997) (Judge Richard D. Cudahy)

Article • November 1, 1997 • from P&J November, 1997

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Adams, No. 96-2605 (7th Cir.) (125 F.3d 586) (September 24, 1997) (Judge Richard D. Cudahy) by Before November 1, 1993, the Sentencing Guidelines did not define the term "cocaine base." However, sec. 2D1.1 then was amended to provide: "Cocaine base," for the purposes of this guideline, means "crack." …

U.S. v. Adams, No. 96-2605 (7th Cir.) (125 F.3d 586) (September 24, 1997) (Judge Richard D. Cudahy)

Article • November 1, 1997 • from P&J November, 1997

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Adams, No. 96-2605 (7th Cir.) (125 F.3d 586) (September 24, 1997) (Judge Richard D. Cudahy) by Case examined 1993 amendment to Guidelines which provided a new definition of "cocaine base"; and held that only the form of cocaine base which is "crack" is eligible for the enhanced sentence. …

U.S. v. Gaines, No. 95-2374 (6th Cir.) (122 F.3d 324) (August 8, 1997) (Judge Richard F. Suhrheinrich)

Article • October 1, 1997 • from P&J October, 1997

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Gaines, No. 95-2374 (6th Cir.) (122 F.3d 324) (August 8, 1997) (Judge Richard F. Suhrheinrich) by This is one of the more interesting of the many recent cases that have ruled on the controversial question of whether a district court has the authority to grant a downward departure …

U.S. v. Booker, No. 96-2994 (7th Cir.) (115 F.3d 442) (May 23, 1997) (Per Curiam)

Article • July 1, 1997 • from P&J July, 1997

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Booker, No. 96-2994 (7th Cir.) (115 F.3d 442) (May 23, 1997) (Per Curiam) by The rumblings of discontentment from the courts! Just as the Attorney General and her minions have finally concluded that the 100 to 1 sentencing disparity between crack and powdered cocaine might be a tad …

U.S. v. Lewis, No. 96-1468 (3rd Cir.) (113 F.3d 487) (May 14, 1997) (Judge Morton I. Greenberg)

Article • June 1, 1997 • from P&J June, 1997

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Lewis, No. 96-1468 (3rd Cir.) (113 F.3d 487) (May 14, 1997) (Judge Morton I. Greenberg) by United States v. Lewis, 113 F.3d 487 (3rd Cir. 1997) (Judge Greenberg) United States v. Longoria, 113 F.3d 975 (9th Cir. 1997) (Judge Schwarzer) In order to be convicted of a drug …

U.S. v. Sepulveda, No. 95-2255 (1st Cir.) (102 F.3d 1313) (December 30, 1996) (Judge Michael Boudin)

Article • February 1, 1997 • from P&J February, 1997

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Sepulveda, No. 95-2255 (1st Cir.) (102 F.3d 1313) (December 30, 1996) (Judge Michael Boudin) by Court affirmed sentence based on conversion of cash in the defendant's possession into the crack equivalent rather than the cocaine equivalent even though the presentence report recommended otherwise.

U.S. v. Edwards, No. 95-3165 (D.C. Cir.) (98 F.3d 1364) (October 29, 1996) (Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson)

Article • December 1, 1996 • from P&J December, 1996

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Edwards, No. 95-3165 (D.C. Cir.) (98 F.3d 1364) (October 29, 1996) (Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson) by The Court stated: "Whatever the pharmacological similarities . . . we find no ambiguity in the terms 'cocaine base' and 'cocaine' and join the other circuits that have rejected rule of lenity …

U.S. v. Smart, No. 95-3056 (D.C. Cir.) (98 F.3d 1379) (November 1, 1996) (Judge Patricia M. Wald)

Article • December 1, 1996 • from P&J December, 1996

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Smart, No. 95-3056 (D.C. Cir.) (98 F.3d 1379) (November 1, 1996) (Judge Patricia M. Wald) by Citing prior decisions, the court held that Congress's and the Commission's actions do not give the district judge any power to depart from the Sentencing Guidelines based on the disparity between powdered …

U.S. v. Sloan, No. 94-2101 (11th Cir.) (97 F.3d 1378) (October 7, 1996) (Judge Phyllis A. Kravitch)

Article • November 1, 1996 • from P&J November, 1996

Filed under: Punch And Jurists, Crack v. Powdered Cocaine

U.S. v. Sloan, No. 94-2101 (11th Cir.) (97 F.3d 1378) (October 7, 1996) (Judge Phyllis A. Kravitch) by Here the court agreed that crack cocaine and other forms of cocaine "are chemically indistinguishable" - but it said that such a fact does not mandate application of the rule of lenity. …