United States v. Dillard

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Dillard and Chester were engaged in a conspiracy to distribute heroin. They sold heroin to Daniels, a confidential informant, three times. They were separately charged. In the affidavit, an FBI agent detailed several recorded or monitored transactions with Daniels, referring to him only as the “cooperating source.” While the defendants were in custody, Daniels was murdered. The government introduced: recordings of calls and meetings between Daniels and the defendants to arrange heroin sales; voice identification of the defendants on the calls; a separate recording of Chester in prison; testimony by officers who surveilled the transactions; still photos of transactions showing Dillard’s distinctive tattoo; testimony by Dillard’s girlfriend identifying his nickname, which could be heard on the recordings; cell phone records showing calls between the defendants before and after transactions; cell phone location data showing their movements relevant dates; and evidence concerning Chester’s gambling in the days following the sales. The jury was told only that Daniels was deceased and unavailable as a witness. The Seventh Circuit affirmed Dillard’s conviction and sentence. The district court adequately protected Dillard from references to his alleged membership in a notorious gang. The court’s decision, after a single juror was exposed to inflammatory press coverage, to dismiss only that single juror was sufficient remedial action; the jury was not exposed to significant prejudicial testimony. View "United States v. Dillard" on Justia Law