US v. Michael Stevenson

Filing

UNPUBLISHED PER CURIAM OPINION filed. Originating case number: 7:08-cr-00057-BO-3 Copies to all parties and the district court/agency. [998740246].. [10-4327]

Appeal: 10-4327

Document: 63

Date Filed: 12/09/2011

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ON REHEARING
UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 10-4327

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
v.
MICHAEL CARL STEVENSON,
Defendant - Appellant.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern
District of North Carolina, at Raleigh.
Terrence W. Boyle,
District Judge. (7:08-cr-00057-BO-3)

Submitted:

October 25, 2011

Decided:

December 9, 2011

Before DAVIS, WYNN, and DIAZ, Circuit Judges.

Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Robert L. Cooper, COOPER, DAVIS & COOPER, Fayetteville, North
Carolina, for Appellant.
George E. B. Holding, United States
Attorney, Jennifer P. May-Parker, Denise Walker, Assistant
United States Attorneys, Raleigh, North Carolina, for Appellee.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

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PER CURIAM:
After

a

jury

trial,

Michael

Carl

Stevenson

was

convicted of one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to
distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, in violation of 21
U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), 846 (2006).

On appeal, Stevenson’s counsel

filed a brief claiming the evidence was insufficient to support
the conviction.
No.

10-4327,

We affirmed.
2011

(unpublished).

WL

See United States v. Stevenson,

2837402

(4th

Cir.

July

19,

2011)

We subsequently stayed the mandate pursuant to

Fed. R. App. P. 41(d)(1) and granted Stevenson’s pro se petition
for

rehearing,

motion

for

reinstated

leave

to

file

and
a

granted
pro

se

his

November

supplemental

2,

2010

brief

and

directed the Government to file a brief addressing Stevenson’s
pro se claim that the district court abused its discretion by
ordering a sentence at the top end of the Sentencing Guidelines,
without

indicating

it

considered

counsel’s

arguments

for

a

sentence at the low end of the Guidelines or any of the 18
U.S.C.

§

States v.

3553(a)
Lynn,

(2006)

592

F.3d

sentencing
572

(4th

factors,
Cir.

citing

2010),

States v. Carter, 564 F.3d 325 (4th Cir. 2009).

and

United
United

After receiving

the Government’s brief and conducting further review, we affirm
the conviction and sentence.
This court reviews de novo the denial of Stevenson’s
motion for judgment of acquittal.
2

See United States v. Green,

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599 F.3d 360, 367 (4th Cir.), cert. denied, 131 S. Ct. 271
(2010). “[V]iewing the evidence in the light most favorable to
the Government,” United States v. Bynum, 604 F.3d 161, 166 (4th
Cir.) (internal quotation marks omitted), cert. denied, 130 S.
Ct.

3442

(2010),

conviction

is

the

court

supported

is

by

to

determine

“substantial

whether

evidence,”

the
where

“substantial evidence is evidence that a reasonable finder of
fact

could

accept

as

adequate

and

sufficient

to

support

a

conclusion of a defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt,”
United

States

v.

Young,

609

F.3d

348,

(internal quotation marks omitted).
whether

“any

rational

trier

of

355

(4th

Cir.

2010)

The ultimate question is

facts

could

defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.”

have

found

the

Bynum, 604 F.3d at

166 (internal quotation marks omitted).
Conviction

for

conspiracy

to

distribute

narcotics

under 21 U.S.C. § 846 requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt
of

three

elements:

“(1)

an

agreement

between

two

or

more

persons to engage in conduct that violates a federal drug law,
(2) the defendant’s knowledge of the conspiracy, and (3) the
defendant’s

knowing

and

voluntary

participation

in

the

conspiracy.”

United States v. Kellam, 568 F.3d 125, 139 (4th

Cir.),

denied,

cert.

130

S.

Ct.

657

(2009).

“Because

a

conspiracy is by nature clandestine and covert, there rarely is
direct

evidence

of

such

an

agreement
3

.

.

.

[C]onspiracy

is

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usually proven by circumstantial evidence.”

United States v.

Yearwood, 518 F.3d 220, 226 (4th Cir. 2008) (internal quotation
marks and citation omitted).
may

consist

of

the

Evidence supporting an agreement

defendant’s

relationship

to

the

other

conspirators and his conduct and attitude during the course of
the conspiracy.

United States v. Burgos, 94 F.3d 849, 858 (4th

Cir. 1996) (en banc).
We conclude that the evidence was sufficient to show
that

Stevenson

Patterson.

entered

into

a

conspiracy

with

Beatty

and

Stevenson knew Beatty had a history of dealing drugs

and had allowed him to store drugs on his property.

On the day

of the transaction, Stevenson provided Beatty with drug testing
kits, drove him and Patterson to the location of the drug deal,
kept his plans private from other individuals, discussed with
the other two men that they needed to be on the same page if
anything went wrong and agreed to accept payment of $1000 for
driving.

We conclude that this evidence of Stevenson’s conduct

and attitude shows that he was in agreement with the other men
to purchase narcotics for the purpose of distribution.
We have reviewed the issues Stevenson presented in his
pro se supplemental brief and conclude that none of the issues
compel us to vacate his conviction or sentence.

With regard to

Stevenson’s sentencing issues, we have reviewed the record and
conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion.
4

Appeal: 10-4327

See

Document: 63

Gall

v.

Date Filed: 12/09/2011

United

States,

552

reviews

first

Page: 5 of 8

U.S.

38,

51

(2007)

(stating

standard of review).
The

court

the

reasonableness

of

the

process by which the sentencing court arrived at its decision
and then reviews the reasonableness of the sentence itself.

Id.

In determining the procedural reasonableness of a sentence, this
court considers whether the district court properly calculated
the

Guidelines

considered

range,

presented

the
by

§

treated

3553(a)

the

Guidelines

factors,

parties,

selected sentence.

the

and

sufficiently

advisory,

any

analyzed

as

arguments

explained

the

“Regardless of whether the district

Id.

court imposes an above, below, or within-Guidelines sentence, it
must place on the record an individualized assessment based on
the particular facts of the case before it.”

United States v.

Carter, 564 F.3d 325, 330 (4th Cir. 2009) (internal quotation
marks omitted).

Where, as here, the district court imposed a

within-Guidelines

sentence,

extensive,

still

while

the

explanation

individualized.”

may

United

be

“less

States

v.

Johnson, 587 F.3d 625, 639 (4th Cir. 2009), cert. denied, 130 S.
Ct.

2128

themselves

(2010).
are

in

“This
many

is

ways

because

tailored

guidelines
to

the

sentences

individual

and

reflect approximately two decades of close attention to federal
sentencing policy.”
However,

that

Id.

explanation

(internal quotation marks omitted).
must
5

be

sufficient

to

allow

for

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“‘meaningful

Date Filed: 12/09/2011

appellate

review,’”

Page: 6 of 8

Carter,

564

F.3d

at

330

(quoting Gall, 552 U.S. at 50), such that the appellate court
need “not guess at the district court’s rationale.”

Id. at 329.

A court’s reasoning for imposing a within-Guidelines sentence
may

be

clear

throughout

from

the

anything

sentencing

the

court

hearing.

said
See

to

the

United

defendant
States

v.

Thompson, 595 F.3d 544, 547 (4th Cir. 2010).
In order to preserve a sentencing issue for appellate
review, the defendant “must, at some point in the proceedings
draw arguments from § 3553 for a sentence different than the one
ultimately imposed[.]”

United States v. Lynn, 592 F.3d 576, 578

(4th Cir. 2010); see also United States v. Boulware, 604 F.3d
832, 838 (4th Cir. 2010) (arguments under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)
for a sentence different than the one imposed are sufficient to
preserve a claim).
Under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a), the district court should
consider the nature and circumstances of the offense and the
history and characteristics of the defendant, the need for the
sentence to reflect the seriousness of the offense, to promote
respect for the law, to provide just punishment for the offense,
to provide adequate deterrence, to protect the public and to
provide the defendant with educational and vocational training.
Stevenson’s counsel requested a sentence at the low
end of the Guidelines, asserting that such a sentence would be
6

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sufficient deterrence and would serve to protect the public.
Because counsel’s request for a low sentence was not supported
with

anything

recitation

from

the

two

of

of

record
the

and

was

§ 3553(a)

nothing

more

sentencing

than

factors,

a
we

conclude that the court was not obliged to directly respond to
counsel’s request.

We note, in contrast, that the Government

provided

basis

a

factual

in

support

of

its

request

for

a

sentence at the high end of the Guidelines.
We conclude that the district court properly “place[d]
on

the

record

an

individualized

assessment

based

on

the

particular facts of the case before it,” Carter, 564 F.3d at
330,

and

adequately

stated

its

reasoning

Stevenson to the high end of the Guidelines.

for

sentencing

The sentencing

transcript demonstrates that the court, having presided over the
trial,

based

the

characteristics.

sentence

on

Stevenson’s

history

and

For example, the court stated the Guideline

range and then heard arguments from defense counsel and from the
Government.
During

a

The
colloquy

court
with

also

permitted

Stevenson,

the

Stevenson
court

to

speak.

stated

the

following: “I think that you’ve had a life of manipulation and
deceit and that you have been able to survive through those
methodologies and that, unfortunately for you, the time has come
where the lies and deceit have run out.”

7

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Even if the district court failed to give adequate
consideration to counsel’s request for a sentence at the low end
of the Guidelines or to the § 3553(a) sentencing factors, we
conclude that any error was harmless.

There is nothing in the

record to suggest that the court’s approach to determining the
sentence had an improper substantial and injurious effect or
influence on the proceedings.
Accordingly,
sentence.
legal
before

affirm

Stevenson’s

conviction

and

We dispense with oral argument because the facts and

contentions
the

we

See Lynn, 592 F.3d at 585.

court

are

adequately

and

argument

presented

would

not

in
aid

the
the

materials
decisional

process.
AFFIRMED

8