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U.S. v. Williams

United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
Dec 17, 2008
303 F. App'x 127 (3d Cir. 2008)

Opinion

No. 07-2993.

Submitted Under Third Circuit L.A.R. 34.1(a) December 2, 2008.

Opinion Filed: December 17, 2008.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (D.C. Crim. No. 05-00125), District Judge: Honorable John P. Fullam.

Robert A. Zauzmer, Office of United States Attorney, Philadelphia, PA, for United States of America.

Ari R. Karpf, Karpf, Karpf Virant, Bensalem, PA, for Appellant.

Before: AMBRO, WEIS and VAN ANTWERPEN, Circuit Judges.


A jury convicted defendant of possession of crack-cocaine with intent to distribute. The District Court sentenced him to 120 months incarceration, an eight year term of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment. He has appealed, asserting that the jury instructions created a reasonable likelihood that the jury misunderstood the government's burden to prove each and every element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Defendant also contends that the District Court abused its discretion in finding that the verdict was not contrary to the weight of the evidence.

Defendant did not object to the jury charge at the trial. Consequently, we review for plain error. United States v. Flores, 454 F.3d 149, 156 (3d Cir. 2006). In doing so, we "consider the totality of the instructions and not a particular sentence or paragraph in isolation." United States v. Coyle, 63 F.3d 1239, 1245 (3d Cir. 1995). After reviewing the District Court's charge in its entirety, we find no error in the instructions on reasonable doubt, let alone plain error. See generally Victor v. Nebraska, 511 U.S. 1, 5, 114 S.Ct. 1239, 127 L.Ed.2d 583 (1994) (a proper reasonable doubt instruction need not contain any particular words or phrases provided that the charge, when read as a whole, adequately conveys the government's burden of proof). Accordingly, we reject the defendant's argument that the District Court erred in charging the jury.

As we observed in Virgin Islands v. Derricks, 810 F.2d 50, 55 (3d Cir. 1987), "[m]otions for a new trial based on the weight of the evidence are not favored." They "are to be granted sparingly and only in exceptional cases." Id. Our review demonstrates that this is not such an exceptional case and that the evidence supported the jury's verdict. The District Court did not err in denying a new trial.

Accordingly, the judgment of the District Court will be affirmed.


Summaries of

U.S. v. Williams

United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
Dec 17, 2008
303 F. App'x 127 (3d Cir. 2008)
Case details for

U.S. v. Williams

Case Details

Full title:UNITED STATES of America v. Kenneth WILLIAMS, a/k/a Junior, Appellant

Court:United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit

Date published: Dec 17, 2008

Citations

303 F. App'x 127 (3d Cir. 2008)