United States Seventh Circuit

In a consolidated appeal involving a widespread drug conspiracy, defendants' convictions and sentences are affirmed where: 1) district court's conviction of defendant-Alvarez is supported by sufficient evidence from which the jury could have fond that defendant conspired to distribute narcotics: 2) court did not err in giving the jury "ostrich" instructions as it was an accurate statement of the law and evidence supported issuing such an instruction: 3) district court did not err in finding defendant-Alvarez to be a minor participant rather than a minimal one in granting her a two-level reduction in sentencing; court did not err in imposing a two-level increase to defendant-Alvarez's offense level for obstructing justice as the court found all of the elements of perjury; and the sentence was reasonable: 4) defendant-Decker waived his objection to the court's drug quantity calculation: 5) defendant-Garcia has no non-frivolous issues for appeal and therefore his counsel's motion to withdraw is granted.

Appellate Information

• Argued 02/26/2009
• Decided 09/01/2009
• Published 09/01/2009

Judges

• KANNE, Circuit Judge., Before BAUER, KANNE, and SYKES, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Seventh Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Saul Garcia, Leavenworth, KS, pro se.


• For Appellees:
  
• Bradley Blackington, Attorney (submitted), Office of the United States Attorney, Indianapolis, IN, for Plaintiff-Appellee., James P. Hanlon, Attorney, Baker & Daniels, Indianapolis, IN, for Saul Garcia, Defendant-Appellant., Robert A. Handelsman, Attorney (argued), Chicago, IL, for Dustin Decker, Defendant-Appellant., Vernon E. Lorenz, Attorney (argued), Indianapolis, IN, for Paula Alvarez, Defendant-Appellant.