US v. Montes, No. 08-10539

Marijuana Conspiracy Convictions Affirmed

In US v. Montes, No. 08-10539, the court affirmed defendants' marijuana conspiracy convictions where the district court could adequately make its determination without the benefit of an evidentiary hearing regarding whether an article regarding federal marijuana policy influenced the outcome of the trial.

As the court wrote:  "Upon a post-verdict allegation of juror misconduct, a district court should ordinarily hold an evidentiary hearing to determine the nature of the misconduct and whether or not there was a reasonable possibility that it could have affected the jury's verdict. However, an evidentiary hearing is not mandated every time there is an allegation of juror misconduct. Because this is one of the cases where a district court could adequately make its determination without the benefit of an evidentiary hearing, we affirm the judgment of the district court."

Related Resources

• Read the Ninth Circuit's Decision in US v. Montes, No. 08-10539