US v. Finch, No. 10-1157

Crack Conviction Affirmed

In US v. Finch, No. 10-1157, the court affirmed defendant's conviction and sentence for possession with intent to distribute 5 grams or more of cocaine base where 1) there was sufficient evidence of defendant's dominion over the northwest bedroom of the home at issue to support the jury's conclusion that he knowingly possessed the crack cocaine; and 2) the government's expert testimony was not "fundamentally unsupported" and its admission did not constitute an abuse of discretion.

As the court wrote:  "After a jury trial, Alfred Finch was convicted of one count of possession with intent to distribute 5 grams or more of cocaine base ("crack cocaine"), a violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(B)(iii). The district court1 sentenced him to 78 months' imprisonment followed by 5 years of supervised release. Finch appeals his conviction and sentence. We affirm."

Related Resources

• Read the Eighth Circuit's Decision in US v. Finch, No. 10-1157