In U.S. v. Garcia-Bercovich, No. 08-12061 (Sept. 10, 2009), the Court affirmed convictions for marijuana trafficking.
The Court rejected the defendant’s challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence. Garcia-Bercovich traveled across the United States to pick up packages for an individual he barely knew. He had previously been convicted of importation of marijuana. One could infer that Garcia-Bercovich deliberately avoided learning the contents of the items he picked up so as to have this defense in the event of prosecution. Lastly, the defendant’s attempt to flee was evidence of guilt.
The Court also found no Fourth Amendment violation in the search of the boxes in which marijuana was found. Marijuana was found by a private search in a single box which came shrink wrapped on a single pallet with other boxes. The other boxes were then opened by police without a warrant. The Court rejected the argument that the search of the other boxes required a warrant, finding that all the boxes were part of the same "package" because they were shrink wrapped together on the same pallet.
