The co-defendants' plea agreements submitted at Davis' sentencing demonstrated that Davis was in the habit of distributing crack cocaine. Nonetheless, as Agent Darin's testimony and the phone conversations established, Hankton dealt primarily in crack and the large wholesale purchases were made with the intent of converting the powder cocaine into crack. Hankton responds that [i]t's guaranteed. Agent Darin testified that butter was a common code word for cocaine and that the two were actually discussing the future sale of either crack or powder cocaine. However, even where a plain error is found to exist, a court of appeals may exercise its discretion to notice a forfeited error only if the error seriously affects the fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings. United States v. Cotton, 535 U.S. 625, 631, 122 S.Ct. 23. 2D1.1. (T. 1981, 1993). The collective name of joined gangs under the five point star banner (V.L.,B.P.S.,L.K., M.C.,4.C.H.,). During the late 1980s and early 1990s, Clarence Hankton and Gregory Davis were prominent members of the MCs, a dangerous and violent street gang that operated primarily out of housing projects on the north-west side of Chicago. 27. 26. Indeed, the federal criminal code makes clear that: No limitation shall be placed on the information concerning the background, character, and conduct of a person convicted of an offense which a court of the United States may receive and consider for the purpose of imposing an appropriate sentence. 18 U.S.C. Also, as the factfinder at sentencing, the judge was free to draw whatever conclusions he might about the testimony given and evidence introduced in order to determine an appropriate sentence. 3E1.1, the government recommended that Hankton's requisite offense level should be 37 and that, due to the fact his criminal history category was at level III, the appropriate sentencing range was 262 to 327 months. One memo from "the chairman and the board of directors" and dated July 23, 1983, addresses an important gang edict: Don't talk to law enforcement interrogators. Specifically, the court found that Hankton's leadership role in the MCs was evinced by the fact that Hankton had the authority to order the beating of Annette Williams, knowing that the beating could lead to her death.. However, even if the judge had taken into account Hankton's leadership role when determining the quantity of drugs attributing attributable to him, this would not have been improper because, as explained above, although there may have been some overlap in the factual predicate for both enhancements, each enhancement addressed distinct aspects of the defendant's conduct. Schmeilski, 408 F.3d at 919. Also, the district court did not rely solely on witness testimony concluding that Hankton was responsible for distributing more than 500 grams of crack. The LA Eme is a Hispanic Organized crime. 3661. A pen register is a mechanical device that records the numbers dialed on a telephone by monitoring the electrical impulses caused when the dial on the phone is released. United States v. New York Tel. a. The government concluded that, because Hankton had admitted to distributing 156 grams of cocaine and because the plea agreements attributed at least an additional 344 grams of crack to him, it was reasonable to conclude from the evidence presented at sentencing that he had distributed in excess of 500 grams of cocaine for the purposes of U.S.S.G 2D1.1. In addition, Hankton was charged with four separate counts of distribution of cocaine base, in violation of 21 U.S.C. The members of the gang used phrases such as a 16th or a teenager to refer to 1/16th of an ounce of crack cocaine, eight-ball, ball or Michael Jordan to refer to 1/8 of an ounce of crack cocaine, quarter, quaker or quake to refer to 1/4 of an ounce of crack cocaine and onion, zone or piece to refer to a whole ounce of crack cocaine. They changed their name to Cobra Stones in the late 1960s. What's more, Detective Charles testified that he personally witnessed Hankton standing with several other men in the parking lot of Williams' building at 1150-60 North Sedgwick Street, from 8:00-10:00 p.m. the evening of her murder. 5. However, because we have held that the court's consideration of the co-defendant's plea agreements at sentencing did not constitute clear error under any circumstances, we need not separately discuss Davis' challenge to the enhancements to his sentence under 3B1.1(b).Nonetheless, even if we were to hold that the plea agreements were unreliable and should not have been considered, the enhancement was still supported by the record. The fact that Davis called no witnesses at sentencing and failed to successfully discredit Agent Darin on cross-examination, however, evinces nothing more than a shortcoming in the presentation of his case and falls far short of establishing error on the part of the trial judge. 843(b) and 18 U.S.C. Gang members who sell "packs" of cocaine "on the line" must be finished with work by midnight. Based on his understanding of the inner-workings of the MCs, Charles stated that on April 12, 2004, Williams had been issued a severe beating or violation as the MCs called it, for allegedly stealing approximately $3,000 from the gang. . The five-point star banner's collective name for joined gangs. 6A1.3); see also United States v. Hardamon, 188 F.3d 843, 849 (7th Cir.1999) (stating that during the sentencing phase of a criminal proceeding the rules of evidence do not apply and the sentencing judge is free to consider a wide range of evidence including hearsay.). What's more, Hankton's role as leader and organizer is rather persuasively illustrated by the fact that he had the power within the MCs organization to order the brutal beating and murder of one of the gang's members, Annette Williams. An FBI-led task force and Chicago police arrested Hankton and 12 of the other suspects Thursday. It was allot of Cobra Stones but once Mickey died some stayed Stones,some became Mickey Cobras and some were King Cobras. As such, the defendant must have exercised some degree of control over others involved in the commission of the offense or he must have been responsible for organizing others for the purpose of carrying out the crime. Id. 3. 28. Another defendant was already incarcerated in Cook County Jail on unrelated charges. In addition, it was the government's position that the plea agreements received in evidence demonstrated Davis' authority position in the MCs, citing references to him as Sultan Supreme or lieutenant in the gang and leader of the MCs at the Lathrop Homes. At the close of the sentencing hearing, after weighing the evidence presented, the district court determined by a preponderance of the evidence that Davis had indeed possessed with intent to distribute between 50 and 150 grams of crack cocaine and that he was a manager or supervisor of a criminal activity, within the meaning of 3B1.1. Meaning that, without anything more, evidence of drug transactions referenced in the telephone recordings that Agent Darin testified concerning was sufficient to attribute over 500 grams of crack cocaine to Hankton under the sentencing guidelines. Hankton's claim of impermissible double counting finds no support in the record, much less the voluminous amount of case law on this subject. "If anyone break these laws or house rules more than three time, the penalty will increase," rule No. 16. Torres-Ramirez, 213 F.3d at 980-81. "It's just like any other corporation," said Donald Hilbring, commander of the Chicago police gang unit. Both men also contend that the district court erroneously enhanced their sentences based on insufficient and unreliable evidence. 841(a)(1) (Counts II, III, IV, and V) and Davis was charged with knowingly and intentionally possessing with intent to distribute approximately 250 grams of cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. As part of the plea agreement, the government agreed to recommend that Davis be granted a 3 level reduction for acceptance of responsibility pursuant to U.S.S.G. Rather, the "House Rules" for the Mickey Cobras street gang are handwritten on five pages of plain paper and were found by police stuffed in the pockets of several members who accused of selling crack cocaine. The district judge mandated that the names of the witnesses be kept confidential, due to the fact that they feared retribution from the gang for their statements. The gang is considered very mobile, and its colors are green, black, and red. The indictment also alleged that the defendants participated in various other drug-related crimes arising out of their membership in, and affiliation with, the "Mickey Cobras" ("MCs") street gang, which operated on the north-side of Chicago, Illinois during the 1980s and 1990s. (internal citations omitted); (citing United States v. Parolin, 239 F.3d 922, 929 (7th Cir.2001)). At a press conference that included officials from the FBI, Chicago police and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, U.S. Atty. To corroborate Detective Charles' testimony, the government introduced sworn statements from two sub rosa government witnesses, identified in the record only as A and B.12 In their statements both witnesses identify Hankton as the don or leader of the MCs at Cabrini-Green. In a number of those plea agreements, the defendants admit purchasing crack cocaine from Davis. The testimony given by Detective Charles and Agent Darin was more than reliable and therefore properly considered by the district court in sentencing Hankton. In addition, the district judge specifically found Agent Darin to be a credible witness, a determination which bolstered the judge's decision that Darin's testimony concerning the wiretap conversations was reliable. For example, although the judge recognized that Hankton was not the sole and only leader of the organization, he did exercise control [and] power [t]he telephone calls clearly establish that [t]hey show his concern for the organization itself, its image. In addition, the court referenced evidence presented by the government which illustrated Hankton's role in the murder of Annette Williams, see supra pp. The Mickey Cobras are a large street gang affiliated with the nationwide gang alliance known as "People" and based in Chicago. Bearing upon this was testimony given by a number of prosecution witnesses who confirmed Hankton's involvement in the murder of Annette Williams, a fellow member of the MCs, in April of 2004. Five others remain fugitives. In 2006, multiple people died from overdose when a strengthened variant of heroin made its way into the houses. Agent Darin, a member of the FBI's joint gang task force and a trained drug traffic investigation agent, testified concerning Hankton's coordination of the drug trade for the MCs as well as his role as King or leader of the gang throughout the city in 2000 and 2001. See id. In particular, Ngaya Brunner admits to purchasing approximately 10 and one-half grams of crack from Davis. Among the co-defendants were Woodrow Green, Jammah Olden, Rasuah Brunner, Ngaya Brunner, Timeka Murdock and Mekeba Gates, many of whom were also members of the MCs and all of whom also entered into plea agreements with the government. Also, the reliability of the plea agreements-as well as Agent Darin's testimony for that matter-was bolstered by the fact that, at sentencing, Hankton took advantage of a reasonable opportunity to rebut the hearsay evidence used against him. United States v. Barnes, 117 F.3d 328, 338 (7th Cir.1997) (quoting United States v. Francis, 39 F.3d 803, 810 (7th Cir.1994)). 6. It is true that later in the same monologue the judge mentions the position Hankton occupied to illustrate the point that the actual amount attributable to him could reach even beyond 1.5 kilograms. It is clear from those statements, however, that without taking Hankton's leadership role in the offense into consideration, the judge determined that the sentencing enhancement should apply, making any other drug amounts attributable to Hankton via his leadership role superfluous.29 Said differently, the judge concluded that Hankton was personally responsible for distributing well beyond 500 gram[s] of crack cocaine, which justified the enhancement of his sentence under 2D1.1. The list is a detailed explanation of how to act as "security" for drug sales and how to sell "packs" of crack in three buildings of the Robert Taylor Homes that are controlled by the gang. The following day, Davis also agreed to plead guilty to possessing, with the intent to distribute, approximately 250 grams of cocaine, also in violation of 21 U.S.C. The Egyptian Cobras formed in the year 1954 on Chicago's west side on the corner of Roosevelt and Maxwell. The rules make it clear that activities normally associated with gangs, like graffiti and fighting, are not acceptable while drugs are being sold, he said. http://www. Nonetheless, testimony from Chicago Police Detective Charles, as well as Agent Darin and Jammah Olden illustrated the power over the drug trade and gang activities that the title afforded Hankton. Davis disagreed with each of the proposed enhancements, in the plea agreement, reserved his right to argue his position at sentencing. In the Illinois prison system, they are a part of the People Nation. The statements did suggest that the original order to issue Williams a beating may have emanated from, or been approved by, a higher authority in the gang; however, A and B agree that the order to beat Williams came to them directly from Hankton. The founder of the Egyptian Cobras was James Cogwell. 8. We do however order a Limited Remand of both Hankton and Davis' sentences in accordance with the procedure set forth in United States v. Paladino. This evidence was fully corroborated by the testimony of Agent Darin, which the sentencing judge expressly found to be credible. As explained infra, the rules of evidence do not apply at sentencing, thus the judge's decision to consider the code language testimony given by Agent Darin was squarely within his discretion. Instead, the government argued that, in addition to possessing powder cocaine, Davis was also responsible for possessing with the intent to distribute between 50 and 150 grams of crack cocaine, pursuant to U.S.S.G. And no sitting down or horsing around while on duty. In particular, Darin testified concerning the contents of an intercepted phone conversation of July 24, 2000 between Davis and the previously mentioned co-defendant, Jammah Olden, where the two argue over what Davis refers to as his workers. Evidently Davis became aware of the fact that Olden was selling drugs in an area where his workers were and became upset with him, telling the unidentified person (most likely Olden) on the phone that y'all better not be [sic] get caught selling [t]hey's [sic] my workers. Two days later a telephone call from Davis to Hankton (Jammah Olden is on the tape and can be overheard in the background) illustrates Davis' anger over Olden invading his workers' drug spot or lick and warns that if his people weren't allowed to continue selling drugs in that area he would fry that motherf[***]r up.. In one conversation with a MCs associate, for example, Hankton is asked whether he got that butter?. 13. A seller must turn over the proceeds from one pack before he can get another to sell, the rules state. The gang's various criminal undertakings were coordinated through a hierarchical-type infrastructure and included, but were not limited to, the possession and distribution of powder cocaine and cocaine base (better known as crack).3. "The dope and the money-making is more important than the brotherhood," said Cmdr. Although there was some ambiguity in Olden's testimony as to his interpretation of the terminology used by the MCs to refer to crack cocaine, he eventually testified that he purchased a hard form of cocaine from Hankton. In fact, 2D1.1 and 3B1.1(a) are premised on entirely different conduct; for while an individual may be found to have distributed a certain quantity of drugs making him eligible for a sentence enhancement under 2D1.1, he need not be a leader or organizer of a criminal activity, as described by 3B1.1, to do so. On appeal, both Hankton and Davis argue that their respective sentences should be vacated as unconstitutional under the Sixth Amendment citing the district judge's belief that application of the guidelines was mandatory as well as the judge's subsequent enhancement of their sentences on facts which were neither proven to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt nor admitted by the appellants. Introduced were the plea agreements of Davis, Woodrow Green, Jammah Olden, Rasuah Brunner, Ngaya Brunner, Timeka Murdock and Mekeba Gates. As this court has held, the pre-Booker mandatory application of the sentencing guidelines ipso facto constitutes plain error. It even cites the court case-Miranda vs. Arizona. Some of the factors for a sentencing court to consider when determining whether a defendant held a leadership role under 3B1.1 include: the defendant's (1) exercise of decision-making authority; (2) participation in committing the offense; (3) recruitment of accomplices; (4) degree of participation in planning or organizing the criminal activity; (5) degree of control or authority exercised over others involved in the criminal activity; and (6) the nature and scope of the illegal activity. United States v. Falcon, 347 F.3d 1000, 1004 (7th Cir.2003) (citing United States v. Noble, 246 F.3d 946, 953 (7th Cir.2001)). Said differently, Hankton takes issue with the sentencing judge's focus on his leadership conduct which he claims is unrelated to the underlying crime of distribution of a controlled substance. Made public recently by police sources, the sheets outline how gang members should behave while peddling drugs in the Robert Taylor Homes. He joined in 1978 when he was eight years old and left the gang in 1996. "It's a fallacy that they put on paper that you have to be 16 on the line. Scott Lassar said the pursuit of street gangs remained a top priority because of their control of narcotics in Chicago and the resulting violence. Although the plea agreements of the co-defendants may have constituted hearsay, see fed. on Febuary 25, 1977 Mickey Cogwell was killed, The Gunmen were never found. Last summer, Hilbring recalled, officers seized an instruction list that a West Side gang was passing out to its drug customers. "The leaders of street gangs should understand we know who they are, we know how to catch them and we're going to continue to be coming after them," Lassar told reporters.