United States v. Gabaldon , 236 F. App'x 986 ( 2007 )

United States Court of Appeals
Fifth Circuit
F I L E D
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT June 25, 2007
Charles R. Fulbruge III
Clerk
No. 06-50996
Summary Calendar
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
KATIE GABALDON,
Defendant-Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Western District of Texas
(7:06-CR-7-3)
Before DAVIS, BARKSDALE, and BENAVIDES, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:*
Katie Gabaldon challenges the sufficiency of the evidence for
her jury-trial conviction for aiding and abetting the possession,
with intent to distribute, 50 kilograms or more of marijuana, in
violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(C) and 18 U.S.C. § 2.
Gabaldon’s having properly moved at trial for judgment of
acquittal, her sufficiency challenge is reviewed in the light most
favorable to the verdict, inquiring only whether a rational juror
could conclude from the evidence that the elements of the offense
*
Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined that
this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except
under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR. R. 47.5.4.
were established beyond a reasonable doubt. E.g., United States v.
Cuellar, 478 F.3d 282, 287 (5th Cir. 2007) (en banc). Such review
does not include the weight of the evidence or witness credibility.
E.g., id.Gabaldon erroneously contends the evidence was insufficient
regarding her knowledge of the marijuana, which was discovered
inside a vehicle in which she was a passenger. A jury could
reasonably conclude from the evidence: Gabaldon was present in the
vehicle and heard her two co-defendants discussing their delivery
of marijuana to Lubbock, Texas. Moreover, there was evidence that
the approximately 140 pounds of marijuana, discovered in close
proximity to Gabaldon in the vehicle, had an especially strong odor
within it. Further, upon the vehicle’s being stopped by a law-
enforcement Officer, Gabaldon lied about her destination; and,
post-arrest, she was also the first person to inform law-
enforcement Officers that Lubbock was the intended destination of
the marijuana. Viewing the evidence as a whole and in the required
light most favorable to the verdict, a rational trier of fact could
find the elements of the offense established beyond a reasonable
doubt. See, e.g., Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319 (1979);
United States v. Jaramillo, 42 F.3d 920, 923 (5th Cir. 1995).
AFFIRMED
2