United States of America, Appellee, v. Robert Richard King, Appellant., 351 F.3d 859

Summary

Defendant contended that the evidence was insufficient to prove the offenses, and that audio recordings of conversations in which defendant participated and which were obtained through a cooperating witness were improperly admitted only in part. Defendant also argued that the jury was improperly instructed concerning deliberate ignorance, and that the government used the cooperating witness to manufacture the crimes of which defendant was convicted. The appellate court first held that the testimony of coconspirators and the recordings were sufficient to show defendant's knowledge of the proposed bribe and his participation in the conspiracy. Further, the recordings were properly admitted as statements of coconspirators, and defendant failed to identify any additional portions of the recordings which should have been admitted. Also, in view of the overwhelming evidence of defendant's actual knowledge of the bribe, the deliberate ignorance instruction was irrelevant at worst and, in any ...