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Madison WILSON, Appellant, v. UNITED STATES of America, Appellee

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit1963-04-11No. No. 18141
316 F.2d 212

Summary

Holding. The judgment of conviction is affirmed. The court held that listening to a telephone conversation with the consent of one party does not violate the Federal Communications Act, and that the statutory inference permitting knowledge of unlawful importation to be drawn from possession of heroin is valid.

Madison Wilson was convicted by jury of six drug offenses involving heroin and sentenced to 15 years imprisonment on each count, with sentences running concurrently. He appealed on two grounds: first, that a federal narcotics agent violated the Federal Communications Act by listening in on telephone conversations through a device attached to a telephone extension, and second, that the statute permitting inference of unlawful importation and knowledge from possession of heroin was invalid. The court found both arguments without merit.

Summary generated by law.co from the public-domain opinion. The opinion text itself is public domain.

Key issues

  • Whether a federal agent's use of a telephone extension device to listen to conversations violated the Federal Communications Act Section 605
  • Validity of statutory inference of unlawful importation and knowledge from possession of heroin under Title 21 U.S. Code § 174

Procedural posture

Wilson appealed his conviction for heroin offenses to the appellate court following jury verdict and sentencing.

Authorities cited

No cited authorities resolved to law.co cases yet.

Opinion

majority opinion

JAMES M. CARTER, District Judge.

The appellant was convicted by a jury ■of offenses involving heroin, charged in a six count indictment. Four prior convictions were charged by a supplemental Information. Appellant was sentenced to imprisonment for 15 years on each •count, the sentences to run concurrently.

The case raises only two questions:—

1. Was there a violation of Section ■605 of the Federal Communications Act, where a federal agent listened in on a telephone conversation ?

2. The validity of the inference of unlawful importation and knowledge thereof from the shown possession of heroin under Title 21 U.S.Code § 174.

This is a small horse soon curried.

I

Section 605 of the Federal Communications Act; (b7 U.S.C.A. § 605).

Gibson, an agent for the Federal Bureau of Narcotics without appellant’s consent, by use of a “Twinfone”, listened in on two conversations wherein a special employee of the Bureau of Narcotics talked to appellant. The calls were made from pay stations to appellant.

The device was attached to a receiver of a telephone and automatically created an extension. It is on sale to the public in various stores. The trial court found that the device was similar to a second extension on a telephone.

The narcotic agent did not testify to the contents of the conversation, but the special employee did.

There is a serious doubt as to whether the appellant’s contention is available to him on this record, since it does not appear that the agent of the Bureau of Narcotics testified to the conversations overheard. Obviously the testimony of the special employee, concerning his conversation with the appellant, does not run afoul of the prohibitions of the Federal Communications Act.

Assuming for argument that the point is available, the case law is clearly adverse to appellant. Rathbun v. United States, (1957) 355 U.S. 107, 78 S.Ct. 161, 2 L.Ed.2d 134; Carnes v. United States, (5 Cir. 1961) 295 F.2d 598; Williams v. United States, (9 Cir. 1961) 290 F.2d 451; Rayson v. United States, (9 Cir. 1956) 238 F.2d 160; United States v. Bookie, (7 Cir. 1956) 229 F.2d 130; Flanders v. United States, (6 Cir. 1955) 222 F.2d 163.

The cases hold that testimony as to a telephone conversation listened to with the consent of only one of the parties to the conversation, does not constitute an interception under Section 605 of the Federal Communications Act, (47 U.S.C.A. § 605); and (except for Ray-son and Bookie which did not reach the question) that such testimony does not become inadmissible simply because it was recorded by or overheard by an electrical or mechanical device attached to an extension telephone or telephone wiring at the locality of the consenting party.

II

The validity of the ■ available inference under Section 17b, U.S. Code, Title 21.

This case involved heroin which was shown to be in the actual rather than the constructive possession of appellant. Appellant makes a frontal attack upon the cases that have previously considered and held the inference permitted by the section to be proper: Yee Hem v. United States, (1925) 268 U.S. 178, 45 S.Ct. 470, 69 L.Ed. 904; Rodella v. United States, (9 Cir. 1960) 286 F.2d 306; Hernandez v. United States, (9 Cir. 1962) 300 F.2d 114; See Harris v. United States, (1959) 359 U.S. 19, 79 S.Ct. 560, 3 L.Ed.2d 597. We reject appellant’s contention.

Furthermore, counts I, III and V were laid under Section 4705(a) U.S. Code, Title 26. As to these counts, the inference permitted by Section 174 U.S. Code, Title 21 was not applicable. The appellant received the same sentence on each of the six counts, the sentences to run concurrently.

If the appellant was validly convicted of any of the six counts, the judgment should be affirmed. King v. United States, (9 Cir. 1960) 279 F.2d 342; Sinclair v. United States, (1929) 279 U.S. 263, 49 S.Ct. 268, 73 L.Ed. 692; Wilson v. United States, (9 Cir. 1963) 313 F.2d 317.

Finding no merit in the appeal, the judgment of conviction is affirmed.