United States v. Alvarez

Court of Appeals (1981)

Defendant: Alvarez; the defendant was suppose to be present at a drug unloading site. The defendant assured the conspirators of drug trading and some undercover officers that he would be at the airport when the unloading took place. Then the defendant and the conspirators were arrested. Now the defendant was charged and convicted with the conspiracy to trade drugs. But a three judge panel reversed the conviction by stating that just because the defendant agreed to be at the unloading spot does not mean that he was involved in the actual conspiracy. Now the state appeals.

Issue: Does the defendant need to know about the complete details of the conspiracy in order to get convicted?

Holding: No

Legal Reasoning: The court held the as long as the defendant knows about the essentials of the conspiracy (e.g. drug trade) and he chooses to take some part in the conspiracy, he is guilty of this conspiracy. The court reasoned that the defendant clearly knew that something illegal was taking place and he is guilty for voluntarily taking a part in the overall conspiracy.

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