Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Knoxville.
No. 3:19-cr-00077—Thomas A. Varlan, District Judge.
Decided and Filed: June 30, 2023
Before: GILMAN, READLER, and MATHIS, Circuit Judges.
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OPINION
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RONALD LEE GILMAN, Circuit Judge. Defendants Wendell Brown and Gary T. Reed
were convicted of conspiring to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute at least
50 grams of methamphetamine (meth), in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846, 841(a)(1), and
841(b)(1)(A). Both defendants appeal their convictions, arguing that the district court erred by
failing to give a “buyer-seller instruction” to the jury. They also appeal their sentences, arguing
that the district court committed a procedural error when calculating their Guidelines ranges
under the United States Sentencing Guidelines (the Guidelines). Brown separately contends that
his conviction should be overturned because the district court erroneously admitted an
incriminating statement by Reed, his nontestifying codefendant. For the reasons set forth below,
we AFFIRM Brown’s and Reed’s convictions, but VACATE their sentences and REMAND to
the district court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. |