081372P.pdf   09/04/2009  United States  v.  Vertis Clay
   U.S. Court of Appeals Case No:  08-1372
                          and No:  08-2371
   U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas - Little Rock   
   [PUBLISHED] [Smith, Author, with Riley and Shepherd, Circuit Judges]
   Criminal case - criminal law and sentencing. Defendant Stovall's plea
   agreement did not exclude consideration of a murder, which pertained to
   two dismissed counts, as a potential consideration for a Guidelines
   enhancement at sentencing, and the government did not breach the plea
   agreement by seeking the enhanced sentence; while the interests of
   judicial economy and efficiency might have been better served by
   continuance rather than severance of the defendants' cases when one of
   the defendants' attorneys became ill, defendant Stovall has not shown
   how the severance prejudiced his defense, and any error in severing the
   cases was harmless; admission of a large amount of evidence from
   defendant Clay's case a week before defendant Stovall's sentencing,
   while less than optimal, did not amount to denial of the right to counsel;
   application of the cross reference in Guidelines Sec. 2D1.1(d) did not
   deprive defendant Stovall of due process, and his life sentence was not
   unreasonable; evidence was sufficient to support defendant Clay's
   convictions for conspiracy to distribute marijuana and use of a firearm in
   relation to a drug trafficking crime; in executing search warrant, officers
   could seize items not listed in warrant where the items were in plain view
   and the incriminating nature of the items and their association with the
   murdered victim was immediately evident; district court erred in
   sentencing defendant Clay under 18 U.S.C. Sec. 924(c) instead of Sec.
   924(o), but reversal is not warranted because a valid life sentence without
   parole was entered on his other count; 480 month sentence on conspiracy
   to distribute marijuana count was not unreasonable.