United States v. Hernandez
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
750 F.2d 1256 (5th Cir. 1985)
Hernandez (defendant) was tried for possession and distribution of cocaine. The prosecution introduced testimony that the DEA began investigating Hernandez after receiving a referral from U.S. Customs identifying him as a drug smuggler, and the trial court admitted this evidence. In closing argument, the prosecution described the referral as coming from Customs because Hernandez was a known cocaine trafficker. Hernandez was convicted and appealed the admission of the referral.
Whether an out-of-court customs referral describing a defendant as a known drug smuggler is inadmissible hearsay when the prosecution's closing argument uses it to prove the defendant is, in fact, a smuggler, rather than merely to explain an agent's state of mind.