United States Court of Appeals
Fifth Circuit
F I L E D
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT November 11, 2004
Charles R. Fulbruge III
Clerk
No. 04-40225
Summary Calendar
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
JAMES HELTON, also known as Defendant #6 Sealed,
Defendant-Appellant.
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Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Eastern District of Texas
USDC No. 4:03-CR-15-6-PNB
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Before DAVIS, SMITH and DENNIS, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:*
James Helton pleaded guilty to a single count information
charging him with possession of psuedoephedrine with the intent
to manufacture methamphetamine. HELTON was sentenced to 168
months in prison based on the district court’s factual finding
that he was responsible for at least 500 grams, but less than 1.5
kilograms of methamphetamine. Helton argues that the district
court clearly erred in relying on the unsworn statements given by
*
Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined that
this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except
under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR. R. 47.5.4.
No. 04-40225
-2-
his coconspirators to law enforcement officers regarding the
amount of methamphetamine.
A sentencing court may consider “information [having]
sufficient indicia of reliability to support its probable
accuracy.” U.S.S.G. § 6A1.3(a). This language “require[s] that
the facts used by the district court for sentencing purposes be
reasonably reliable.” United States v. Rogers, 1 F.3d 341, 344
(5th Cir. 1993). “Sworn testimony given by a government agent
at a sentencing hearing generally bears sufficient indicia of
reliability to be considered by the trial judge during
sentencing.” United States v. Thomas, 12 F.3d 1350, 1372 (5th
Cir. 1994). The district court is not barred from considering
the agent’s testimony despite the fact that an agent’s testimony
was based on information obtained from the defendant’s
coconspirators. Thomas, 12 F.3d at 1372.
In this case, former DEA Special Agent Blair testified that
he received specific information from specific coconspirators
regarding specific numbers of methamphetamine “cooks,” in which
specific amounts of the drug were manufactured. Blair testified
that the information coming from Helton’s coconspirators was
consistent in both the scope of Helton’s activity and in the
description of the manufacture of methamphetamine. Other than to
make a general attack on the reliability of unsworn statements
from coconspirators, Helton has not shown that the evidence
No. 04-40225
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relied on by the district court was not reasonably reliable. See
Rogers, 1 F.3d at 344.
Helton argues that his sentence is illegal, under Blakely v.
Washington, 124 S. Ct. 2531 (2004), because the quantity of drugs
used to determine his sentence was not determined by a jury or
included in his plea. This issue is foreclosed by the court's
holding in United States v. Pineiro, 377 F.3d 464, 465-66 (5th
Cir.), petition for cert. filed (July 14, 2004).
Helton’s sentence is AFFIRMED.