United States v. Morgan

In August 2009, defendant Tracy Morgan and his friend, Marvin Tabor, plotted to kidnap and rob Mario Armendariz. Tabor's brother-in-law, defendant Augustus Sanford, persuaded a police officer's minor child to steal four weapons and parts of a police uniform (cargo pants, a black police shirt, and an orange reflective vest) from his father in exchange for two ounces of marijuana. Sanford also painted his Chevrolet Tahoe black. Pursuant to their plan, Morgan attached a GPS tracking device to Armendariz's car while Armendariz was visiting Tabor's home. Tabor then tracked Armendariz's location on the Internet using Google Maps, enabling Morgan and defendant Killiu Ford to follow Armendariz in their vehicle. Sanford wore the stolen police gear; defendants then tracked Armendariz and his wife, Perla Flores, and their two young daughters outside of a cousin's house. The family saw two armed men exit a black Chevrolet Tahoe and at least one other man arrive from across the street. Two of the men zip-tied Armendariz's arms and legs together, covered his head, and put him into the back of the Tahoe. Ford questioned Armendariz about where he kept his money while an unknown co-conspirator drove the Tahoe around. Eventually the Tahoe dropped off Ford at Armendariz's home. Meanwhile, Sanford drove Ms. Flores and her daughters in her car to the Flores-Armendariz home. Defendants confronted Ms. Flores, demanding to know where Armendariz kept his money. Morgan put a gun to the three-year-old daughter's head, and Ms. Flores then told them the money was under her daughter's dresser. Morgan retrieved $30,000 from under the dresser and left the home. Later that night or early the next morning, Ford and Sanford looked for Morgan and found him at a Taco Bell. They divided the money taken from Armendariz's home. A jury convicted defendants of kidnapping, conspiracy to kidnap, and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. Each defendant brought a separate appeal, raising overlapping but not identical issues. Finding no reversible errors to any defendant, the Tenth Circuit affirmed their convictions. View "United States v. Morgan" on Justia Law