United States v. Vasquez-Rodrigue, No. 23-1035 (1st Cir. 2024)
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In this case, the defendant, Danybelkis Vasquez-Rodrigue, appealed her jury conviction for conspiracy to distribute and possess over 400 grams of fentanyl. Vasquez-Rodrigue argued that the district court erred in denying her requested jury instruction on duress, claiming she was threatened into participating in the drug conspiracy. The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit rejected Vasquez-Rodrigue's argument, concluding that she had failed to show she either intentionally or recklessly placed herself in a situation where it was probable she would be subjected to duress.
The court noted that by the time Vasquez-Rodrigue alleges she was threatened, she had already completed the crime of conspiracy by agreeing to collect a drug debt, coordinating the collection with the debtor, collecting the money, and remitting thousands of dollars to individuals in Mexico and the Dominican Republic. The court also noted that a reasonable person in Vasquez-Rodrigue's position would have understood the danger of getting involved with a drug conspiracy, especially one selling kilogram amounts of drugs and exporting tens of thousands of dollars out of the country.
The court also rejected Vasquez-Rodrigue's separate argument that a different duress test, imposing fewer burdens on the defendant, should apply in cases in which the sole charged offense is conspiracy. The court noted that the First Circuit has routinely applied the conventional duress test in conspiracy cases. Thus, the court affirmed Vasquez-Rodrigue's conviction.
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