United States v. Eli, Alfred

Opinion for the Court filed by Circuit Judge GARLAND.

GARLAND, Circuit Judge:

Alfred Eli, who is serving a 121-month prison sentence, contends that his counsel was ineffective in failing to argue that the substance he distributed was not “crack cocaine,” but rather a form of cocaine for which a lower sentence should have been imposed. Because we affirm the district court’s finding that Eli did, in fact, distribute crack cocaine, we conclude that he suffered no prejudice as a result of his counsel’s alleged failure.

I

On July 17, 1997, a federal grand jury issued a three-count indictment charging…