United States v. Timothy James Whitehead

WARDLAW, Circuit Judge:

Timothy James Whitehead (“Whitehead”) seeks reversal of his jury conviction for importation of marijuana, see 21 U.S.C. §§ 952, 960 (1994), and importation of marijuana with intent to distribute, see id. § 841(a)(1), on the ground that the government infringed upon his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent. In particular, Whitehead contends that the district court erred in admitting evidence of his post-arrest, pre-Miranda silence during the government’s case-in-chief, and that it further erred when it permitted the prosecutor to comment on this silence during closing…