United States v. Antonio J. Mazza, United States of America v. Anthony Decologero

BREYER, Circuit Judge.

Antonio Mazza and Anthony DeCologero appeal their convictions for conspiracy to possess cocaine with an intent to distribute it. 21 U.S.C. § 846. They primarily attack the way in which the government first presented its case to the jury, namely, by having two government agents describe what an informer had previously told them about what the appellants said and did in a series of meetings with the informer. We agree with the appellants that the admission of this descriptive testimony was erroneous; but we also think the error was harmless. In Part I we shall set out at…