United States v. Bertling

GRUENDER, Circuit Judge.

In September 2006, a jury found brothers Vincent Bertling and Karl Raymond Bertling guilty of conspiracy to endeavor to influence, obstruct, or impede the due administration of justice by murdering or otherwise intimidating witnesses. The conspiracy specifically targeted witnesses expected to testify in a federal case against Vincent, who was arrested in December 2005 on charges of being an unlawful user of a controlled substance in possession of firearms. The Bertlings hatched their ill-fated plot a few days after Vincent’s arrest, in a telephone conversation recorded…