United States v. Charles J. Spears, Also Known as "Blackie," and Donald Meeks, United States of America v. Kim Curran

BAUER, Chief Judge.

In this consolidated appeal, defendants Spears and Meeks appeal from their convictions and sentences, and the government appeals the sentence imposed on defendant Curran. We affirm as to Spears and Meeks; we reverse and remand as to Cur-ran.

I. Facts

In April 1988, Operation Iron Eagle, a code name for a drug task force investigation, focused on Charles “Blackie” Spears. Jeff Casey, an informant, told Illinois State Police (“ISP”) Sergeant Kurt Kabat that Spears was transporting large amounts of cocaine into the Peoria area. A month later, Casey told Kabat that Spears and his…