Co-Conspirator's Guns Supported 2-level Enhancement

US v. Moreira, 2009 WL 1579799 (10th Cir. 6/8/09) (unpub) - 2-level upward adjustment upheld for possession of a firearm in a meth case with a 151-month sentence. The guns in this case were possessed by a co-conspirator. It was held to be reasonably foreseeable to Mr. Moreira that his co-conspirators possessed firearms based on his participation in a large-scale drug conspiracy, the large amount of drugs found, and his personal connection to the house where the guns were found. Interesting McKay dissent on this point. He notes facts that the majority conveniently neglected to mention, like that the firearms were hidden in a false ceiling in a house Mr. Moreira had only visited once, and that he was not in the upper echelon of leadership in the conspiracy. Although the majority disclaimed reliance on a presumption that a defendant who has a non-minimal role in a large-scale drug conspiracy should reasonably foresee his co-conspirators will possess guns, McKay recognizes they implicitly rely on that very presumption.