United States v. Willie Blackmon, Jr.

Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · Mar 3, 2020

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Case: 19-60240 Document: 00515329838 Page: 1 Date Filed: 03/03/2020

IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit

FILED No. 19-60240 March 3, 2020 Summary Calendar Lyle W. Cayce Clerk UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff-Appellee v.

WILLIE CHARLES BLACKMON, JR.,

Defendant-Appellant

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi USDC No. 3:17-CR-75-1

Before KING, GRAVES, and WILLETT, Circuit Judges. PER CURIAM: * Willie Charles Blackmon Jr. was convicted by a jury of two counts of sex trafficking of minors by force and two counts of interstate and foreign travel in aid of racketeering. Blackmon raises a single issue: whether the district court violated his rights under the Confrontation Clause by admitting hearsay statements of the victim, A.Z. The Government argues that any error was harmless.

• Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined that this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR. R. 47.5.4.

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Case: 19-60240 Document: 00515329838 Page: 2 Date Filed: 03/03/2020

No. 19-60240

Outside of the challenged testimony, there was overwhelming evidence presented against Blackmon at trial. Thus, the record reflects that the hearsay statements did not substantially influence the jury’s verdict. See United States v. Flores, 640 F.3d 638, 643 (5th Cir. 2011). The judgment is AFFIRMED.