8th Circuit upholds life sentences for Michael Reis, convicted of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl that…

Record source: CourtListener

United States Court of Appeals For the Eighth Circuit ___________________________ No. 25-1503 ___________________________ United States of America, lllllllllllllllllllllPlaintiff - Appellee, v. Michael Reis, lllllllllllllllllllllDefendant - Appellant. ___________________________ No. 25-1504 ___________________________ United States of America, lllllllllllllllllllllPlaintiff - Appellee, v. Michael Reis, lllllllllllllllllllllDefendant - Appellant. ____________ Appeals from United States District Court for the District of Nebraska - Omaha ____________ Submitted: February 11, 2026 Filed: July 20, 2026 ____________ Before COLLOTON, Chief Judge, BENTON and KELLY, Circuit Judges. ____________ COLLOTON, Chief Judge. In separate criminal cases, Michael Reis was convicted of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl resulting in death and sex trafficking of a minor. See 21 U.S.C. §§ 841, 846; 18 U.S.C. § 1591(a). The district court* consolidated the two cases for sentencing and imposed concurrent life sentences. On appeal, Reis challenges the sufficiency of the evidence on the conspiracy conviction, and he raises multiple challenges to his sentences. We affirm the judgments. According to evidence at trial, Reis sold a counterfeit oxycodone pill, also known as an M-30 or a “perc,” to Paris Hunt. Reis arrived at Hunt’s apartment at approximately 3 p.m. on March 12, 2022. Five minutes later, Hunt paid Reis for the pill using a mobile financial platform. At 4:32 p.m., Hunt called 911 after she found her four-year-old son, P.H., unresponsive. Hunt told the responding officer that her son may have taken “half a Percocet” that she had placed on her nightstand but could no longer find. P.H. later died from fentanyl toxicity. A jury found Reis guilty of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl resulting in death. During a separate investigation in July 2022, a fifteen-year-old female, MV1, told police that Reis had trafficked her for sex. Investigating officers found photos of MV1 on a website containing commercial sex advertisements. These advertisements listed Reis’s phone number as the contact number. When officers searched Reis’s phone, they found conversations between Reis and several persons * The Honorable Brian C. Buescher, United States District Judge for the District of Nebraska. -2- who were interested in paying to have sex with MV1. Reis sent these people explicit photos of MV1, and discussed in messages the prices that he would charge for sexual acts with MV1. During a police interrogation, Reis admitted to suspecting that MV1 was a minor. Reis also acknowledged that on one occasion, he collected $500 for providing MV1 to have sex with a customer at a motel. He confessed that he kept all of the money and never spoke to MV1 again. Reis pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a minor, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1591(a). The district court consolidated the sentencing hearings for the two convictions. In calculating the advisory guideline range, the district court applied a two-level increase because the defendant knew that a victim was a vulnerable victim. See USSG § 3A1.1(b)(1). The court cited the fact that MV1 was homeless and a runaway. The district court also found that Reis had not accepted responsibility under USSG § 3E1.1 for the combined offenses. The court then sentenced Reis to concurrent life sentences. Reis first challenges the sufficiency of the evidence supporting his conviction for conspiracy to distribute fentanyl resulting in death. In reviewing that issue, we consider the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict and will reverse only if no reasonable juror could have found guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. United States v. Conklin, 750 F.3d 773, 774 (8th Cir. 2014). Reis argues that the prosecution failed to establish that the pill he sold to Hunt was the direct and exclusive cause of P.H.’s death because there were other pills and pill bottles in Hunt’s apartment. These pills and pill bottles were not seized or tested by the police. Reis contends that the fentanyl consumed by P.H. could have come from some other source in the apartment. -3-  To prove that Reis committed the offense, the government was required to establish that the fentanyl distributed by Reis was the “but-for” or “independently sufficient” cause of P.H.’s death. United States v. Shipp, 141 F.4th 940, 946 (8th Cir. 2025). Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict, a reasonable jury could have found that the element was satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt. A reasonable jury could have found that Reis sold Hunt a pill containing fentanyl. Reis admitted to the police that he left Hunt with a “30,” and a police officer testified that the term “30” in the drug trade refers to an “M30,” which is a counterfeit oxycodone pill containing fentanyl. The jury also reasonably could have found that this fentanyl caused P.H.’s death. Approximately ninety minutes after Reis left the pill with Hunt, she found P.H. unresponsive. Reis admitted that he left Hunt with a pill, and a pill cap containing fentanyl residue was located near where P.H. was found unresponsive. Hunt also told the responding officer that she believed P.H. consumed “half a Percocet” that she could not locate. The counterfeit oxycodone pills called “M30s” are also referred to as “percs.” Percocet is a medication containing oxycodone and acetaminophen, so Hunt’s description corresponds to Reis’s distribution of a counterfeit oxycodone pill that contained fentanyl. The jury also reasonably rejected Reis’s argument that the fentanyl came from some other source in Hunt’s apartment. Although the crime scene investigator did not seize or test other pills or pill bottles from Hunt’s apartment, the investigator testified that those items were either located out of the reach of a four-year-old child or that the bottles did not appear to be opened or disturbed. Considering Reis’s admissions and the circumstantial evidence, we conclude that there was sufficient evidence to support the jury’s finding that the fentanyl sold by Reis was a but-for or independently sufficient cause of the child’s death. -4-  Reis raises two procedural challenges to the sentencing guideline calculations for his sentence on the sex trafficking conviction. We review the district court’s findings of fact for clear error and its application of the sentencing guidelines de novo. United States v. Rivera-Mendoza, 682 F.3d 730, 733 (8th Cir. 2012). Reis contends that the district court clearly erred by declining to apply a downward adjustment for acceptance of responsibility under USSG § 3E1.1. The sentencing guidelines permit consolidated proceedings for charges contained in different indictments, and Reis did not object to the consolidation. USSG Ch. 3, Pt. D, intro. comment. Because Reis was sentenced for multiple convictions, the district court calculated his guideline range using the procedure outlined in USSG Chapter 3, Part D. The conspiracy count and the sex trafficking count were treated as separate “groups” under USSG § 3D1.4. The court determined a combined adjusted offense level for the two counts, and then addressed acceptance of responsibility. The district court correctly recognized that where a defendant pleads guilty to one count and proceeds to trial on another charge, the sentencing court should consider the totality of the circumstances in deciding whether the defendant has accepted responsibil

Official opinion source