Roger Dale Anderson v. United States

In Ruan v. United States, 142 S. Ct. 2370 (2022), this Court held that a physician may be convicted under 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), of the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”), only if the government proves that the physician “knew or intended that his or her conduct was unauthorized.” Id. at 2382. Following remand, United States v. Xiulu Ruan, 56 F.4th 1291, 1300-02 (11th Cir. 2023) was decided before Petitioner’s appeal, where the Sixth Circuit held that the jury instructions were sufficient despite lack of reference to the CSA’s “authorization” requirement. See, Petitioner’s Appendix (“App.”) at 1a-34a. The Sixth Circuit’s opinion is in conflict with this Court’s opinion in Ruan, as well as the Tenth Circuit’s opinion in United States v. Kahn, 58 F.4th 1308 (10th Cir. 2023). A spit between circuits has formed which will continue to grow. The question presented, on which the circuits are divided, is whether a CSA jury instruction may omit the statute’s “except as authorized” requirement contrary to the express wording of the CSA, 21 U.S.C. § 801 et seq., reinforced by Ruan.