United States v. Roy Franklin, Jr.

── United States v. Roy Franklin, Jr. ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit Date: June 01, 2026 Category: General United States Court of Appeals For the Eighth Circuit ___________________________ No. 23-3118 ___________________________ United States of America Plaintiff - Appellee v. Roy O. Franklin, Jr., also known as Roy Defendant - Appellant ___________________________ No. 23-3123 ___________________________ United States of America Plaintiff - Appellee v. Ladele D. Smith, also known as Dellio, also known as Dog Defendant – Appellant ___________________________  No. 23-3228 ___________________________ United States of America Plaintiff - Appellee v. Gary O. Toombs Defendant - Appellant ___________________________ No. 23-3280 ___________________________ United States of America Plaintiff - Appellee v. David J. Duncan, IV, also known as Deej, also known as DJ Defendant - Appellant ____________ Appeal from United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri - Kansas City ____________ Submitted: January 15, 2025 Filed: June 1, 2026 ____________ Before GRASZ, STRAS, and KOBES, Circuit Judges. ____________ -2- KOBES, Circuit Judge. Roy Franklin Jr., Ladele Smith, Gary Toombs, and David Duncan IV were members of a sprawling drug-trafficking conspiracy in Kansas City, Missouri that lasted from 2011 to 2019. A jury found them guilty of various drug, firearm, and money-laundering offenses. We affirm their convictions and sentences. I. Background Smith and Duncan were close friends who formed a music group called 246, named after the Kansas City streets where they grew up. Smith was the star, and he rapped about guns, violence, selling drugs, and making money. Social media posts and music videos show Smith, Duncan, and Franklin with guns, luxury goods, and large amounts of cash. According to the group’s sound engineer, their music was meant to be “catchy, flashy, street,” and the lyrics suggested “a persona of a certain lifestyle” that was meant to sell albums. They hung out and stored guns at a house Toombs rented on Kensington Avenue, where various drug-trafficking activity took place. One evening in September 2019, Franklin went to the house and loaded guns into a black Jeep Cherokee. Franklin and Smith then sped to the intersection of 35th and Woodland, where Duncan had a store. Franklin drove, while Smith shot at two men outside the store. They turned around, drove by again, and fired more shots. The men returned fire. Franklin and Smith returned to the Kensington Avenue house less than 15 minutes after they had left. Franklin then regaled a cooperating individual (CI) with the story, explaining that Duncan called and said that two men outside the store were going to kill him. The CI took photos of the Jeep’s shattered back windshield and damaged passenger-side mirror. -3-  Before trial, the district court 1 denied Franklin’s motion to suppress evidence from social media searches and wiretaps. It also denied motions in limine to exclude Smith’s rap