Whether the Government must prove that a defendant had specific knowledge of a controlled substance identified as XLR-11 in order to convict the defendant of distributing and conspiring to distribute XLR-11 in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§841 and 846

QUESTION PRESENTED Whether the Government must prove that a defendant had specific knowledge of a controlled substance identified as XLR-11 in order to convict the defendant of distributing and conspiring to distribute XLR-11 in violation of 21 US.C. §§841 and 846. The Petitioner, Fayez Abu Aish, asserts that the Government is required to prove such specific knowledge and failed to do so in the present case. The present case affords the Supreme Court an excellent opportunity to address the concerns expressed by Chief Justice John Roberts in his concurrence in McFadden vy. United States, 576 U.S. si, 135. S. Ct. 2298, 192 L.Ed.2d 260 (2015). Chief Justice Roberts stated in McFadden that in “cases involving wellknown drugs such as heroin, a defendant’s knowledge of the substance can be compelling evidence that he knows the substance is controlled. [citation omitted]. But that is not necessarily true for lesser known drugs.” i