to Meznarick, the date label on the copy of the cassette tape read "August 21, 2000," apparently confirming the date on which the phone conversation was recorded. Supp. Hr'g Tr. at 20.6 And, as far as the voice identification issue was concerned, Meznarick was told that Lieutenant Walling (another officer involved in the investigation) had identified the voice on the tape to be Zambrella. Id. at 32.


22
Because Meznarick had been informed by Detective Mort that the cassette tape was recorded on August 21, 2000, and that Walling had identified the voice on the tape, Meznarick had a sound basis for setting forth those facts in his affidavit. Any errors that were inadvertently included in Meznarick's affidavit were, at worst, the result of mere negligence. Zambrella has thus fallenat 10. Thus, it is obvious that the Government neither had the time nor the opportunity to investigate the issue, much less submit evidence of the possible forgery.


28
Given that Zambrella presented this seemingly fraudulent document to the court for the first time on the very morning of his sentencing, while standing before the court, his request for a continuance is even more suspect. As it turns out, Zambrella's disclosure of the allegedly "revised" Notification—two minutes before the moment of decision (sentencing)—prevented the Government from obtaining what would have conclusively settled the issue of the 1990 conviction at that time—namely, a transcript of the plea hearing concerning Zambrella's prior drug offense for possession with intent to distribute. From that transcript, which has now been made part of the record,