The following excerpt is from U.S. v. Klimavicius-Viloria, 144 F.3d 1249 (9th Cir. 1998):
The district court's error undermines one of the most fundamental tenets of our justice system: that a defendant's conviction be based only on evidence presented at trial. The error is arguably one that is so fundamental and so defies meaningful review that automatic reversal is required. See United States v. Noushfar, 78 F.3d 1442 (9th Cir.1996), as amended by 140 F.3d 1244 (9th Cir.1998).
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