Reverse 404(b) Evidence – Pratfalls to Blaming the Other Guy
USA v. Greg L. Murray, 06-1078. A jury convicted the defendant of participating in a drug conspiracy in which a gun was used and a death resulted from that use, and the judge sentenced him to life in prison. Together with two other men, Hines and Trice, the defendant had agreed...
Good Faith Defense That Defendant Intended To Pay Money Back Not Allowed
USA v. Jacek Radziszewski, 06-1559. After a seven-day trial, a jury convicted Jacek Radziszewski of committing mail and wire fraud in connection with a scheme to obtain real estate loans through false representations. On appeal, Radziszewski challeges the district court’s exclusion of his proffered goodfaith defense (I stole the money but I...
Court Not Allowed to Consider Consecutive 924 Sentence in Determining Bank Robbery Sentence
USA v. Gary Roberson, 06-1121. The defendant, with three accomplices, committed an armed bank robbery, netting $133,000, of which the defendant’s share was $50,000. He was charged with both bank robbery, 18 U.S.C. §§ 2113(a), (d), and using a firearm in a crime of violence (which bank robbery is). 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(1)(A)....
Illinois Escape Conviction for Failure to Report to Prison is a Crime of Violence
USA v. Deondry Chambers, 06-2405. The defendant pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. The judge, finding that the defendant had committed three crimes of violence previously, sentenced him to 188 months as an armed career criminal. 18 U.S.C. § 924(e). The only question presented by the appeal is...
The Old Hand In Pocket Gun Trick Gets Bank Robber More Time
USA v. Patrick L. Stitman, 05-2277. In the summer of 2003, Patrick Stitman went on a bank robbery spree, hitting three banks on three separate occasions. Each time, he threatened to shoot or kill the bank teller, even though he was actually unarmed. During one robbery, Stitman told the bank teller that he...
Alternate Jurors – FRCP 24 Requires Strict Compliance
United States v. Mendoza, No 06-2999.
A jury found José Mendoza guilty of distributing amphetamine in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1). Mendoza challenges the sufficiency of the government’s evidence against him and the district court’s procedure for identifying alternate jurors. We affirm.
At the beginning of his trial on...
Single Photo Line-Up Identification of Defendant Upheld
USA v. Shaun Brown, 05-4690. Arthur Veal ran a trucking business, one function of which was to import large quantities of cocaine. Shaun Brown was among Veal’s regular customers. On November 15, 2000, one of Veal’s trucks arrived in Dolton, Illinois, carrying 25 kilograms of cocaine. Veal called Brown, who had arranged to...
Government’s Burden is Preponderance for Sentencing Enhancements
USA v. Morad Abu Sliman, 05-3056. This is an amount of loss opinion. The defendant engaged in a scheme with others involving counterfeit and forged checks.
Held: The government must prove sentencing enhancements by a preponderance of evidence standard. Here, the district court determined that the intended fraud amount was...
Automobile Exception Saves Non-Consensual Search
USA v. Brian L. Hines, 005-2542. A bank fraud case. At the time of defendant’s arrest by warrant, agent’s see a hatchet in def’s vehicle. Agent’s ask def for consent to search. Def denies permission until agent states that he will impound the car and conduct inventory search of vehicle. Def consents to...
Bank Fraud and Tax Fraud Loss Calculation Not Grouped
USA v. Michael J. Brisson, 05-1540. Brisson commits tax fraud and bank fraud by purchasing a property with phony documents. The plea agreement consolidated the counts together using USSG 2B1.1 loss table to calculate the sentence.
The district court disagreed and calculated the tax and bank fraud separately to give...