Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca7-19-02110/USCOURTS-ca7-19-02110-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Monique S. Bowling
Appellant
United States of America
Appellee

Document Text:

In the 

United States Court of Appeals 

For the Seventh Circuit ____________________ 

No. 19-2110 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, 

Plaintiff-Appellee, 

v.

MONIQUE S. BOWLING, 

Defendant-Appellant. 

____________________ 

Appeal from the United States District Court for the 

Northern District of Indiana, Hammond Division. 

No. 2:16-cr-00153-PPS-JEM-1 — Philip P. Simon, Judge. 

____________________ 

ARGUED FEBRUARY 27, 2020 — DECIDED MARCH 10, 2020 

____________________ 

Before BRENNAN, SCUDDER, and ST. EVE, Circuit Judges. 

ST. EVE, Circuit Judge. Monique Bowling purchased over 

$1.3 million worth of computer equipment on the City of 

Gary, Indiana’s vendor accounts and then sold the devices for 

cash, leaving the city to foot the bill. This all occurred at a time 

when the City of Gary was already in dire financial condition. 

The grand jury returned an indictment against Bowling for 

theft from a local government that received federal funds, 

18 U.S.C. § 666. A jury convicted Bowling of the charge and 

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the district court sentenced her to 63 months in prison. On appeal, Bowling contends that the district court lacked subjectmatter jurisdiction, abused its discretion in admitting certain 

testimony, and erred in enhancing her sentence for obstructing justice through her malingering. We affirm the conviction 

and sentence. 

I 

Bowling worked for the City of Gary, Indiana for almost 

twenty-five years. By all accounts, Bowling was a model employee for almost the entirety of her tenure with the city. She 

started out as a secretary in 1991 and worked her way up to 

the position of a network administrator, the second-ranking 

employee in Gary’s IT department. As a network administrator, Bowling had access to the city’s computer network and 

email system, and in addition to resolving IT issues, one of 

her job responsibilities included ordering computer equipment for the city. Though she had the authority to place orders on the city’s credit accounts with vendors, she did not 

have the ability to make payments. The authority to approve 

and pay vendors rested solely with the city’s controller. 

A 

In May 2013, Bowling began ordering new Apple products from CDW, one of the city’s technology vendors, seemingly for the city. The purchases started off small, only one to 

two devices at a time. Over time, however, she grew bolder, 

and after a year or so, Bowling was ordering up to fifty devices at a time. By April 2015, she had ordered 1,517 Apple 

products from CDW, as well as Best Buy and Verizon. In all, 

Bowling’s purchases totaled $1,337,114.06. 

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Almost all of Bowling’s orders were for Apple iPads, 

though she also purchased about fifty MacBooks, one iMac, 

and one iPod Touch. She sold the iPads and MacBooks for 

cash, typically $500 to $600 for the iPads and $700 for the MacBooks. She sometimes traded them for other items of value as 

well. Her sales were so widespread that the products ended 

up all over the world, with at least one device being registered 

on every continent except Antarctica. 

To conceal her scheme, Bowling submitted duplicate 

CDW invoices from legitimate purchases for payment. This 

flow of money successfully kept the city’s credit lines open for 

a time. But as her orders grew in size and frequency, the 

fraudulent purchases far outstripped the duplicate invoices 

she could process for payment and the balance ballooned. As 

the debt continued to pile up and exceeded one million dollars, CDW froze the city’s account and turned it over to one of 

its senior recovery analysts, Vida Krug. Once an account is 

turned over to her, Ms. Krug will deal strictly with mayors, 

comptrollers, CEOs, CFOs, and the like, that have the direct 

authority to make or release payments. Thus, Ms. Krug first 

reached out to Gary’s mayor and left a message explaining 

that the city had quite a large debt it owed to CDW. Ms. Krug 

then spoke to Celita Green, the city’s controller. Ms. Green 

was unaware that the city owed such a large amount to CDW 

and asked for copies of all the outstanding invoices. Ms. Krug 

sent the invoices via FedEx, but the package never made it to 

Ms. Green; Bowling had intercepted it when it arrived at city 

hall, signing for the package using a fake name. The FedEx 

receipt was later found in Bowling’s desk. 

In another effort to forestall her inevitable downfall, Bowling accessed Ms. Green’s email account and sent a fabricated 

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message to Ms. Krug to reassure CDW that everything was all 

right with the city’s credit account. The email explained that 

the city was experiencing a “cash flow issue” but that Ms. 

Green had directed Bowling to “process more payments” and 

that Ms. Green and Bowling were going to work together to 

“resolve the outstanding balances on this account.” Ms. Krug 

did not believe that Ms. Green actually sent the email because 

it was inconsistent with their telephone conversation and riddled with grammatical errors. The email was later recovered 

from Ms. Green’s deleted folder. 

Bowling’s scheme quickly unraveled, and the city soon 

terminated her as a result of the city’s and the state police’s 

investigations. 

B 

A grand jury indicted Bowling on six fraud-related counts. 

She first went to trial on one count of theft from a local government that received federal funds, 18 U.S.C. § 666, and after 

that trial and conviction, the government dismissed the remaining counts with prejudice. 

Three weeks before trial was scheduled to begin, Bowling’s counsel moved to continue the trial date because he had 

been unable to communicate with Bowling. According to defense counsel, Bowling’s husband informed him that Bowling 

had been “unable to speak for approximately six months and 

that her family provides for her basic needs.” Thus, counsel 

moved for a hearing to determine Bowling’s mental competency to stand trial and requested a court-ordered psychological examination pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 4241. The district 

court granted the motion and ordered Bowling to undergo an 

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in-custody psychological evaluation within a Bureau of Prisons facility. 

Bowling was committed to the Federal Medical Center in 

Carswell, Texas (FMC Carswell), for the examination. Dr. 

Amor Correa, a licensed forensic psychologist, evaluated 

Bowling over an approximately two-month period. Dr. Correa diagnosed Bowling as malingering. The “essential feature” of malingering, Dr. Correa explained, is the “intentional 

production of false or grossly exaggerated symptoms, motivated by external incentive and not attributable to a mental 

disorder.” See also Am. Psychiatric Ass’n, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 726–27 (5th ed. 2013). One 

such external incentive is “evading criminal prosecution.” Id. 

at 726. In Dr. Correa’s professional opinion, Bowling was 

competent to stand trial. 

The district court held a competency hearing, at which Dr. 

Correa testified. Based on Dr. Correa’s forensic psychology 

report and testimony, the court found that Bowling was competent to stand trial. 

C 

The case proceeded to a three-day jury trial on the charge 

of theft from a local government that received federal funds 

under 18 U.S.C. § 666(a)(1)(A). To convict Bowling of this offense, the government had to prove the following elements: 

(1) Bowling was an agent of the City of Gary; (2) she knowingly stole or obtained by fraud property; (3) the property she 

stole was owned by or under the care, custody, or control of 

the City of Gary; (4) the property had a value of $5,000 or 

more; and (5) the City of Gary, in any one-year period, received more than $10,000 in federal funds. See United States v. 

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Abu-Shawish, 507 F.3d 550, 556 (7th Cir. 2007); 18 U.S.C. 

§ 666(a)(1)(A), (b). At the beginning of the third day of trial, 

the parties stipulated to the following fact regarding the receipt of federal funds: “[T]he City of Gary, Indiana received 

more than $10,000 in federal benefits and funding between 

April 1, 2014 and April 1, 2015.” 

The evidence at trial was overwhelming and largely uncontroverted. The government presented testimony from seventeen witnesses, including Ms. Green, Ms. Krug, and several 

purchasers of the iPads. Bowling did not testify and did not 

present any witnesses. The jury deliberated for just under one 

hour before returning a guilty verdict. 

At sentencing, the probation office recommended a twolevel sentencing enhancement for obstruction of justice based 

on Bowling’s malingering, or having “faked mental illness,” 

which “caused the trial to be delayed for a year.” Bowling objected and introduced testimony from Dr. Robert Coyle, a 

neuropsychologist who examined Bowling about four 

months after trial. Dr. Coyle opined that Bowling was not malingering at the time of his evaluation, but also testified that 

he thought that Bowling was just misdiagnosed at FMC Carswell. Notably, however, after the trial concluded, Bowling 

was able to provide verbal answers to both the probation officer and Dr. Coyle. 

The district court overruled Bowling’s objection to the obstruction of justice enhancement. The judge found by a preponderance of evidence that Bowling’s “conduct was obstructive in nature such that it unnecessarily and unduly prolonged these proceedings.” With the two-level obstruction of 

justice enhancement, Bowling’s total offense level was 26 and 

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No. 19-2110 7

her criminal history category was I, which resulted in a 

Guidelines range of 63 to 78 months. 

The district court sentenced Bowling to 63 months’ imprisonment, the low end of her advisory range, and ordered her 

to pay restitution totaling $1,386,430.28. 

II 

Bowling presents three issues on appeal. At the threshold, 

Bowling argues that the district court lacked subject-matter 

jurisdiction over her case and that the court should dismiss it. 

Failing that, Bowling challenges the admission of a single line 

of testimony at trial and the two-level obstruction of justice 

sentencing enhancement. 

A 

We can easily dispose of Bowling’s jurisdictional 

challenge. Section 666 prohibits theft from an organization, 

local government, or agency that receives funds under a 

federal assistance program. 18 U.S.C. § 666(a)(1)(A). The socalled federal-funds element of § 666 requires that “the 

organization, government, or agency receives, in any one year 

period, benefits in excess of $10,000 under a Federal 

program.” Id. § 666(b). The relevant local government here is 

the City of Gary, not, as Bowling suggests, the discrete IT 

department. And she stipulated that Gary received more than 

$10,000 in federal funds in one-year. Bowling argues, 

however, that the IT department specifically did not receive 

any federal funds and that the lack of an affirmative 

connection between the charged theft and the federal funds 

renders a federal court without jurisdiction. 

But the district court’s subject-matter jurisdiction is supplied by 18 U.S.C. § 3231, not 18 U.S.C. § 666. “The district 

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courts of the United States shall have original jurisdiction, exclusive of the courts of the States, of all offenses against the 

laws of the United States.” 18 U.S.C. § 3231. Bowling was indicted for violating a federal criminal statute, an offense 

against the laws of the United States. The district court’s jurisdiction was secure. See United States v. Grossi, 143 F.3d 348, 351 

(7th Cir. 1998). 

Any failure of proof on the federal-funds element goes to 

the merits, not the district court’s authority to hear the case. 

Bowling, though, assures us that she is not challenging either 

the indictment or the sufficiency of the evidence as to the 

federal-funds element. So this issue need not detain us. 

We note that, however she characterizes it, any argument 

that the government must establish an affirmative connection 

between the theft and federal funds has been repeatedly and 

squarely rejected. See, e.g., Sabri v. United States, 541 U.S. 600, 

605 (2004) (“readily dispos[ing]” of the position that “the statute must require proof of connection with federal money as 

an element of the offense”); Salinas v. United States, 522 U.S. 

52, 56–57 (1997) (finding the “expansive, unqualified language” of § 666 “does not support the interpretation that federal funds must be affected to violate” the statute); id. at 57 

(“The prohibition is not confined to a business or transaction 

which affects federal funds.”); United States v. Spano, 401 F.3d 

837, 839 (7th Cir. 2005) (explaining that “a plain reading of the 

statute requires no nexus between the bribe and the federal 

funds received”). It is easy to see why: money is fungible and 

“money can be drained off here because a federal grant is 

pouring in there.” Sabri, 541 U.S. at 606. Thus, the federalfunds element was met when the parties stipulated that the 

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City of Gary as a whole received more than $10,000 in federal 

benefits in a one-year period. 

B 

Next, Bowling challenges the district court’s decision to 

admit part of Ms. Krug’s testimony. When the city’s account 

with CDW went into recovery, Ms. Krug explicitly stated that 

she would deal only with Ms. Green, the city’s controller. 

Shortly thereafter, however, Ms. Krug received an email purportedly from Ms. Green’s email account, copying Bowling, 

essentially assuring Ms. Krug that everything was fine with 

the account and that Bowling would be processing payments. 

At trial, the government asked Ms. Krug a series of questions 

regarding what she thought when she “received this e-mail 

that indicated it came from Celita Green.” Ms. Krug first explained that “[w]hen I read the e-mail, I felt there was something wrong. I don’t believe it came from Celita Green.” The 

government followed up to draw out why Ms. Krug thought 

that. Ms. Krug testified that she made it clear to both Ms. 

Green and Bowling “that the only person [she] wanted to deal 

with was” Ms. Green and, in turn, Ms. Green also made it 

“very clear” to her that she “would be dealing solely with Ms. 

Green.” After laying that foundation, the government then 

asked the question, “So when you received this e-mail, what 

did you think?” Ms. Krug responded, “I thought there was 

some kind of fraud going on.” 

Bowling objects to the use of the word “fraud” on two evidentiary grounds: first, that it was improper lay opinion testimony under Federal Rule of Evidence 701; and second, that 

it also constituted improper propensity evidence under Federal Rule of Evidence 404(b). At trial, however, Bowling objected to the testimony only on relevance grounds and then 

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argued at a sidebar that it was also improper lay testimony. A 

party must state the specific ground for an objection to preserve the evidentiary error for appellate review. Fed. R. Evid. 

103(a)(1)(B). A general objection to “relevance” at trial will not 

preserve an objection under Rule 404(b) for review. United 

States v. Mejia, 909 F.2d 242, 246 (7th Cir. 1990). Thus, only 

Bowling’s Rule 701 objection is properly preserved on appeal. 

We review a preserved challenge to the district court’s evidentiary ruling for abuse of discretion. United States v. Saunders, 826 F.3d 363, 370 (7th Cir. 2016). A trial court abuses its 

discretion only if no reasonable person could take that view.

United States v. Rainone, 816 F.3d 490, 497 (7th Cir. 2016). Even 

if we find an abuse of discretion, we will reverse only if “admission of the evidence affected the defendant’s ‘substantial 

rights.’” United States v. Richards, 719 F.3d 746, 758 (7th Cir. 

2013) (quoting Fed. R. Crim. P. 52(a)). 

Lay testimony that is in the form of an opinion is permissible if it is rationally based on the witness’s perception, helpful to understanding the witness’s testimony, and not based 

on specialized knowledge. Fed. R. Evid. 701; see also United 

States v. Hilliard, 851 F.3d 768, 779–80 (7th Cir. 2017). “The rule 

is a sensible elaboration of Rule 602, which requires that a lay 

witness’s testimony be based on personal knowledge.” United 

States v. Giovannetti, 919 F.2d 1223, 1226 (7th Cir. 1990). Certainly, a witness has personal knowledge of her own mental 

processes and is competent to testify regarding them. A district court’s decision to admit “such testimony is not problematic.” Giovannetti, 919 F.2d at 1226. 

The question posed to Ms. Krug was carefully worded to 

elicit Ms. Krug’s personal thoughts at the time she received 

the subject email, and the responsive “fraud” testimony 

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concerned only her own thoughts upon receipt of that email. 

She was not drawing an inference from the evidence or offering a legal opinion or conclusion that Bowling had in fact 

committed fraud regarding the computer orders. Instead, Ms. 

Krug testified as to her reaction at the time based on her own 

perception. Although Ms. Krug used the word “fraud,” a legal term in certain circumstances, the clear import of the testimony was that Ms. Krug used the term in the colloquial 

sense. See United States v. Locke, 643 F.3d 235, 242 (7th Cir. 

2011) (holding witnesses’ use of the word “fraud” in the colloquial sense, “employing the vernacular of their financial 

professions,” was not improper lay testimony). A witness’s 

informal use of a term that may also be legal in character does 

not inexorably turn that testimony into improper lay testimony. 

The nature of Ms. Krug’s testimony is even more transparent given the clarification on the followup question. After 

Bowling’s objection and a short sidebar, the government reasked, “what was your impression when you received this email?” and Ms. Krug answered that her “impression was that 

there was something wrong, that I did not believe it came 

from Celita Green.” Ms. Krug testified based on her personal 

perception of the email at the time she received it and that 

testimony was appropriate under Rule 701. 

On appeal Bowling further contends that the “fraud” testimony was improper propensity evidence. Because she did 

not object on this specific ground at the trial court, she forfeited the objection and the claimed evidentiary error is reviewed for plain error only. United States v. Price, 418 F.3d 771, 

779 (7th Cir. 2005). Rule 404(b) bars evidence of a crime, 

wrong, or other act if the purpose is to “show that on a 

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particular occasion the person acted in accordance with the 

character.” Fed. R. Evid. 404(b)(1). But the law is clear that 

“Rule 404(b) does not apply to direct evidence of the crime 

charged.” United States v. Ferrell, 816 F.3d 433, 443 (7th Cir. 

2015). Ms. Krug’s testimony about the email “fraud”—used 

colloquially—was not other-act evidence to show that Bowling had a propensity to steal; it was direct evidence of her 

theft from the city. She was charged with obtaining the property by fraud. Moreover, conduct taken for the purpose of 

thwarting discovery of the crime or postponing the investigation of the crime is part of the charged crime. See United States 

v. O’Connor, 874 F.2d 483, 486 (7th Cir. 1989). Bowling sent the 

email, purportedly from the city’s controller, to CDW to “preserve[] the appearance of propriety” and keep “everything copacetic” so that CDW would hold off from further escalating 

its complaint with the city. United States v. Mankarious, 

151 F.3d 694, 705 (7th Cir. 1998). As such, Ms. Krug’s testimony about the email was direct evidence of Bowling’s attempt to stall the city’s ultimate discovery of her theft by 

fraud. There was no error, plain or otherwise, admitting the 

testimony under Rule 404(b). 

C 

Bowling received a two-level sentencing enhancement for 

obstruction of justice because the district court found that she 

faked mutism and caused a one-year delay in the proceedings. The application of the Sentencing Guidelines is a mixed 

question of law and fact. We review the district court’s factual 

findings supporting the obstruction of justice enhancement 

for clear error. United States v. DeLeon, 603 F.3d 397, 402 (7th 

Cir. 2010). We will not disturb the district court’s factual findings as long as they are “plausible in light of the record in its 

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entirety.” Id. (quoting United States v. Powell, 576 F.3d 482, 498 

(7th Cir. 2009)). We review de novo whether those factual 

findings adequately support the application of the sentencing 

enhancement. Id. 

The obstruction of justice sentencing enhancement provides that a defendant’s offense level shall be increased by 

two levels if: 

(1) the defendant willfully obstructed or impeded, 

or attempted to obstruct or impede, the administration of justice with respect to the investigation, prosecution, or sentencing of the instant offense of conviction, and (2) the obstructive conduct related to 

(A) the defendant’s offense of conviction and any 

relevant conduct; or (B) a closely related offense ... . 

U.S.S.G. § 3C1.1. The application notes provide a nonexhaustive list of examples of obstructive conduct, which includes 

the commonly thought of obstructive behaviors such as witness intimidation, perjury, destroying evidence, escaping custody, and so on. Id. cmt. n.4. Certainly, obstructive conduct 

can “vary widely in nature,” id. cmt. n.3, and the enhancement 

envisions circumstances beyond conduct directly connected 

to the commission of the crime that would no less be obstructive and impede the administration of justice. 

There is no question that malingering or feigning incompetence may constitute an obstruction of justice for purposes 

of a sentencing enhancement. We have held that it does, and 

so has every other circuit to address the issue. United States v. 

Wilbourn, 778 F.3d 682, 684 (7th Cir. 2015); see also, e.g., United 

States v. Nygren, 933 F.3d 76, 86 (1st Cir. 2019) (collecting 

cases). Bowling does not ask us to overrule our precedent, but 

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14 No. 19-2110 

nonetheless asks us to depart from Wilbourn’s holding based 

on perceived factual distinctions. Whatever factual differences may exist, they are irrelevant here. 

The district court’s factual finding that Bowling was malingering was not clearly erroneous and is more than a plausible finding in light of the record. The court found Dr. Correa’s forensic psychology report and opinion that Bowling 

was malingering “very, very persuasive.” Bowling was evaluated over the course of a two-month period at FMC Carswell 

and Dr. Correa and her staff administered several psychological tests. One such test in particular was the Test of Memory 

Malingering, which Bowling scored well-below “scores typically obtained even by patients with cognitive impairment, 

traumatic brain injury, or dementia,” and “below-chance on 

all three trials.” Further, Dr. Correa’s report contained welldocumented evidence of Bowling’s linear thinking and high 

cognitive ability, including Bowling’s extensive email communications with her family regarding her legal proceedings 

and family matters while housed at FMC Carswell. It also particularly struck the court that Bowling was able to communicate verbally both before and immediately after the trial, and 

it was only the period in which the trial loomed that Bowling 

remained mute. In arriving at its finding, the district court 

placed much more weight on Dr. Correa’s forensic psychology report and testimony than that of Dr. Coyle, Bowling’s 

expert, because Dr. Coyle evaluated Bowling a year later and 

during a more narrow timeframe. Based on all of the evidence, the district court found that Bowling deliberately exaggerated her symptoms and remained mute to unnecessarily 

delay the proceedings. We see no reason in the record to upset 

the district court’s well-supported finding. 

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Finally, as a policy matter, Bowling suggests that if we 

hold that feigning incompetence is an obstruction of justice, 

we will discourage lawyers from seeking competency examinations for their clients. The concern is overstated. First, Wilbourn has been the law of this circuit for several years now 

and there is no evidence that defense attorneys have been deterred from requesting competency examinations in its wake. 

Second, and more fundamentally, the Guidelines state that 

the enhancement should not punish a defendant for the exercise of a constitutional right, U.S.S.G. § 3C1.1 cmt. n.2, and a 

defendant has the right to be deemed competent to stand trial. 

It is not an obstruction of justice to merely request a competency examination, even if the defendant is ultimately 

deemed competent. It is only an obstruction of justice to intentionally feign incompetence for the purpose of delaying or 

attempting to avoid the criminal proceedings. That is a distinction with an important difference. We are confident that 

counsel will continue to request competency examinations 

whenever they reasonably believe that their client may not be 

mentally competent to stand trial. Defendants who deliberately exaggerate their symptoms do so at their own peril and 

risk receiving an enhanced sentence. 

III 

For the foregoing reasons, we affirm the district court’s 

judgment. 

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