Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca8-03-01781/USCOURTS-ca8-03-01781-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Ronald S. Morin
Appellant
United States of America
Appellee

Document Text:

United States Court of Appeals

FOR THE EIGHTH CIRCUIT

___________

No. 03-1781

___________

United States of America, *

*

Plaintiff - Appellee, *

* Appeal from the United States 

v. * District Court for the District 

* of North Dakota.

Ronald S. Morin, *

*

Defendant - Appellant. *

___________

Submitted: February 13, 2004

Filed: February 28, 2005

___________

Before BYE, HEANEY, and SMITH, Circuit Judges.

___________

BYE, Circuit Judge.

Ronald S. Morin appeals his convictions for conspiracy to violate 18 U.S.C.

§§ 666 (theft from programs receiving federal funds) and 1163 (embezzlement and

theft from an Indian tribal organization & aiding and abetting) and for substantive

violations of §§ 666 and 1163. We affirm Morin's convictions but remand for

resentencing in light of United States v. Booker, – U.S. –, 125 S.Ct. 738, – L.Ed.2d

– (2005). 

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Testimony at trial indicated the only documents Uniband ever stored in the

garage were blank social security forms. 

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I

Morin is an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa

Indians (the Tribe). From 1997through1998, Morin served on the board of directors

for Uniband, a corporation the Tribe established for the purpose of promoting

economic development on the reservation. Uniband receives funding from the Tribe

(including a $2,100,000 capital contribution in 1997) and tenders net margins in the

form of distributions or returns on the Tribe’s investment in this economic

development unit. In 1998, Morin resigned from Uniband’s board and became a

“contract administrator/tribal liaison” for Uniband. Approximately three months

later, Morin resigned and was appointed Director of Tribal Services, Inc., a newly

formed tribal corporation.

Co-defendant Raphael Decoteau is also an enrolled member of the Tribe.

Decoteau served as a member of the Tribal Council from 1986 through1990 and from

1992 until his removal in 1996. In late 1996, Decoteau was again elected to the

Tribal Council and later served as Tribal Chairman in 1998.

This saga begins with an old bus garage on the Turtle Mountain reservation

owned by the federal government, which considered the garage as being surplus

property and, following a request from the Tribe in 1996, transferred ownership to

it. In 1998, after Decoteau became Tribal Chairman, the Tribe gave the garage to the

Dunseith and Belcourt Black Belt Academies (the Academies), a business owned by

Morin. The Academies thereafter entered into a lease with Uniband to use the garage

for storing documents at a monthly rate of $5000.1

 Once the lease was in place,

Morin, at the direction of Decoteau, opened a checking account in the name of the

Academies and deposited the lease payments into the account. Both Morin and

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Decoteau were signatories on the account and together issued checks in excess of

$90,000. Several checks totaling $29,728.13 were issued to cash, while additional

checks totaling $7800 were made payable to Decoteau’s relatives. On one occasion,

Morin paid himself $7000 from the account and used the funds to purchase a truck

to haul gravel for the Tribe at a rate of $55 per load, payable to Morin. 

Morin and Decoteau also arranged for Uniband to pay for much-needed repairs

to the garage. Over a two-week period, five tribal carpenters worked to repair the

garage using materials costing approximately $1600 and paid for by Uniband. 

After six months, Morin wrote to Uniband on behalf of the Academies

indicating the lease payments would be increased to $10,000 in order to provide

additional security for Uniband’s stored documents. Decoteau, acting as Tribal

Chairman, instructed Uniband’s Director to increase the rent payments to $10,000 per

month. In November 1998, Decoteau was defeated in his bid for re-election as Tribal

Chairman. The incoming Chairman reviewed the lease, determined it was

unconscionable, and ordered it cancelled. During the course of the lease, Uniband

paid nearly $100,000 to the Academies. 

Following an investigation into these transactions, Morin and Decoteau were

charged in a five-count indictment. Count One alleged conspiracy to violate §§ 666

and 1163. Count Two alleged a substantive violation of § 1163 premised on the

transfer of the garage from the Tribe to the Academies. Count Three alleged

Decoteau and Morin, while members of Indian tribal organizations (ITOs) (the Tribal

Council and Uniband respectively), violated § 1163 by wrongfully obtaining lease

payments from the Tribe. Count Four alleged Decoteau and Morin, while members

of ITOs, violated § 1163 by wrongfully obtaining repairs to the garage from the

Tribe. Count Five alleged a violation of § 666 premised on fraudulently obtaining

funds from an organization receiving in excess of $10,000 annually in federal

assistance, i.e., the Tribe or Uniband. 

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The Honorable Patrick A. Conmy, United States District Judge for the District

of North Dakota. 

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Morin was convicted on all five counts. The district court2

 denied Morin’s

motion for judgment of acquittal and sentenced him to twenty-one months

incarceration. On appeal, Morin contends the district court improperly instructed the

jury as to Counts Three and Four. Specifically, Morin contends the government had

to prove Uniband was an ITO but the district court’s instruction defining an ITO was

erroneous. Morin also contends the evidence was insufficient to prove Uniband was

an ITO and the district court improperly excluded evidence tending to prove the

contrary proposition. Finally, Morin contends the improper instruction combined

with comments by the district court indicating it believed Uniband was an ITO spilled

over and prejudiced him as to Counts One, Two and Five.

II 

Section 1163 was enacted to protect ITOs from the actions of dishonest or

corrupt tribal officials who hold positions of trust in tribal organizations. See United

States v. Zephier, 916 F.2d 1368, 1372 (8th Cir. 1990) (discussing the legislative

history of § 1163). To prove a violation of § 1163, the government must show a tribal

official in a position of trust with an ITO wrongfully obtained the money or property

of the ITO. As used in § 1163, “Indian tribal organization” means any tribe, band,

or community of Indians which is subject to the laws of the United States relating to

Indian affairs or any corporation, association, or group which is organized under any

of such laws. 

 

At trial, the government argued Morin and Decoteau violated § 1163 by

pursuing a scheme to wrongfully obtain lease payments and repairs to the garage from

the Tribe through Uniband. Morin contends the government’s theory required it to

prove the Tribe and Uniband were in essence the same entity and to do so the

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government had to prove Uniband was an ITO. We agree the government had to

prove the Tribe and Uniband shared a financial identity, but we disagree the

government had to prove Uniband was an ITO. 

To prove a violation of § 1163, the government must show a tribal official in

a position of trust with an ITO wrongfully obtained the money or property of the ITO.

Here, the government argued Morin aided and abetted Decoteau’s wrongful conduct

committed while Decoteau served as a member of the Tribal Council. Accordingly,

the government was only required to prove the Tribe is an ITO – a fact Morin

concedes. Because the government did not seek to prove Morin violated § 1163

while occupying a position of trust with Uniband, its status as an ITO is irrelevant.

Accordingly, we affirm Morin's convictions. 

III

Finally, Morin filed a supplemental brief challenging the district court's

calculation of the amount of loss under United States Sentencing Guidelines

§ 2B1.1(b)(1)(E), and the application of a two-level enhancement for abusing a

position of trust under U.S.S.G. § 3B1.3. At sentencing, Morin preserved an

objection to the district court's loss calculation and to the two-level enhancement.

Thus, in accordance with Booker, Morin is entitled to a new sentencing proceeding.

See United States v. Fox, No. 03-3554, 2005 WL 195429 (8th Cir. Jan. 31, 2005)

(remanding case involving Booker error where issue was preserved); United States

v. Coffey, 395 F.3d 856, ___ (8th Cir. 2005) (same). 

IV

In conclusion, we affirm Morin's convictions but remand for resentencing in

accordance with Booker. 

 ______________________________

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