Source: https://casetext.com/case/us-v-alkins
Timestamp: 2020-06-01 16:54:55
Document Index: 47312288

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 2313', '§ 1341', '§ 200', '§ 513', '§ 2313', '§ 513', '§ 1341', '§ 1346', '§ 7603', '§ 1346', '§ 1346', '§ 1341', '§ 1346', '§ 1346', '§ 2313', '§ 1962', '§ 1961', '§ 1961', '§ 200', '§ 1961', '§ 1346']

U.S. v. Alkins, 925 F.2d 541 | Casetext Search + Citator
U.S. v. Alkins
Where there is evidence supporting an inference that there existed more than one conspiracy, the issue of…
United States v. Gent
To establish the 'use of the mails' element, the Government must show either that the use of the mails would…
Full title:UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, APPELLEE, v. BARBARA ALKINS, CAROL SMALL, LINDA…
Date published: Feb 6, 1991
925 F.2d 541 (2d Cir. 1991)
holding "the application of a statute to [a crime] that began prior to, but continued after, the effective date of [the statute] does not violate the ex post facto clause"
Summary of this case from O'Neill v. U.S.
Nos. 138, 142 and 395, Docket 90-1144 to 90-1147, 90-1221 and 90-1234.
Argued January 8, 1991.
Sean F. O'Shea, Asst. U.S. Atty., E.D. N.Y., Brooklyn, N.Y. (Andrew J. Maloney, U.S. Atty., E.D.N.Y., David C. James, Susan Corkery, Asst. U.S. Attys., E.D.N.Y., Brooklyn N.Y., on the brief), for appellee U.S.
On August 17, 1989, appellants were arraigned on a superseding fifty-five count indictment. The indictment was the culmination of a large scale investigation into corruption at the DMV. It charged a scheme whereby clerks at the DMV would process applications for driver's licenses, non-driver identification cards and registrations for vehicles — all absent the proper documentation and in return for cash payments. Many of the driver's licenses and identification cards were provided to illegal aliens or to persons who desired to conceal their true identities. Many of the vehicle registrations were provided for stolen cars. These transactions were often arranged by "runners" who served as intermediaries between the "customers" and the clerks at the DMV.
The indictment charged appellants with conducting the affairs of the DMV through a pattern of racketeering activity and of conspiring to do so. It set forth 31 acts of racketeering that appellants allegedly had committed in furtherance of their scheme. These acts included possession of stolen motor vehicles in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2313 (1988) (2 acts); mail fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1341 and 1346 (1988) (27 acts); and soliciting and accepting bribes in violation of N.Y. Penal Law §§ 200.10 and 20.00 (McKinney 1988) (2 acts). Each of the racketeering acts, with the exception of the state law bribery acts, was charged as a substantive count in the indictment. In addition, the indictment included 10 counts charging possession of counterfeit securities of a state in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 513 (1988).
Documents that can be used as proof of identity include a driver's license, a nondriver identification card, a birth certificate, a passport, or an alien registration card. Documents that can be used as proof of ownership of a vehicle include a certificate of title and a form issued by the state to used car dealers that transfers title from the dealer to a customer who has purchased the car. In New York, dealers use an MV-50 form to transfer title to a customer. The New Jersey reassignment form is an equivalent form. The clerks at the DMV are trained to recognize counterfeit documents.
Appellants' motions for judgments of acquittal at the close of the evidence were denied. The jury returned guilty verdicts against all appellants on the RICO substantive and conspiracy counts. In addition, Barbara Alkins was convicted on one count of possession of a stolen motor vehicle in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2313 (1988); on three counts of possession of counterfeit securities of a state in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 513 (1988); and on nine counts of mail fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1341 and 1346 (1988). She was acquitted on one count of possession of counterfeit securities of a state. Small was convicted on two counts of possession of counterfeit securities of a state and on three counts of mail fraud. One of her mail fraud convictions subsequently was dismissed by the district court. Linda Alkins was convicted on one count of possession of a stolen motor vehicle; on four counts of possession of counterfeit securities of a state, and on one count of mail fraud. Meyers and Watts were both convicted on three counts of mail fraud. Viejo was convicted on fifteen counts of mail fraud; he was acquitted on three counts of mail fraud.
The mail fraud convictions involved on the instant appeal are based on the definition of a scheme to defraud in 18 U.S.C. § 1346 (1988). that statute was passed in response to the Supreme Court's holding in McNally v. United States, 483 U.S. 350 (1987). In McNally, the Court held that the mail fraud statute applied only to schemes to defraud individuals of property rights, but not to schemes to defraud them of the intangible right to honest government. Id. at 360. Section 1346 brings schemes "to deprive another of the intangible right of honest services" within the purview of the federal mail fraud statute. It was enacted after the McNally decision and became effective on November 18, 1988. Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, Pub.L. No. 100-690, § 7603(a), 102 Stat. 4181, 4508 (1988).
In nineteen of the mail fraud counts charged in the instant indictment, appellants' conduct took place entirely after the effective date of § 1346. With regard to six counts (counts 40, 42-44, 49, and 52), however, appellants processed fraudulent applications for vehicle registrations prior to the effective date of the statute, but the resulting registrations were mailed after the effective date of the statute. Appellants contend that their convictions on those six counts cannot stand since their fraudulent conduct occurred prior to November 18, 1988.
"[T]wo critical elements must be present for a criminal or penal law to be ex post facto: it must be retrospective, that is, it must apply to events occurring before its enactment, and it must disadvantage the offender affected by it." Weaver v. Graham, 450 U.S. 24, 29 (1981) (footnote omitted). "The critical question is whether the law changes the legal consequences of acts completed before its effective date." Weaver, supra, 450 U.S. at 31.
The government urges us to reject appellants' ex post facto claim since the crime of mail fraud is not complete until there is a mailing. Schmuck v. United States, 489 U.S. 705, 711 (1989). The "`application of a statute to [a crime] that began prior to, but continued after, the effective date of [the statute],'" does not violate the ex post facto clause. United States v. Torres, 901 F.2d 205, 226 (2 Cir. 1990) (citation omitted). The government reasons that the crime continued until the mailings occurred and since they did not occur until after the effective date of the statute, the ex post facto clause was not violated. If appellants themselves had placed the fraudulent registrations in the mail after the effective date of the statute, we would be inclined to accept that reasoning. In the instant case, however, appellants did not do so. Since we must focus on appellants' conduct subsequent to the effective date of § 1346, we cannot adopt the government's reasoning.
The ex post facto clause serves two principal aims. It ensures that individuals have been provided fair notice of conduct that will subject them to criminal sanctions and it is a check against vindictive legislation. Weaver, supra, 450 U.S. at 28-29; Dufresne v. Baer, 744 F.2d 1543, 1546 (11 Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 474 U.S. 817 (1985). These goals would be jeopardized if Congress were able to criminalize conduct after it has occurred simply by making criminality turn on a jurisdictional fact that is bound to occur after enactment and is the unpreventable consequence of conduct by the defendant before enactment. The application of such a statute to impose criminal penalties on an individual whose conduct was not criminal when performed would violate the ex post facto clause.
The facts in the instant case, however, do not pose that problem. First of all, there is no question that the basic conduct in question was criminal under state law. Having committed it, appellants were not powerless to prevent the consequences of their actions. They were convicted of mail fraud because they caused the mails to be used in connection with their fraudulent scheme. 18 U.S.C. § 1341 (1988). "Where one does an act with knowledge that the use of the mails will follow in the ordinary course of business, or where such use can reasonably be foreseen, even though not actually intended, then he `causes' the mails to be used." Pereira v. United States, 347 U.S. 1, 8-9 (1954). Appellants' conduct, from which the mailings followed in the ordinary course of business, occurred prior to the effective date of the statute. That conduct, however, would not have resulted in criminal penalties against appellants if they had taken steps to prevent the final element of the crime from occurring, such as alerting DMV officials to the existence of the fraudulent applications. Instead, appellants, by virtue of their acquiescence, permitted the mailing to occur after the enactment of § 1346. Since appellants permitted the final element of the crime to occur after the effective date of the statute, their mail fraud convictions did not violate the ex post facto clause.
We hold that appellants' mail fraud convictions based on fraudulent conduct that occurred prior to the effective date of § 1346 did not violate the ex post facto clause since appellants could have taken steps after the effective date of that statute to halt the mailings.
Good faith is a complete defense to a mail fraud charge. United States v. Bronston, 658 F.2d 920, 931 (2 Cir. 1981), cert. denied, 456 U.S. 915 (1982). If an individual believes that the information set forth in a mailing is true, it follows that he cannot have the requisite intent to defraud. The government must prove lack of good faith beyond a reasonable doubt. Id.
Watts requested that the district court define "good faith". The court declined to change its instruction, stating that the term was self-explanatory. A court has discretion to determine what language to use in instructing the jury as long as it adequately states the law. United States v. Hsieh Hui Mei Chen, 754 F.2d 817, 825 (9 Cir.), cert. denied, 471 U.S. 1139 (1985); United States v. Taylor, 562 F.2d 1345, 1364 (2 Cir.), cert. denied, 432 U.S. 909 (1977). The instruction given by the district court here adequately stated the good faith defense. The court did state the meaning of "good faith" when it instructed the jury that "[a]n honest belief in the truth of the representations made by a defendant is a good defense, however inaccurate the statement may turn out to be." No further elaboration was necessary.
This brings us to Linda Alkins' claim that there was insufficient evidence to support her conviction of possession of a stolen motor vehicle. Specifically, Alkins contends that there was insufficient evidence from which the jury could infer that the vehicle in question crossed a state boundary. Although evidence of the vehicle's movement from New Jersey to New York was not overwhelming, we hold that it was sufficient to warrant the jury's verdict. In making this determination, we view the evidence in the light most favorable to the government to determine whether a rational jury could have found Alkins guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. United States v. Chang An-Lo, 851 F.2d 547, 554 (2 Cir.), cert. denied, 488 U.S. 966 (1988).
Linda Alkins was convicted, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 2313 (1988), of one count of possession of a stolen motor vehicle that had crossed state boundaries. That statute provides that:
To prove a violation of that statute, the government must demonstrate that "(1) the motor vehicle [was] stolen; (2) the defendant knew the vehicle [was] stolen; (3) the defendant possessed, stored, received or concealed the vehicle; and (4) the vehicle crossed state lines after being stolen." United States v. Mitchell, 876 F.2d 1178, 1180 (5 Cir. 1989).
The government may establish the location and movement of a vehicle by circumstantial evidence. United States v. Minor, 815 F.2d 472, 474 (8 Cir. 1986). In the instant case, the evidence established that the Jeep Cherokee was stolen in New Jersey by Anthony Santos and his associates, a car theft ring that operated out of New York. Santos lived in New York. One of the runners, Andy Williams, testified that he had seen other cars that were stolen by Santos' gang in New York. The car here involved was registered to a New York address. Newly registered cars are required to be inspected in New York within ten days of registration. A rational jury could have inferred from those facts that the Jeep Cherokee crossed the border from New Jersey to New York after it was stolen.
To convict appellants on the RICO counts, the government was required to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that appellants conducted the affairs of an enterprise engaged in interstate commerce through a pattern of racketeering activity. 18 U.S.C. § 1962(c) (1988). Appellants challenge the government's proof only as to the pattern element.
Proof of at least two acts of racketeering activity is necessary, but is not sufficient to convict under RICO. H.J. Inc. v. Northwestern Bell Tel. Co., 109 S.Ct. 2893, 2899 (1989); United States v. Indelicato, 865 F.2d 1370, 1382 (2 Cir.) ( en banc), cert. denied, 109 S.Ct. 3192 (1989); 18 U.S.C. § 1961(5) (1988). "[T]o prove a pattern of racketeering activity a . . . prosecutor must show that the racketeering predicates are related, and that they amount to or pose a threat of continued criminal activity." H.J. Inc., supra, 109 S.Ct. at 2900 (emphasis in original).
"An interrelationship between acts, suggesting the existence of a pattern, may be established . . . [by] proof of their temporal proximity, or common goals, or similarity of methods, or repetitions." Indelicato, supra, 865 F.2d at 1382. In United States v. Tillem, 906 F.2d 814 (2 Cir. 1990), we considered a case in which employees of the New York City Department of Health solicited bribes in exchange for passing grades on health inspections. We held that the predicate acts (violations of the Hobbs Act) were related since "they all sought a `common goal,' — the receipt of free money or services in exchange for the Department defendants giving restaurants a passing test score after inspecting them." Id. at 825 (citation omitted); see also United States v. Gelb, 881 F.2d 1155, 1163 (2 Cir.) (schemes involving meter tampering and bribery designed to cheat the Postal Service out of postage were sufficiently related to establish a pattern), cert. denied, 110 S.Ct. 544 (1989); United States v. Bortnovsky, 879 F.2d 30, 41 n. 16 (2 Cir. 1989) ("predicate act[s] involv[ing] efforts by the defendants to recover on false insurance claims, whether it be for fire or theft" were sufficiently related to establish a pattern).
Similarly, in the instant case, the predicate acts charged against the clerks all involved a common goal — the receipt of cash bribes in exchange for processing fraudulent licenses and registrations for stolen vehicles. The predicate acts charged against Viejo also were related to one another. Each involved Viejo supplying a signed, blank New Jersey reassignment form so that a registration could be obtained for a stolen vehicle. Viejo also benefitted financially from these transactions.
The evidence also demonstrated that appellants' conduct posed the threat of continuing criminal activity. In determining this element, we have held that external facts can be considered. Indelicato, supra, 865 F.2d at 1383; United States v. Kaplan, 886 F.2d 536, 542 (2 Cir. 1989), cert. denied, 110 S.Ct. 1127 (1990). External facts may include evidence of crimes not charged in the indictment if the defendants are aware that they may face such proof. Kaplan, supra, 886 F.2d at 543-44.
That instruction follows the approach of United States v. Ianniello, 808 F.2d 184, 190-92 (2 Cir. 1986), cert. denied, 483 U.S. 1006 (1987). We overruled Ianniello in Indelicato. As explained above, the law of this circuit is that the acts that constitute the pattern of racketeering activity must be related and continuous or pose the threat of continuity. The court's contrary instruction was erroneous.
The charge was circulated in advance. There is no indication in the record that appellants objected to it as required by Fed.R.Crim.P. 30. Since appellants failed to object to the improper pattern charge, we may reverse only for plain error. United States v. Scarpa, 913 F.2d 993, 1020-21 (2 Cir.), cert. denied, 111 S.Ct. 57 (1990); Tillem, supra, 906 F.2d at 824-25; Fed.R.Crim.P. 52(b).
A conviction cannot stand if the government has alleged a single conspiracy, but its proof demonstrates multiple conspiracies. Kotteakos v. United States, 328 U.S. 750 (1946). Accordingly, "where the proof is susceptible to the inference that there was more than one conspiracy, the question of whether one or more than one conspiracy has been established is a question of fact for a properly instructed jury." United States v. Maldonado-Rivera, 922 F.2d 934, 962 (2 Cir. 1990); accord United States v. Uccio, 917 F.2d 80, 87 (2 Cir. 1990); United States v. Friedman, 854 F.2d 535, 561 (2 Cir. 1988), cert. denied, 490 U.S. 1004 (1989). If the evidence admits of no possibility that there was more than one conspiracy, a multiple conspiracies charge is not necessary. United States v. Martino, 664 F.2d 860, 875 (2 Cir. 1981), cert. denied, 458 U.S. 1110 (1982).
Even if a multiple conspiracies charge should have been given, the failure to do so does not automatically require reversal. "To justify reversal . . . appellants must . . . demonstrate both the likelihood of multiple conspiracies having existed, and substantial prejudice resulting from the failure to give the requested charge." United States v. Barlin, 686 F.2d 81, 89 (2 Cir. 1982). Appellants have not sustained that burden.
"Multiple conspiracies exist where the evidence shows separate networks operating independently of each other." Id. To prove a single conspiracy, the government must demonstrate that the conspirators agreed on a common purpose. Maldonado-Rivera, supra, 922 F.2d at 963; United States v. Beech-Nut Nutrition Corp., 871 F.2d 1181, 1191 (2 Cir.), cert. denied, 110 S.Ct. 324 (1989); Friedman, supra, 854 F.2d at 562. "So long as the alleged RICO co-conspirators have agreed to participate in the affairs of the same enterprise, the mere fact that they do not conspire directly with each other `does not convert the single agreement to conduct the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity into multiple conspiracies.'" Friedman, supra, 854 F.2d at 562-63 (citation omitted).
The racketeering acts supporting a RICO conviction may include "any act . . . involving . . . bribery . . . which is chargeable under State law and punishable by imprisonment for more than one year." 18 U.S.C. § 1961(1)(A) (1988). Meyers argues that under New York law she was guilty only of receiving gratuities, a misdemeanor not punishable by more than one year. N.Y. Penal Law § 200.35 (McKinney 1988). She contends therefore that her RICO conviction cannot stand.
Meyers' contention simply misunderstands the charges against her. Crimes involving state law bribery are sufficient, but not necessary, to support a RICO charge. In the instant case, the government alleged and proved that three acts of mail fraud supported Meyers' RICO conviction. Two or more acts of mail fraud that are related and continuous or pose the threat of continuity can support a RICO conviction. 18 U.S.C. § 1961(1)(B) (1988); see also United States v. Porcelli, 865 F.2d 1352, 1355 (2 Cir.) (mail fraud as racketeering acts supporting RICO conviction), cert. denied, 110 S.Ct. 53 (1989); United States v. Teitler, 802 F.2d 606, 611 (2 Cir. 1986) (same). Since the government did not allege bribery under New York law as one of the racketeering acts in which Meyers engaged, the fact that her conduct may have been chargeable under New York law only as a misdemeanor, is immaterial to her conviction.
Viejo faces a "very heavy burden" in challenging the sufficiency of the evidence. Scarpa, supra, 913 F.2d at 1003; United States v. Garcia, 907 F.2d 380, 382 (2 Cir. 1990). We will uphold a jury's verdict if "after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt." Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319 (1979) (emphasis in original). "[T]he government [is not] required to preclude every reasonable hypothesis which is consistent with innocence." Chang An-Lo, supra, 851 F.2d at 554.
To sustain the RICO charges against Viejo, the government was required to prove that he agreed to participate in the affairs of the DMV through at least two predicate crimes. United States v. Rastelli, 870 F.2d 822, 828 (2 Cir.), cert. denied, 110 S.Ct. 515 (1989); Friedman, supra, 854 F.2d at 561. In addition, the government was required to prove "that he [knew] the general nature of the conspiracy and that the conspiracy extend[ed] beyond his individual role." Rastelli, supra, 870 F.2d at 828. The government was not required to prove that Viejo conspired directly with the clerks at the DMV. Rastelli, supra, 870 F.2d at 828; Friedman, supra, 854 F.2d at 562. There was sufficient evidence from which the jury reasonably could conclude that the government had sustained its burden with respect to Viejo.
Viejo contends that the evidence demonstrated that he supplied blank, signed New Jersey reassignment forms to all his salespeople. He contends that this evidence demonstrates that he was an unwitting dupe of Gomez and Bonilla who passed the forms to Isabel Lozano. Evidence presented to the jury justifies its rejection of the inference that Viejo asked it to draw. The most compelling evidence of Viejo's participation in the conspiracy consists of his own statements to an Assistant United States Attorney. During that interview, Viejo admitted that the purpose of the blank forms was to "wash" documents through New York. He also admitted that he knew that these documents would be filled out falsely and that he supplied the forms because he received a four percent commission on the sales of the stolen vehicles. These statements indicate that he knew that his was only one role in a larger conspiracy and that he knew that the ultimate goal of the conspiracy was to register stolen vehicles in New York. The fact that the interview was conducted in English, Viejo's second language, goes only to the weight to be accorded to the evidence. That matter was properly left to the jury's judgment. United States v. Villegas, 899 F.2d 1324, 1339 (2 Cir.), cert. denied, 111 S.Ct. 535 (1990).
We hold that there was sufficient evidence to convict Viejo of conducting the affairs of the DMV through a pattern of racketeering activity and of conspiring to do so.
We hold that appellants' mail fraud convictions did not violate the ex post facto clause since appellants, after the effective date of § 1346, could have halted the mailings that they had caused, but they failed to do so. We also hold that the court's instruction on the good faith defense to mail fraud was adequate. We likewise hold that there was sufficient evidence to establish the pattern of racketeering activity element of RICO as to each appellant; the court's erroneous instruction on that element did not amount to plain error. We further hold that the failure to give a requested multiple conspiracies charge did not prejudice appellants. Finally, we hold that the court did not abuse its discretion in limiting the cross-examination of a government witness. We find no merit in the remainder of appellants' claims of error.
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