Source: https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/980/8/335729/
Timestamp: 2020-06-05 04:03:12
Document Index: 179177445

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2']

United States, Appellee, v. Lloyd R. Haggert, Defendant, Appellant, 980 F.2d 8 (1st Cir. 1992) :: Justia
Justia › US Law › Case Law › Federal Courts › Courts of Appeals › First Circuit › 1992 › United States, Appellee, v. Lloyd R. Haggert, Defendant, Appellant
United States, Appellee, v. Lloyd R. Haggert, Defendant, Appellant, 980 F.2d 8 (1st Cir. 1992)
U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit - 980 F.2d 8 (1st Cir. 1992) Heard Oct. 9, 1992. Decided Nov. 20, 1992
Defendant-Appellant, Lloyd Haggert, appeals the sentence imposed by the district court following his conviction for bank fraud. Specifically, Haggert challenges the court's imposition of a five-level increase from his base offense under Sentencing Guideline § 2F1.1, which mandates such an increase when the "loss" attendant to fraud is "more than $40,000." U.S.S.G. § 2F1.1(b) (1) (F) (Nov.1991). The district court looked to the amount of loss that Haggert intended to obtain fraudulently from the bank, in assessing loss at $62,508.50, the sum total of Haggert's fraudulent sight drafts. Haggert asserts that the court ought instead to have used the actual loss resulting from his criminal conduct, which the court had determined was $5,511.30. We affirm the sentence imposed by the district court.
We have repeatedly stated in the sentencing context, as well as in other areas, that issues not presented to the district court will not be addressed for the first time on appeal. See, e.g., United States v. Shattuck, 961 F.2d 1012, 1015 (1st Cir. 1992) ("[w]e do not review sentencing guideline disputes which were not preserved before the district court.") (citing United States v. Dietz, 950 F.2d 50, 55 (1st Cir. 1991)); United States v. Uricoechea-Casallas, 946 F.2d 162, 166 (1st Cir. 1991) (failure to raise sentencing guideline issue at district court precludes raising it on appeal); United States v. Curzi, 867 F.2d 36, 44 (1st Cir. 1989) ("an issue not presented in the district court will not be addressed for the first time on appeal."). As we observed in the case of Hernandez-Hernandez v. United States, 904 F.2d 758, 763 (1st Cir. 1990), "[w]e have applied this proposition in well over a hundred cases since Johnston v. Holiday Inns, 595 F.2d 890 (1st Cir. 1979)."
In Johnston, this court explained that while the rule governing issues raised for the first time on appeal is not absolute, it is relaxed only in extreme cases. Arguments not raised below will be entertained on appeal only in " 'horrendous cases where a gross miscarriage of justice would occur' " and, in addition, where the newly asserted ground is " 'so compelling as virtually to insure appellant's success'." Id. at 894. The Johnston standard was recently affirmed in United States v. McMahon, 935 F.2d 397, 400 (1st Cir. 1991).
In this case, Haggert had ample opportunity to challenge the sentence imposed. The pre-sentence report assessed the amount of fraud as $62,508.50, and expressly recommended the five-level increase eventually adopted by the district court. In his memorandum responding to the pre-sentence report, Haggert offered three objections, none of which concerned either the calculation of the amount of fraud or the five-level increase. Moreover, during the sentencing hearing, the district court judge took care to inquire whether Haggert had further objections or comments, and Haggert voiced no additional concerns. See generally, United States v. McMahon, 935 F.2d at 399 (failure to object to pre-sentence report); United States v. Fox, 889 F.2d 357, 359 (1st Cir. 1989) (failure to challenge facts set forth in pre-sentence report either in responsive memorandum or during sentencing hearing precluded raising challenge as to same issue on appeal).
Guideline § 2F1.1 covers crimes involving fraud and deceit. That Guideline begins with a base offense level of six, which level is adjusted upward in accordance with the dollar value of the loss involved in the crime. Section 2F1.1 mandates an increase of five levels when the "loss" is "more than $40,000." U.S.S.G. § 2F1.1(b) (1) (F) (Nov.1991).
U.S.S.G. § 2F1.1, comment. (n. 7).3 This explication of the Guideline has been relied upon in the First Circuit and in other circuits. See United States v. Cesar Resurreccion, 978 F.2d 759, 762 (1st Cir. 1992) (even where it cannot be stated precisely, the intended loss will be used if it is larger than the actual loss). See also United States v. Schneider, 930 F.2d at 556; United States v. Palinkas, 938 F.2d 456, 465 n. 19 (4th Cir. 1991); United States v. Smith, 951 F.2d 1164, 1166 (10th Cir. 1991); United States v. Shattuck, 961 F.2d at 1016 (citing United States v. Kopp, 951 F.2d 521 (3rd Cir. 1991)).
As the Schneider distinction between two types of fraud illustrates, even under the exception for loan application and contract procurement cases, the intent of the defendant is the measure by which the loss is to be assessed. See United States v. Schneider, 930 F.2d at 558. In each of the cases upon which defendant relies where the court held that the loss should be offset to reflect collateral pledged by the defendant, or that the actual loss should constitute the loss for sentencing purposes, the defendants lacked the intent to inflict the full amount of the fraud. See United States v. Smith, 951 F.2d at 1169 (finding no evidence that the defendant intended to inflict the amount of loss established by the district court); United States v. Hughes, 775 F. Supp. 348, 349 (E.D. Cal. 1991) (noting that the defendant neither intended nor desired that his loans would go into default). Contrawise, in loan application cases where there was no intent to perform, the intended loss has provided the basis for augmenting the defendant's sentence. See United States v. Johnson, 908 F.2d 396, 398 (8th Cir. 1990).
The Guidelines are concerned with assessing the seriousness of the defendant's conduct, given the wide array of conduct covered by fraud. See U.S.S.G. § 2F1.1 comment. (backg'd.).5 See also United States v. Rothberg, 954 F.2d 217, 218 (4th Cir. 1992). What the Guidelines do not envision is rewarding a defendant for her or his lack of skill in executing a criminal act. Haggert's failure to reap the full financial benefits of his fraud cannot provide a basis for lowering the sentence imposed by the district court.
Had Haggert preserved his claim below, our inquiry would have been two-fold. In Sentencing Guideline cases, we first determine de novo the scope of the Guideline at issue and then assess the district court's fact-finding for clear error. See United States v. St. Cyr, 977 F.2d 698, 702 (1st Cir. 1992)
The first sentence in Application Note 7 refers the reader, for a discussion of valuation of loss, to the Commentary in § 2B1.1 (Larceny, Embezzlement, and Other Forms of Theft). The Commentary in § 2B1.1, in turn, refers for discussion of partially completed offenses to § 2X1.1 (Attempt, Solicitation, or Conspiracy). The example provided in § 2B1.1 of a partially completed offense is a completed theft that is part of a larger, attempted theft. This example is closely analogous to the case at hand where the defendant was not successful in reaping the anticipated profits of his fraud. See generally, United States v. Schneider, 930 F.2d 555, 556 (7th Cir. 1991) ("Many fraudulent schemes are interrupted before they reach fruition. From a practical standpoint they are attempts, and their gravity depends in significant degree on the size of the loss that would have been inflicted had the scheme not been interrupted.")