Source: http://openjurist.org/232/f3d/315
Timestamp: 2013-12-13 22:02:17
Document Index: 777178759

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 7201', '§ 1', '§ 3', '§ 2', '§ 1', '§ 2', '§ 2']

232 F3d 315 United States of America v. Thomas Fitzgerald | OpenJurist
232 F. 3d 315 - United States of America v. Thomas Fitzgerald	Home232 f3d 315 united states of america v. thomas fitzgerald
232 F3d 315 United States of America v. Thomas Fitzgerald 232 F.3d 315 (2nd Cir. 2000)
United States of America, Appellee,v.Thomas Fitzgerald, Defendant-Appellant.
Docket No. 99-1548August Term, 1999
Argued: June 2, 2000Decided: November 15, 2000
Appeal from the judgment of conviction and sentence of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (Richard Owen, Judge) entered September 13, 1999, after a trial before the Honorable Richard Owen and a jury.
Bruce A. Barket, Garden City, NY, for Appellant.
Robert J. Cramer, Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York (Mary Jo White, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Robin W. Morey, Stanley J. Okula, Jr., Baruch Weiss, Ira M. Feinberg, Assistant United States Attorneys, New York, NY, of counsel) for Appellee.
Thomas Fitzgerald appeals from the judgment of conviction and sentence of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (Richard Owen, Judge) entered September 13, 1999, after a six-day trial before the Honorable Richard Owen and a jury. Fitzgerald was charged with three counts of tax evasion, thirteen counts of mail fraud, and one count of conversion. The district court severed the mail fraud and conversion counts and proceeded to trial on the tax evasion counts. Fitzgerald was convicted of three counts of tax evasion for the years 1990, 1991, and 1992, in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 7201. Before proceeding to trial on the severed mail fraud and conversion charges, the district court held a pre-sentencing hearing pursuant to United States v. Fatico, 458 F. Supp. 388 (E.D.N.Y. 1978), aff'd, 603 F.2d 53 (2d Cir. 1979), and enhanced Fitzgerald's sentence for tax evasion based on findings of mail fraud and conversion. Fitzgerald challenges this enhancement of his sentence. On this issue, we find that the district court applied the United States Sentencing Guidelines improperly, and therefore we vacate and remand for resentencing.1 We have considered the appellant's other arguments, and we find them to be without merit.
Following Fitzgerald's conviction on all three tax evasion counts, the district court, without objection by Fitzgerald, set a sentencing date for the tax charges in advance of trial on the severed mail fraud and conversion charges. The district court subsequently granted the Government's request for a pre-sentencing hearing pursuant to United States v. Fatico, 458 F. Supp. 388 (E.D.N.Y. 1978), aff'd, 603 F.2d 53 (2d Cir. 1979). The Government requested this hearing for the purpose of introducing evidence that: (1) in addition to the federal income tax he evaded from 1990-1992, Fitzgerald also evaded $74,607 in New York State and New York City income taxes for the same period, which amounts constituted relevant conduct pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 1B1.3 (1992);2 (2) Fitzgerald had obstructed justice by committing perjury at trial, thus warranting a two-level enhancement to his base offense level pursuant to U.S.S.G § 3C1.1; and (3) Fitzgerald had failed to report more than $10,000 from criminal activity during the 1992 tax year, thus warranting a further two-level enhancement to his base offense level under U.S.S.G § 2T1.1(b)(1).
Following the Fatico hearing, the district court found that from 1990-1992 Fitzgerald evaded $74,607 in New York State and City income taxes. These state and city tax losses were included as relevant conduct pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 1B1.3 in determining Fitzgerald's base offense level under U.S.S.G. § 2T1.1, and therefore were added to Fitzgerald's 1990-1992 federal income tax liability of $175,589 for a total unpaid tax liability (loss) of $250,196. The district court then found that a two-level enhancement of the base offense level was warranted under U.S.S.G. § 2T1.1(b)(1) because Fitzgerald had failed to report more than $10,000 from criminal activity in 1992. More specifically, the district court found by clear and convincing evidence that in 1992, Fitzgerald had intentionally converted $107,339 from the Mason Tenders District Council Welfare Fund (the "Welfare Fund") and defrauded medical specialists of those funds. The district court determined that Fitzgerald knew the medical specialists were not being paid for a period of sever