Opinion ID: 441634
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Outrageous Government Behavior Defense

Text: 142 Defendants argue that the behavior of the government in the investigation of this case was so outrageous and shocking as to deprive them of due process of law. They contend chiefly that Hanratty, the FBI informant, played on their emotional and psychological sensitivities to the situation in Northern Ireland in a successful effort to coerce them into committing unlawful acts. We find these contentions without merit. 143 The Supreme Court has noted the possibility that a due process violation grounded in outrageous government conduct might be available even if the defendant, because of his predisposition, could not establish an entrapment defense. See United States v. Russell, 411 U.S. 423, 431-32, 93 S.Ct. 1637, 1642-43, 36 L.Ed.2d 366 (1973). As Justice Powell subsequently commented, however, [p]olice overinvolvement in crime would have to reach a demonstrable level of outrageousness before it could bar conviction. Hampton v. United States, 425 U.S. 484, 495 n. 7, 96 S.Ct. 1646, 1653 n. 7, 48 L.Ed.2d 113 (1976) (Powell, J., concurring). 144 We have rarely sustained due process claims concerning government investigative conduct, stressing that the conduct involved must be most egregious, United States v. Alexandro, 675 F.2d 34, 40 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 459 U.S. 835, 103 S.Ct. 78, 74 L.Ed.2d 75 (1982), and  'so repugnant and excessive' as to shock the conscience, United States v. Romano, 706 F.2d 370, 372 (2d Cir.1983) (quoting United States v. Alexandro, supra, 675 F.2d at 39). Thus, we have upheld against due process challenges drug convictions resulting from transactions initiated by government informants using government-supplied drugs, see United States v. Romano, supra, 706 F.2d at 372, and convictions in the Abscam cases, where government operatives proposed various unlawful schemes, see United States v. Williams, 705 F.2d 603 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 104 S.Ct. 524, 78 L.Ed.2d 708 (1983); United States v. Alexandro, supra, 675 F.2d 34. 145 The district court, after hearing all of the testimony in this case, rejected defendants' due process claim, finding that defendants' testimony as to the informant's misconduct was simply not credible and noting that defendants had presented no evidence warranting a further hearing. We see no basis on which to question the rejection of this defense. The government conduct in this case was a good deal less intrusive than some conduct we have condoned. Thus, unlike the government actions in United States v. Romano and United States v. Alexandro, supra, where government operatives approached the defendants with the illegal schemes, in this case Duggan has admitted that it was he who sought out Hanratty. Duggan was not introduced to undercover FBI agents until after he and Megahey repeatedly asked Hanratty about his gun-running acquaintence, Luis; and all other initiatives came from the defendants as well. The overwhelming evidence presented through tape, videotape, and the testimony of the government witnesses supports the district court's refusal to grant defendants' motion to dismiss on this due process argument.