Opinion ID: 1203057
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: superseding indictments and the statute of limitations[1]

Text: Four indictments were filed against Hickey. Hickey was originally indicted on July 16, 1997, on mail fraud and securities fraud charges. Two superseding indictments were issued, but they both omitted the securities fraud charges. Hickey claims that these superseding indictments stopped the tolling of the statute of limitations as to those charges. Therefore, he argues, when the securities fraud charges were included in the third superseding indictment on April 27, 2005, the statute of limitations period should be measured from that date, and not from the date of the original indictment. We review de novo this question of law. See Orr v. Bank of America, NT & SA, 285 F.3d 764, 780 (9th Cir.2002). The answer to Hickey's challenge is found in our precedent on tolling and indictments. It is well accepted that an indictment tolls the statute of limitations as to all charges contained in the indictment. United States v. Clawson, 104 F.3d 250, 250-51 (9th Cir.1996). Significantly, [a]n original indictment remains pending until it is dismissed. . . . United States v. Pacheco, 912 F.2d 297, 305 (9th Cir.1990), and multiple indictments may simultaneously be pending against the same defendant in the same case, United States v. Holm, 550 F.2d 568, 569 (9th Cir.1977) (per curiam). It follows from these cases that so long as the original indictment remains pending, a superseding indictment that omits a charge contained in the first indictment does not stop the tolling of the statute of limitations as to that charge. The central question is whether Hickey was fairly on notice of the charges. As we explained in Pacheco, 912 F.2d at 305 (quoting United States v. Italiano, 894 F.2d 1280, 1283 (11th Cir.1990)): Notice to the defendant is the central policy underlying the statutes of limitation. If the allegations and charges are substantially the same in the old and new indictments, the assumption is that the defendant has been placed on notice of the charges against him. That is, he knows that he will be called to account for certain activities and should prepare a defense. Apart from the fact that an indictment is pending until dismissed, here the intervening indictments contained the same factual allegations as the original indictment. Although the third superseding indictment reincorporated securities fraud allegations, it did not broaden or substantially amend the original indictment. Italiano, 894 F.2d at 1282 (A superseding indictment brought after the statute of limitations has expired is valid so long as the original indictment is still pending and was timely and the superseding indictment does not broaden or substantially amend the original charges.). Hickey's assertion that a superseding indictment that omits a charge against a defendant is essentially the same as dismissing that charge is inconsistent with criminal procedure. Under Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 48(a), the government may, with leave of the court, dismiss an indictment. . . . (emphasis added). The requirement that the government obtain leave of the court to dismiss would be superfluous if the government could, in effect, dismiss a charge by simply omitting it from a subsequent indictment. Hickey's theory is premised on the view that the initial charges were no longer pending and had been dropped once they were omitted from the subsequent indictment. There is, however, no intermediate status in our case law between pending and dismissed. Either the charges remain pending or they have been dismissed, and the only way for the government to achieve dismissal is via leave of the court, which did not occur here. Hickey was fairly on notice that he could be tried for any of the offenses contained in the third superseding indictment because all of the indictments remained pending until trial, the factual predicate remained the same, and the charges were not substantially broadened. Our conclusion is consistent with case law from our sister circuits holding that the government may elect to proceed on any pending indictment, whether it is the most recently returned superseding indictment or a prior indictment. See, e.g., in addition to the Eleventh Circuit's opinion in Italiano cited above, United States v. Walker, 363 F.3d 711, 715 (8th Cir.2004) (both a superseding indictment and the original indictment remain pending and the government may go to trial on the original indictment); United States v. Vavlitis, 9 F.3d 206, 209 (1st Cir.1993) (an original indictment remains pending and can be used at trial even if a superseding indictment omits an element of a charged offense); United States v. Bowen, 946 F.2d 734, 736-37 (10th Cir.1991) (a superseding indictment does not invalidate a preceding indictment and the government may proceed to trial on any pending indictment); United States v. Drasen, 845 F.2d 731, 732 n. 2 (7th Cir.1988) (It is well established that two indictments may be outstanding at the same time for the same offense if jeopardy has not attached to the first indictment. The government may then select the indictment under which to proceed at trial.); United States v. Stricklin, 591 F.2d 1112, 1116 n. 1 (5th Cir.1979) (Since the original indictment apparently was never dismissed, there are technically two pending indictments against Stricklin, and it appears that the government may select one of them with which to proceed to trial.); United States v. Cerilli, 558 F.2d 697, 700 n. 3 (3d Cir.1977) (both an original and superseding indictment may be pending at the same time and the government may choose which to proceed to trial under). Because all of the indictments against a defendant remain pending unless formally dismissed (at least until jeopardy attaches), the statute of limitations remains tolled for all of the charges in prior indictments, even if subsequent indictments omit those charges.