Opinion ID: 152383
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: 404(b) Evidence of Uncharged Misconduct

Text: Ali argues that the district court abused its discretion when it admitted under Rule 404(b) the testimony of four taxpayers whose returns did not form the basis for any of the indicted counts. Admission of Rule 404(b) evidence is normally reviewed for abuse of discretion, but when a litigant fails to object when the evidence was introduced, its admission is reviewed for plain error. United States v. Koski, 424 F.3d 812, 817 (8th Cir.2005). Ali raised a relevance objection to three of the Rule 404(b) witnesses, while one Rule 404(b) witness testified without objection. We need not resolve whether any Rule 404(b) error was preserved, because regardless of the standard of review Ali's claims fail. Rule 404(b) prohibits the admission of prior bad act evidence when it is offered to prove the defendant's conformity therewith. Prior bad act evidence is admissible, however, when introduced for certain limited purposes and it (1) is relevant to a material issue, (2) is similar in kind and close in time to the crime charged, (3) is proven by a preponderance of the evidence, and (4) does not have a prejudicial effect that substantially outweighs the probative value. United States v. Turner, 583 F.3d 1062, 1065-66 (8th Cir.2009), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 130 S.Ct. 1928, 176 L.Ed.2d 396 (2010). Valid purposes for introduction include proof of motive, opportunity, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, or absence of mistake, or accident. Fed.R.Evid. 404(b). We will reverse only when such evidence clearly ha[s] no bearing on the issues in the case and was introduced solely to prove the defendant's propensity to commit criminal acts. United States v. Benitez, 531 F.3d 711, 716 (8th Cir.2008). For each count, Ali's defense was either that his employees were responsible for the information contained in the tax returns or that he was relying on the representations made to him by the taxpayers. By claiming that he did not have knowledge that the representations were false, Ali put the willfulness of his conduct at issue, thus allowing the government to introduce evidence of his intent. Even if Ali did not actively dispute intent for each count, it was permissible for the government to present evidence of willfulness. See United States v. Walker, 428 F.3d 1165, 1170 (8th Cir.2005) (The mere fact that [the defendant] did not actively dispute motive or intent did not preclude the government from offering otherwise admissible evidence as to these factors.). Thus, the prior acts evidence was relevant on the issue of whether Ali willfully committed tax fraud. All of the prior acts evidence is sufficiently contemporaneous and similar in kind to the crimes charged to satisfy Rule 404(b). See United States v. Shoffner, 71 F.3d 1429, 1432 (8th Cir.1995) (When admitted for the purpose of showing intent, the prior acts need not be duplicates, but must be sufficiently similar to support an inference of criminal intent.). All four 404(b) witnesses testified that Ali either provided a dependent for them or suggested that they find a dependent to claim. The witness testimony and their tax returns established Ali's prior conduct by a preponderance of the evidence. Finally, the prior acts evidence was highly probative given the similarity between the prior acts and indicted counts, and Ali has failed to demonstrate a risk of unfair prejudice. See United States v. Gipson, 446 F.3d 828, 831 (8th Cir.2006). For all of these reasons, we conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in admitting the Rule 404(b) evidence. Moreover, because of the strength of the government's other evidence, any error in admission of the evidence was both harmless and did not affect Ali's substantial rights.