Opinion ID: 674597
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The So-Called Other Crimes Evidence

Text: 157 Several of the defendants contend that the trial court improperly admitted evidence of uncharged other crimes in violation of Fed.R.Evid. 404(b), and that these rulings require reversal of their convictions. For example, Thai and LV Hong complain of the admission of evidence that they beat Jagmohan in an attempt to get him to turn over the robbery proceeds; LV Hong complains of the admission of evidence that he attempted to extort money from Sen Van Ta and was present when Thai decided that Ta should be killed; and Jimmy complains of the admission of evidence that he participated in the robbery of Golden Star Jewelry. Each of these defendants contends that these were other crimes because they were not alleged against them in the indictment. These contentions are wide of the mark. 158 Rule 404(b) provides in part that [e]vidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts is not admissible to prove the character of a person in order to show action in conformity therewith. Fed.R.Evid. 404(b). This Rule is not controlling here, for the evidence of which defendants complain was not evidence of other crimes. When the indictment contains a conspiracy charge, uncharged acts may be admissible as direct evidence of the conspiracy itself. See, e.g., United States v. Concepcion, 983 F.2d at 392; United States v. Angelilli, 660 F.2d 23, 38-39 (2d Cir.1981), cert. denied, 455 U.S. 945, 102 S.Ct. 1442, 71 L.Ed.2d 657 (1982); United States v. Papadakis, 510 F.2d 287, 294-95 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 421 U.S. 950, 95 S.Ct. 1682, 44 L.Ed.2d 104 (1975). It is clear the Government may offer proof of acts not included within the indictment, as long as they are within the scope of the conspiracy. United States v. Bagaric, 706 F.2d at 64. An act that is alleged to have been done in furtherance of the alleged conspiracy ... is not an 'other' act within the meaning of Rule 404(b); rather, it is part of the very act charged. United States v. Concepcion, 983 F.2d at 392; see generally 22 C. Wright & K. Graham, Federal Practice and Procedure Sec. 5239, at 450 (1978). 159 The robbery of Golden Star Jewelry, and Jimmy's participation in that robbery, were plainly acts in furtherance of the RICO conspiracy and hence fell squarely within this principle. Thus, though his participation in that robbery was not alleged in the indictment as such an act or as a racketeering predicate act, we find no error in its admission. 160 The testimony of Jagmohan and Tinh Ngo as to the beating administered to Jagmohan by Thai and LV Hong because of their suspicion that Jagmohan had retained robbery proceeds instead of turning them over to Thai, similarly was not evidence of other crimes. Rather, it was evidence as to the existence and structure of the BTK enterprise, as to the leadership roles played by Thai and LV Hong, and as to the discipline imposed by the BTK leaders on the rank-and-file members. The rigor of the discipline was evident from the length of the beating (30 minutes) and the copious flow of blood, which, according to Detective Oldham, still stained the walls of the room several months later. 161 Nor are we persuaded by defendants' related contention that the court was required under Fed.R.Evid. 403 to exclude the somewhat graphic testimony of Detective Oldham as to the bloodstains. Under that Rule, even relevant evidence may be excluded if the trial judge determines that its probative value is substantially outweighed by its potential for unfair prejudice. The court's balancing analysis under Rule 403 is reviewable under an abuse-of-discretion standard, and its resulting decision to admit or exclude evidence will not be overturned unless we conclude that the court acted arbitrarily or irrationally. See, e.g., United States v. Tracy, 12 F.3d 1186, 1195 (2d Cir.1993); United States v. Jamil, 707 F.2d 638, 642 (2d Cir.1983). 162 We find no irrationality or arbitrariness here. The defense at trial was largely that the government informants, including Tinh Ngo and Jagmohan, were lying. The testimony of Detective Oldham was properly admitted to provide corroboration for the testimony of those informants. The trial court's determination that the probative value of the testimony outweighed its potential for unfair prejudice was not an abuse of discretion. 163 We see no greater merit in LV Hong's Rule 404(b) contentions. His participation, for example, in the attempted extortion of Sen Van Ta was one of the acts in furtherance of the RICO conspiracy; this evidence also showed LV Hong's role as supervisor of BTK's extortion activities. Further, both his report to Thai of Ta's recalcitrance and Thai's response that Ta should be killed served to confirm Thai's role as BTK's leader. 164 2. Admission of the Tape Recording Discussing the W.C. Produce Robbery and the Killing of Cuong Pham 165 One of the tapes introduced by the government reflected a conversation recorded on the eve of the trip of Tinh Ngo, Son, and other gang members to Rochester for the aborted robbery of the Ming Jewelry Store. In that conversation, Son described to Tinh Ngo the 1990 robbery of W.C. Produce and Jimmy's accidental killing of gang member Cuong Pham. Jimmy, who objected to the introduction of the tape at trial, contends that it should have been excluded as hearsay. The trial court found that it was admissible on the ground, inter alia, that it was a statement by Son in furtherance of the conspiracy. We find no error in that determination and need not reach the court's alternative grounds. 166 Under Fed.R.Evid. 801(d)(2)(E), a statement made by a coconspirator in furtherance of the conspiracy is nonhearsay. A statement comes within this Rule if there was a conspiracy whose members included the declarant and the party against whom the statement is offered, and the statement was made during the course of and in furtherance of the conspiracy. See, e.g., Bourjaily v. United States, 483 U.S. 171, 175, 107 S.Ct. 2775, 2778-79, 97 L.Ed.2d 144 (1987); United States v. Rivera, 22 F.3d at 435; United States v. Tracy, 12 F.3d at 1196. While statements that are merely idle chatter or that are entirely retrospective are not in furtherance of the conspiracy, United States v. Lieberman, 637 F.2d 95, 102-03 (2d Cir.1980), statements relating past events meet the in-furtherance test if they serve some current purpose in the conspiracy, such as to promote[ ] cohesiveness, United States v. Simmons, 923 F.2d 934, 945 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 500 U.S. 919, 111 S.Ct. 2018, 114 L.Ed.2d 104 (1991), or to provide reassurance to a coconspirator, United States v. Rivera, 22 F.3d at 436; see also United States v. Beech-Nut Nutrition Corp., 871 F.2d 1181, 1199 (2d Cir.) (person to whom statements are made need not be a coconspirator so long as the statements were meant to prompt him to respond in a way that promoted or facilitated the carrying out of goals of the conspiracy), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 933, 110 S.Ct. 324, 107 L.Ed.2d 314 (1989). A finding as to whether or not a proffered statement was made in furtherance of the conspiracy should be supported by a preponderance of the evidence, and such a finding will not be overturned on appeal unless it is clearly erroneous. See, e.g., United States v. Maldonado-Rivera, 922 F.2d at 959. Where there are two permissible views of the evidence, the district court's choice between them cannot be deemed clearly erroneous. See, e.g., id. 167 Though Jimmy contends that Son's statement was purely retrospective and not in furtherance of the conspiracy, Tinh Ngo testified that he believed Son told him about the W.C. Produce incident because he tried to get respect from me that he was in the gang less than me but he know more than me. (Tr. 739-40.) Tinh Ngo's testimony thus supports the inference that Son, with whom Tinh Ngo was instructed to commit a robbery, made these statements to give Tinh Ngo confidence in Son's ability to carry out their assignment. The trial court explicitly credited this testimony, and its finding that Son's statement was in furtherance of the conspiracy is not clearly erroneous. Accordingly, the tape was not excludable on hearsay grounds. 168 3. The Posthumous Admission of the Statements of Sen Van Ta 169 Finally, we reject Lan Tran's contention that the trial court should have excluded the testimony of New York City Police Detective Henry Murray as to statements made to him by Sen Van Ta about the extortion attempts and robbery by BTK members at Golden Star Jewelry prior to Ta's murder. Detective Murray testified that Ta told him of the receipt of the anonymous letter containing the newspaper article and broken glass, and of Thai's warning him to go to court and say that the arrested BTK members were not the men who had robbed his store. Lan Tran contends that these statements were inadmissible hearsay and that their admission violated his rights under the Confrontation Clause, thus requiring reversal of his conviction. We disagree. 170 [I]f a witness' silence is procured by the defendant himself ... by actual violence or murder ..., the defendant cannot then assert his confrontation clause rights in order to prevent prior ... testimony of that witness from being admitted against him. United States v. Mastrangelo, 693 F.2d 269, 272-73 (2d Cir.1982); see also United States v. Aguiar, 975 F.2d 45, 47 (2d Cir.1992). In such circumstances, the defendant will be deemed to have 'waived his sixth amendment rights and, a fortiori, his hearsay objection'  to the admission of the declarant's statements. Id. at 47 (quoting United States v. Mastrangelo, 693 F.2d at 272); see also United States v. Potamitis, 739 F.2d 784, 789 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 934, 105 S.Ct. 332, 83 L.Ed.2d 269 (1984). Although we first articulated this rule in the context of admission of prior grand jury testimony, see United States v. Mastrangelo, 693 F.2d at 273, we have held that its rationale is not limited to such testimony, see United States v. Aguiar, 975 F.2d at 47 (complaints received by law enforcement officers admissible after defendant intimidated declarant into refusing to testify). 171 Prior to admitting such testimony, the district court must hold a hearing in which the government has the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant was responsible for the witness's absence. See United States v. Mastrangelo, 693 F.2d at 273; United States v. Aguiar, 975 F.2d at 47. Further, in order to avoid the admission of facially unreliable hearsay, the district court should undertake a balancing of probative value against prejudicial effect in accordance with Fed.R.Evid. 403. United States v. Aguiar, 975 F.2d at 47. The district court's findings after a hearing will not be disturbed unless they are clearly erroneous, and we are particularly hesitant to disturb the court's determinations when they are based on its evaluation of the credibility of witnesses. See, e.g., United States v. Potamitis, 739 F.2d at 788-89. 172 In the present case, the district court held such a hearing and found by clear and convincing evidence, which as the district court recognized was a higher standard than that required, that Thai and Lan Tran caused the unavailability of the witness [Sen Van Ta] and that he was made unavailable to prevent him from being a potential witness. (Tr. 5693.) The court also found that the statements were reliable and should not be excluded under Rule 403. 173 Both the finding that Thai and Lan Tran were responsible for Sen Van Ta's murder and the finding that their purpose was to prevent his testifying against BTK members were amply supported by the evidence. Kenny Vu testified that Thai ordered the murder and that Lan Tran volunteered to carry it out. Kenny Vu went with Lan Tran to Chinatown for this mission, and Eddie Tran testified that Kenny Vu told him later that day that Lan Tran had shot Sen Van Ta. The testimony of Kenny Vu and Eddie Tran, which the court expressly found to be credible, amply supported the finding that Thai and Lan Tran were responsible for Ta's murder. The court's finding of motive, i.e., that Sen Van Ta was killed for cooperating with the police ... and as a result of his value both as a witness against the Born To Kill robbers and a witness against David Thai (Tr. 5693), was also supported. For example, Kenny Vu testified that when Thai ordered the murder, he referred to Ta as the one who called the policemen. (Tr. 2348.) This testimony and the sequence of events amply supported the court's finding. We conclude that the court properly admitted the testimony as to Sen Van Ta's statements to the police. 174