Opinion ID: 460947
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: faulty indictment

Text: 39 Fricks also contends that count two of the indictment, charging Fricks with receipt of a kickback, is fatally defective. 6 He argues he cannot be charged with accepting a kickback on October 17th since the evidence at trial established the objective of the bribery, Prudential's securing the bid, was achieved before this date. This argument is specious. Evidence offered at trial does not make an indictment defective, although a variance may arise when the evidence departs from the allegations in the indictment. W. LaFave & J. Israel, Criminal Procedure Sec. 19.2 at 721 (1985). 7 40 The indictment was valid. It was based on 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1954 8 and tracked the language of the statute. It is well established that an indictment that sets out the offense in the language of the statute itself is valid so long as the indictment alleges all the necessary elements, as did the instant indictment. Hamling v. United States, 418 U.S. 87, 117, 94 S.Ct. 2887, 2907, 41 L.Ed.2d 590 (1974); United States v. Webb, 747 F.2d 278, 284 (5th Cir.1984), cert. denied, --- U.S. ---, 105 S.Ct. 1222 (1985); United States v. Williams, 679 F.2d 504, 508 (5th Cir.1982), cert. denied, 459 U.S. 1111, 103 S.Ct. 742, 74 L.Ed.2d 963 (1983). The indictment fulfilled its role of providing Fricks with fair notice of the charges against him and protecting him from a risk of double jeopardy. Berger v. United States, 295 U.S. 78, 82, 55 S.Ct. 629, 630, 79 L.Ed. 1314 (1935), United States v. Montemayor, 703 F.2d 109, 117 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 464 U.S. 822, 104 S.Ct. 89, 78 L.Ed.2d 97 (1983).