Opinion ID: 718640
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Mr. Hill's right to a fair and impartial adjudicator

Text: 106 The more serious aspect of Mr. Hill's due process argument is that Judge Zagel was biased and therefore unfit to act as an impartial adjudicator. Mr. Hill suggests that Judge Zagel had already arrived at judgments against Mr. Hill regarding crucial issues before the so-called hearing took place. He locates evidence of Judge Zagel's predisposition in the order to show cause, 7 the transcript of the contempt hearing, and the text of the order. 107 Mr. Hill's argument conflates the disqualification provision of Rule 42(b) and the related, though doctrinally independent, rule that an accused has the right to a fair and impartial adjudicator. U.S. CONST. amends. V, VI. The record demonstrates that Mr. Hill preserved both of these arguments for appeal at the district court: in his motion seeking referral of the contempt proceeding to another judge, Mr. Hill relied on the Fifth Amendment and FED.R.CRIM.P. 42(b). 108 A district judge's decision to employ the summary contempt procedures of Rule 42(a) is reviewable for an abuse of discretion. In re Holloway, 995 F.2d 1080, 1086 (D.C.Cir.1993), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 114 S.Ct. 1537, 128 L.Ed.2d 190 (1994). The decision to proceed under Rule 42(b) warrants similar review. Once the election is made to proceed under Rule 42(b), however, a district judge must decide whether disqualification is necessary. The Supreme Court has stated that the decision whether to assign a Rule 42(b) proceeding to a judge who was not presiding at the time the alleged contempt occurred is discretionary. Nilva v. United States, 352 U.S. 385, 396, 77 S.Ct. 431, 438, 1 L.Ed.2d 415 (1957). Therefore, we also review a district judge's decision not to disqualify himself from presiding at a Rule 42(b) proceeding for an abuse of discretion. 109 On appeal, Mr. Hill styles his argument as arising under Rule 42(b), but his allegations of Judge Zagel's bias and partiality go beyond the purview of Rule 42(b). The essence of Mr. Hill's appeal does not involve Rule 42(b) because he does not claim that he criticized or acted with disrespect toward Judge Zagel. He argues that certain of Judge Zagel's statements at the trial and the contempt hearing manifested a predisposition toward a finding of contempt, and Mr. Hill concludes that disqualification was required under those circumstances. He fails to precisely identify the textual basis for this disqualification, but it certainly cannot arise under the plain language of Rule 42(b). 110 The record does not manifest criticism or disrespect of Judge Zagel by Mr. Hill, except under a theory that disrespect obtains in every violation of a district judge's order. This theory is untenable. Mere violations of a judge's orders cannot, without more, constitute the disrespect or criticism imagined by those who drafted Rule 42, for otherwise a judge who witnessed contemptuous conduct appropriate for summary disposition is disqualified from adjudicating that contempt in an ancillary proceeding under Rule 42(b). This is not the case. See Sacher v. United States, 343 U.S. 1, 9-10, 72 S.Ct. 451, 455, 96 L.Ed. 717 (1952) (stating that district judge may defer adjudication of contempt until after completion of trial). This conclusion would undermine the logical basis for the disqualification provision of Rule 42(b), and we will not impute such an error to the drafters. 111 Rule 42(b) is not the sole basis for judicial disqualification, however, and Mr. Hill's argument is sufficiently ill defined that we feel constrained to address in general fashion his allegations of Judge Zagel's bias and partiality. We will determine whether the record shows the genesis or development of a personal animus between Judge Zagel and Mr. Hill that would, ex ante, undermine our confidence in Judge Zagel's ability to maintain the integrity of the judicial role during the contempt proceedings. 112 Any proceeding is fundamentally and irreparably flawed if conducted by a judge who is unable dispassionately to vindicate the interests of the court and the accused. Ungar v. Sarafite, 376 U.S. 575, 588, 84 S.Ct. 841, 849, 11 L.Ed.2d 921 (1964). The flaw in such a proceeding does not depend upon the result, for some errors are so fundamental and pervasive that they require reversal without regard to the facts or circumstances of the particular case. Delaware v. Van Arsdall, 475 U.S. 673, 681, 106 S.Ct. 1431, 1436, 89 L.Ed.2d 674 (1986). The threat of such fundamental error obtains where there exists such a likelihood of bias or an appearance of bias that the judge is unable to perform the judicial function. Taylor v. Hayes, 418 U.S. 488, 501, 94 S.Ct. 2697, 2704, 41 L.Ed.2d 897 (1974) (quoting Ungar, 376 U.S. at 588, 84 S.Ct. at 849). 113 The requirement that only an appearance of bias suffices to warrant disqualification underscores the elemental truth that in a judicial proceeding, as in most other interactions between the individual and the state, appearances do matter. See Offutt v. United States, 348 U.S. 11, 14, 75 S.Ct. 11, 13-14, 99 L.Ed. 11 (1954) (stating that justice must satisfy the appearance of justice). The disqualification calculus does not concern what is in the mind of the judge, nor does it prescribe some subjective test by which one might measure the probability of bias or prejudice. Instead, it says that a judge should be disqualified from a proceeding where the circumstances raise reasonable questions about his impartiality, regardless of his state of mind or ability to conduct a fair and impartial hearing. 114 There is no reasonable inference to be drawn from the record that Judge Zagel became personally embroiled with Mr. Hill or descended into intemperate wrangling. See Ungar, 376 U.S. at 585, 84 S.Ct. at 847. The record does indeed illustrate Judge Zagel's frustration with Mr. Hill's continued efforts to circumvent the court's rulings. An appointment under Article III does not divest a judge of human reaction, and nothing in the record suggests that Judge Zagel's understandable frustration at trial tainted his ability to discharge his judicial duty at the posttrial contempt hearing. The Supreme Court recently spoke to this very point in a case involving the extrajudicial source doctrine of 28 U.S.C. § 455(a): 115 [J]udicial remarks during the course of a trial that are critical or disapproving of, or even hostile to, counsel, the parties, or their cases, ordinarily do not support a bias or partiality challenge.... Not establishing bias or partiality, however, are expressions of impatience, dissatisfaction, annoyance, and even anger, that are within the bounds of what imperfect men and women, even after having been confirmed as federal judges, sometimes display. 116 Liteky v. United States, 510 U.S. 540, ----, 114 S.Ct. 1147, 1157, 127 L.Ed.2d 474 (1994). 117 Our confidence in the fairness and impartiality of the temporally removed contempt proceeding is buttressed by Judge Zagel's restraint in sentencing Mr. Hill, which is a final illustration of the even temperament that he demonstrated throughout these proceedings. Referral of criminal contempt proceedings to another judge is necessary only when the record demonstrates the likely presence of personal animosity between the trial judge and the contemnor, and there is no evidence of any animosity in this case. 118 As a basis for disqualification Mr. Hill identifies Judge Zagel's predisposition to hold him in contempt based upon his statement that he did not care what Mr. Hill's intent was in making the statement about grades and his expression of skepticism concerning Mr. Hill's assertion of intimidation. Judge Zagel's comments neither amounted to a final determination of Mr. Hill's contumacious conduct nor manifested a state of mind that raises questions about Judge Zagel's ability to impartially adjudicate the contempt. What the remarks may demonstrate, if anything, is that Judge Zagel was tempted to act summarily under FED.R.CRIM.P. 42(a), which would have been well within his discretion to do. 119 Judge Zagel acknowledged as much during the contempt hearing: It was my view that what occurred here would have been appropriate for summary disposition. Mr. Hill seems to think that this remark, considered in the light of Judge Zagel's prior statements, fatally undermines the integrity of the hearing. Leaving aside Mr. Hill's ill-advised sham rhetoric, the excerpted statement demonstrates that Judge Zagel exercised considerable restraint in not acting summarily and, in fact, gave Mr. Hill more than was his due. This restraint reflects Judge Zagel's concern that the contempt proceeding not mar the efficient disposition of the complex underlying criminal proceedings, and we applaud his priorities. See In re Ellenbogen, 72 F.3d 153, 156 (D.C.Cir.1995). 120 Mr. Hill also claims that the sham nature of the hearing is revealed by its brevity and the fact that the district court issued the contempt order on the same day with no reference to Mr. Hill's defense. This argument suffers from a faulty premise. As the government noted and the record makes clear, Mr. Hill failed to offer any defense at the hearing. This explains both the hearing's brevity and the prompt issuance of the order because the district court did not need to address or incorporate any matters that were not contained in Mr. Hill's earlier written submission. Mr. Hill's memorandum of law in support of his response to the order to show cause sketched an outline of what might have been a colorable defense, namely, the district court's failure to allege the requisite elements of contempt under § 401 and the lack of substantive evidence of his contumacious intent. Mr. Hill's memorandum, however, cites to cases that are inapposite to his stated conclusions. Bare conclusions do not suffice as a defense. And as we discuss below, the order contained findings sufficient to support a finding of criminal contempt. III 121 An act of criminal contempt under 18 U.S.C. § 401, similar to substantive criminal offenses, must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt. Mr. Hill states that the evidence is insufficient to support the finding of contempt. In reviewing Mr. Hill's adjudication of contempt for sufficient evidence, our task is to determine whether any reasonable trier of fact could have been convinced of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Doe, 71 F.3d at 1297. We defer to the district judge's credibility determinations because of his familiarity with the record and his ability to personally observe the demeanor of the contemnor. See United States v. Messino, 55 F.3d 1241, 1252 (7th Cir.1995). 122 Before examining the sufficiency of the evidence, we must ascertain what elements of proof are required for the substantive aspects of the contempt. Mr. Hill argues that the district court asserted contempt under 18 U.S.C. § 401(1), and the government argues that the contempt arose under § 401(3). 8 The text of § 401 reads: 123 A court of the United States shall have power to punish by fine or imprisonment, at its discretion, such contempt of its authority, and none other, as-- 124 (1) Misbehavior of any person in its presence or so near thereto as to obstruct the administration of justice; 125 (2) Misbehavior of any of its officers in their official transactions; 126 (3) Disobedience or resistance to its lawful writ, process, order, rule, decree, or command. 127 18 U.S.C. § 401. This statute suggests but does not explicitly define certain elements of proof in subsections (1) and (3), namely, the mens rea and result requirements. The courts have responded to these ambiguities by defining the requisite culpability and result requirements for subsections (1) and (3) of § 401. The parties' dispute over which section provided the basis for Judge Zagel's decision has dispositive implications primarily because of the different result requirements for each subsection. Compare United States v. Seale, 461 F.2d 345, 366-67 (7th Cir.1972) (requiring proof of misbehavior resulting in an intentional obstruction of justice in the presence of the court for a conviction under § 401(1)), 9 with Doe, 71 F.3d at 1297 (requiring proof of willful violation of a lawful and reasonably specific order of the court for a conviction under § 401(3)). The crucial difference between subsections (1) and (3) for our purposes is the objective result requirement regarding obstruction of justice in subsection (1) and the lack of such a requirement in subsection (3). See United States v. Oberhellmann, 946 F.2d 50, 52 (7th Cir.1991). 128 Neither the order to show cause nor the determination of contempt cites a subsection of § 401. The order to show cause describes the contempt only as direct. Both in his response to the order to show cause and in his brief to this court, Mr. Hill has classified the contempt as misbehavior falling under § 401(1) and requiring a more rigorous evidentiary showing. 10 The government understandably seeks to characterize the contempt as defiance, which would involve the lesser showing mandated by § 401(3). Our colleagues in other circuits have grappled with similar nonspecificity and have determined de novo the statutory basis for the contempt. See In re Levine, 27 F.3d 594, 595-96 (D.C.Cir.1994) (per curiam), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 115 S.Ct. 1356, 131 L.Ed.2d 214 (1995); Time, 21 F.3d at 641; Holloway, 995 F.2d at 1082-86. We will do the same. 129 The district judge's order suggests that he viewed Mr. Hill's conduct as violating § 401(1); it describes Mr. Hill as having committed direct contempt of court with the specific intent to prejudice a fair and impartial hearing and details the disruptions occasioned by Mr. Hill's conduct. A violation of § 401(3) requires only willful disobedience of a court order, Doe, 71 F.3d at 1297; there is no result requirement. Under § 401(1), the misbehavior must rise to the level of an obstruction of the administration of justice, Seale, 461 F.2d at 367 (internal quotes and brackets omitted), in addition to being intentional. Thus, § 401(1) requires both a subjective and objective finding by the district court. 130 We conclude from the record that there is a sufficient quantum of evidence to demonstrate Mr. Hill's violation of § 401(1). The district judge found that Mr. Hill intended to prejudice a fair and impartial hearing, and we interpret this as synonymous with a finding that Mr. Hill intended to obstruct the administration of justice. The district judge did not specifically identify Mr. Hill's obstruction qua obstruction, but it is clear that his conduct, in sum and substance, materially and substantially obstructed the district court's administration of justice. 131 Mr. Hill's material obstruction of justice is apparent from the record of his repeated efforts to place in the minds of the jury answers to questions that the district judge had proscribed. He attempted three times to ask Agent Moss a question that the judge had prohibited. He repeatedly tried to evade and subvert the district judge's evidentiary ruling and, in so doing, substantially sought to undermine the district judge's ability to conduct a fair trial. His request concerning Agent Moss's examination of the financial records was a duplicitous and thinly veiled effort to evade the district court's ruling on the permissible scope of cross-examination. Mr. Hill's claim of intimidation was unsupported and, ironically, constituted an attempt to intimidate the district judge into giving him the leeway he thought appropriate. His efforts to undermine the authority of the judge belie any claim that he was intimidated by that same authority. Mr. Hill's pattern of obstinate conduct unfortunately diverted the attention and resources of the district court to addressing issues that were extrinsic to the question of the defendants' guilt or innocence, the business of a criminal trial. 132 If the penultimate example of Mr. Hill's § 401(1) contempt was his comment in front of the jury about Agent Maloney's grades, then the resulting dispatch of the jury from the courtroom and dialogue concerning Mr. Hill's conduct was the final straw. See Seale, 461 F.2d at 370 ([T]he very delay of the proceedings occasioned by a disrespectful outburst or other misbehavior may be sufficient to constitute a material obstruction.). Cf. United States v. McGainey, 37 F.3d 682, 685 (D.C.Cir.1994) (holding that the need for the judge to determine the prejudicial effect of contemnor's conduct was itself an obstruction of justice). We recognize that the delay caused by a contempt hearing or its ancillary events cannot alone constitute obstruction. Oberhellmann, 946 F.2d at 53; Time, 21 F.3d at 638-39 (stating that judge's investigation of alleged contempt could not form the requisite obstruction under § 401(1)). But the delay in the present case was not used to prosecute the contempt, nor was it used to investigate the circumstances surrounding the relevant conduct. Rather, it was used by Judge Zagel both to admonish Mr. Hill to abide by the orders of the court and to remind Mr. Hill that he could perfect on appeal any claims that those orders were somehow improper. IV 133 The contumacious conduct of Mr. Hill in this case certainly was not the most egregious to have occurred in a trial courtroom. Yet it demonstrates a misguided unwillingness to play by the rules that undermines the ability of the judge to ensure that disputes in federal court are fairly and efficiently resolved under the rule of law. Mr. Hill unwisely chose an obstructionist course that appropriately led to punishment by contempt. 134 The judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED.