Opinion ID: 72591
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Martin’s Challenge

Text: Martin’s argument concerning the sufficiency of the evidence is more properly characterized as an attack on the legal sufficiency of the indictment. Rather than arguing that the government failed to prove the acts alleged in the indictment, Martin contends that the acts alleged in the indictment do not constitute mail fraud. This argument is unavailing. The mail fraud statute, 18 U.S.C. § 1341, criminalizes the use of the mails in furtherance of a scheme to defraud or to obtain money or property by means of false or fraudulent representations. Accordingly, in order to sustain a mail fraud conviction, the government must establish that the defendant intended to defraud a victim of money or property of some value. See Carpenter v. United States, 484 U.S. 19, 27, 108 S. Ct. 316, 321, 98 L. Ed. 2d 275 (1987). In this case, the indictment charged conjunctively that Martin devised a scheme to defraud the TCL policyholders, the state 9 guaranty associations, and TCFCA’s minority shareholders by taking money and property. Although Martin argues that the scheme as alleged did not involve any legally cognizable monetary or property interest, we disagree. See United States v. Cosentino, 869 F.2d 301, 307 (7th Cir. 1989) (holding that alleged scheme to keep insurance company in business by deceiving regulators about company’s financial status affected the property rights of the company’s policyholders); United States v. Bailey, 859 F.2d 1265, 1276 (7th Cir. 1988) (holding that alleged scheme with potential to expose S&L’s money and property to plunder by artificially keeping S&L in operation “could affect the property interests of the depositors, shareholders, and FSLIC, which would be potentially on the hook for some or all of the depositors’ losses” and was, therefore, sufficient to support mail fraud conviction). We find the reasoning behind these decisions persuasive and hold that the allegations in the indictment and the evidence presented at trial were sufficient to support Martin’s convictions for mail fraud and conspiracy.4