Opinion ID: 3009917
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Adjustment for Aggravating Role

Text: We first address Felton's argument that the district court's two-level increase for Felton's aggravating role in the offense was in err. The pertinent portion of section 3B1.1 of the Guidelines provides: Based on the defendant's role in the offense, increase the offense level as follows: . . . (c) If the defendant was an organizer, leader, manager, or supervisor in any criminal activity other than described in (a) or (b), increase by 2 levels. USSG § 3B1.1.1 Section 3B1.1 requires the district court to find that the defendant exercised control over at least one other person. United States v. Katora, 981 F.2d 1398, 1402 (3d Cir. 1992). See also USSG § 3B1.1, comment. (n.2) (the defendant must have been the organizer, leader, manager, or supervisor of one or more other participants). Felton takes issue with the district court's determination that he was a leader in criminal activity. This determination is essentially factual, therefore, we reverse the district court only if its conclusion was clearly erroneous. Fields, 39 F.3d at 447; United States v. Phillips, 959 F.2d 1187, 1191 (3d Cir.), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 113 S. Ct. 497, 121 L. Ed. 2d 434 (1992); United States v. Ortiz, 878 F.2d 125, 127 (3d Cir. 1989). The presentence report mentions Clark in connection with three of the six incidents for which Felton was convicted, although Clark was only charged with and convicted of one fraud. Neither Felton nor the government objected to the facts as presented by the probation office with regard to these three incidents. With regard to the bribery concerning the Colonia taxpayer, Felton offered to arrange the return of taxes she 1 . Subsections (a) and (b) concern situations where the defendant was a leader, organizer, manager, or supervisor of criminal activity that involved five or more participants or was otherwise extensive. already paid to the IRS for a personal payment to him, Felton requested that the check be payable to him, and Felton requested documentation relating to her mortgage, sale of her home, and her profit sharing plan. Felton also scheduled meetings with her and agreed to adjust her current and past tax returns, Felton told the taxpayer how to make payments, and Felton personally accepted $6,000 in cash from the taxpayer. Clark, along with Felton and other Tax Examining Assistants, extended her account suspension. Clark also amended the taxpayer's income tax return, received $1,000 for this service, and Felton promised him another $3,000 after payment of the balance owed by her. With respect to the Englewood taxpayer, Felton's first contact with the taxpayer was through the IRS toll free telephone number. Felton later contacted her to assist her with her tax problems, Felton requested money in exchange for purported services, and Felton received payments from this taxpayer. Clark only attended meetings at her residence with Felton. With respect to the Mount Holly taxpayers, after the taxpayers had made numerous telephone contacts with IRS representatives, Felton contacted them. He told them that he could prepare and submit their income tax returns using information they provided, Felton denied that any illegality was involved, and Felton was paid by the taxpayers. According to the presentence report, Clark met one of the taxpayers with Felton, amended the tax return, and got some portion of the payment received by Felton. The probation officer summarized their involvement and offenses as follows: 26. Felton made all initial and subsequent contacts with the victim's [sic] of this offense. He made preliminary judgments as to feasibility of amending their returns, and made the arrangements to gather necessary information from the victims to be used in amending the returns. He solicited the assistance of Walter Clark, who was responsible for amending some or all of the returns, in exchange for payment by Felton, and presumably provided Clark with the information necessary for amendment. Pursuant to 3B1.1(c), Felton was the organizer of the offense. 27. Clark's role was in assistance to Felton, such as transporting Felton to meetings with the victims, and taking notes during the meetings. While Clark was responsible for actually amending the returns themselves, his assistance was solicited by Felton, by whom Clark was paid. Pursuant to 3B1.2(b), Clark was a minor participant in the offense. PSR ¶¶ 26-27. Neither party specifically objected to these paragraphs, although they both objected to the probation officer's characterization of Felton as an organizer in other parts of the presentence report. The court, however, considered Felton the leader, stating: There is no question that he should get the two point enhancement under 3B1.1(c). Mr. Felton's sentence should reflect his conduct without reference to whatever sentence Clark got and why. Under 3B1.1(c), Mr. Felton in my judgment was clearly the organizer, leader, manager of this criminal activity. He recruited Clark and, I suggest, others. App. at 85 (Transcript). When a person manages or supervises another in the course of a criminal enterprise, the manager or supervisor will normally be more culpable than the person managed or supervised. United States v. Fuentes, 954 F.2d 151, 153 (3d Cir. 1992). The direction and control of others is a recurrent theme in legal definitions of the terms 'manager' and 'supervisor.' United States v. King, 21 F.3d 1302, 1305 (3d Cir. 1994). The record supporting the district court's conclusion that Felton was the organizer, leader, manager, or supervisor is not extensive, especially considering that at the sentencing, neither the prosecution nor the defense thought the increase was appropriate. However, several uncontested facts in the presentence report do tend to support the district court's conclusion that Felton played a supervisory role over Clark. First, Felton made all initial contacts with the victims of the fraud. Second, Clark performed much of the menial work of the scheme: he drove Felton to meetings with the victims, he took notes during those meetings, and he was given the responsibility of amending the victims' tax returns. While Felton's blindness -- and inability to perform these tasks -- no doubt diminishes the import of those tasks to determining Clark's role, we think that they do evidence the fact that Felton had at least some authority over Clark to have Clark do his bidding. Finally, the fact that Felton was involved in more incidents than Clark supports the district court's conclusion that it was Felton's scheme to begin with and that Felton recruited Clark to work for him. The evidence concerning their individual roles in the offense was sufficient record evidence for the district court to conclude that Felton was an organizer, leader, manager, or supervisor, even though Clark did not participate in every scheme. The district court's finding was not clearly erroneous.