Opinion ID: 571463
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: government's petite policy

Text: 4 Defendant contends that Counts Three and Four of the 1989 indictment should be dismissed because the Government failed to comply with the Justice Department's policy acknowledged in Petite v. United States, 361 U.S. 529, 80 S.Ct. 450, 4 L.Ed.2d 490 (1960). The Petite policy precludes successive federal prosecutions against a defendant based on the same transaction without prior approval from an Assistant Attorney General. The district court assumed the prior approval was not obtained and rejected the Petite argument for dismissal. We find no error in denial of the motion, because the Petite policy is merely an internal rule of the Justice Department; a criminal defendant may not invoke it to bar prosecution. United States v. Harrison, 918 F.2d 469, 475 (5th Cir.1990).II. OUTRAGEOUS CONDUCT IN SEARCH AND SEIZURE 5 Rodriguez next contends that the government engaged in such outrageous conduct in executing a post-indictment search of her former attorney's office that the indictment should be dismissed. Defendant asks in this appeal only for dismissal of the indictment, so suppression of the seized documents is not at issue. 6 She alleges that the outrageous conduct violated attorney-client privilege, her right to counsel under the Sixth Amendment, due process under the Fifth Amendment, her privilege against self-incrimination under the Fifth Amendment, the Fourth Amendment's protection against unlawful searches and seizures, and another Justice Department policy. 7 As to the claimed violation of privilege, Rodriguez has never indicated any document from the seized file which constituted a communication or described a communication between herself and her attorney. The burden of establishing privilege rests on the party who invokes it. Hodges, Grant & Kaufmann v. Comissioner, 768 F.2d 719, 721 (5th Cir.1985). The privilege must be specifically asserted with respect to particular documents. United States v. El Paso Co., 682 F.2d 530, 539 (5th Cir.1982), cert. denied, 466 U.S. 944, 104 S.Ct. 1927, 80 L.Ed.2d 473 (1984). Her allegation of violation of privilege is unsubstantiated and constitutes no ground for dismissal of the indictment. 8 As to the claim that the seizure violated Rodriguez's Sixth Amendment right to counsel, the remedy for such a violation is not dismissal but the suppression of any evidence so obtained. United States v. Sander, 615 F.2d 215, 219 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 449 U.S. 835, 101 S.Ct. 108, 66 L.Ed.2d 41 (1980). Moreover, Rodriguez fails to show any prejudice; she simply asks this Court to infer prejudice from the fact of seizure. Without a showing of  'demonstrable prejudice, or substantial threat thereof, dismissal is plainly inappropriate.'  United States v. Melvin, 650 F.2d 641, 644 (5th Cir. Unit B 1981) (quoting United States v. Morrison, 449 U.S. 361, 365, 101 S.Ct. 665, 668, 66 L.Ed.2d 564 (1981)). 9 Similarly, for a Fifth Amendment violation, dismissal of the indictment is inappropriate. See Morrison, 449 U.S. at 365 n. 3, 101 S.Ct. at 668 n. 3 (quoting United States v. Blue, 384 U.S. 251, 255, 86 S.Ct. 1416, 1419, 16 L.Ed.2d 510 (1966)): 10 Even if we assume that the Government did acquire incriminating evidence in violation of the Fifth Amendment, Blue would at most be entitled to suppress the evidence and its fruits if they were sought to be used against him at trial.... Our numerous precedents ordering the exclusion of such illegally obtained evidence assume implicitly that the remedy does not extend to barring the prosecution altogether. 11 The remedy for any Fourth Amendment violation is likewise exclusion of evidence rather than dismissal of the indictment altogether. United States v. Franklin, 598 F.2d 954, 957 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 444 U.S. 870, 100 S.Ct. 147, 62 L.Ed.2d 95 (1979). 12 Finally Rodriguez urges dismissal because the Department of Justice failed to adhere to its regulation requiring authorization from a Deputy Assistant Attorney General before a federal officer applies for a warrant for confidential materials in the hands of a lawyer. See 28 C.F.R. § 59.4(b)(1)-(2) (1991). The regulation further provides, however, that any issue relating to the failure to comply with the guideline may not be litigated. 28 C.F.R. § 59.6(b) (1991). [C]ourts are not charged with enforcing internal governmental guidelines and will not remedy an alleged violation by the dismissal of an indictment.... United States v. McInnis, 601 F.2d 1319, 1328 (5th Cir.1979), cert. denied, 445 U.S. 962, 100 S.Ct. 1649, 64 L.Ed.2d 237 (1980). 13 Rodriguez has not demonstrated any cause for dismissal of the indictment based on seizure of the file.