Opinion ID: 747628
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Obstruction of a Grand Jury Proceeding

Text: 44 (Count 109) 45 Defendant was indicted and convicted of one count charging the defendant under 18 U.S.C. § 1503, which provides, in pertinent part, that [w]hoever ... corruptly ... influences, obstructs, or impedes, or endeavors to influence, obstruct, or impede, the due administration of justice shall be guilty of an offense against the United States. 18 U.S.C. § 1503. Before trial defendant moved to dismiss this count because, inter alia, the indictment failed to allege that defendant had knowledge of a pending judicial proceeding. The District Court denied defendant's motion. At the end of the prosecution's case, defendant moved for a judgment of acquittal pursuant to FED.R.CRIM.P. 29. The court denied this motion as well. The jury convicted defendant on this count based on evidence that he and other, unnamed persons shredded WBL documents in an attempt to obstruct pending grand jury proceedings. After he was convicted, defendant renewed his motion for a judgment of acquittal on Count 109 and moved for a new trial on all counts pursuant to Rule 33. The District Court denied both of these motions. 46 In order to sustain its burden of proof for a conviction for the crime of corruptly endeavoring to influence, obstruct or impede the due administration of justice, the government must prove three essential elements: (1) that there was a pending judicial proceeding, (2) that the defendant knew this proceeding was pending, and (3) that the defendant then corruptly endeavored to influence, obstruct, or impede the due administration of justice. See United States v. Bashaw, 982 F.2d 168, 170 (6th Cir.1992); United States v. Williams, 874 F.2d 968, 979 (5th Cir.1989). 47 Defendant argues that his conviction on Count 109 must be reversed for three reasons: (1) that the indictment failed to allege explicitly that defendant had knowledge of pending grand jury proceedings, (2) that the evidence at trial was insufficient to support a conviction, and (3) that the District Court erred in not including a supplementation to its jury instruction that defendant had requested. We consider these claims in turn.
48 Defendant argues that this indictment is insufficient because it failed to allege specifically that defendant had knowledge of the pending grand jury proceedings. We must decide whether the indictment, asserting that defendant did corruptly endeavor to influence, obstruct, and impede the due administration of justice in a pending federal judicial proceeding, namely a Grand jury proceeding, by shredding and causing to be shredded books, records and other documents of and relating to the World Basketball League, sufficiently alleged the essential element of knowledge. See Pettibone v. United States, 148 U.S. 197, 206, 13 S.Ct. 542, 37 L.Ed. 419 (1893) (holding under predecessor to § 1503, that indictment is not sufficient unless it appears the [defendant] knew or had notice that justice was being administered in such a court). We affirm the District Court's decision that it did. 49 Our inquiry into the sufficiency of an indictment focuses on two factors: 50 In general an indictment is constitutionally adequate if it, first, contains the elements of the offense charged and fairly informs a defendant of the charges against which he must defend, and second, enables him to plead an acquittal or conviction in bar of future prosecutions for the same offense. 51 United States v. Superior Growers Supply, Inc., 982 F.2d 173, 176 (6th Cir.1992) (quoting Hamling v. United States, 418 U.S. 87, 117, 94 S.Ct. 2887, 2907, 41 L.Ed.2d 590 (1974)). In addition, an indictment is usually sufficient if it states the offense using the words of the statute itself, as long as the statute fully and unambiguously states all the elements of the offense. Id. (citing Hamling, 418 U.S. at 117, 94 S.Ct. at 2907). Because the indictment in this case tracks the language of the statute, we must decide whether the statutory phrase corruptly endeavors fully and unambiguously conveys that defendant knew that a grand jury proceeding was pending. 52 Defendant, relying on United States v. Aguilar, 515 U.S. 593, 115 S.Ct. 2357, 132 L.Ed.2d 520 (1995), argues that an accusation the defendant endeavored to obstruct justice does not sufficiently allege the defendant's knowledge of a pending judicial proceeding. In Aguilar, the Court reaffirmed its decision in Pettibone that if the defendant lacks knowledge that his actions are likely to affect the proceedings he lacks the requisite intent to obstruct. Id. at 599, 115 S.Ct. at 2362. The Court specifically held that evidence that a defendant told false statements to an investigative agent was insufficient to prove his intent to obstruct a grand jury proceeding because it failed to show that defendant knew his actions would be likely to affect that judicial proceeding. In so holding, the Court construed the statutory term endeavor as making conduct punishable where the defendant acts with an intent to obstruct justice, and in a manner that is likely to obstruct justice, but is foiled in some way. Id. at 601, 115 S.Ct. at 2363. Contrary to defendant's assertions, the Court did not indicate that an indictment that includes the term endeavor fails to assert that the defendant had knowledge of the pending proceedings. 53 We find, as the District Court and other courts that have considered this issue have found, that the statutory language corruptly endeavors alleges fully and unambiguously that defendant knew a grand jury proceeding was pending and intended to obstruct it. See United States v. Haas, 583 F.2d 216, 219-20 (5th Cir.1978) (holding that indictment under § 1503 relying upon statutory language corruptly endeavored was not invalid for failure to allege the requisite intent and knowledge), cert. denied, 440 U.S. 981, 99 S.Ct. 1788, 60 L.Ed.2d 240 (1979); Seawright v. United States, 224 F.2d 482, 482-83 (6th Cir.1955) (finding that indictment under § 1503 containing phrase did ... wilfully endeavor was not insufficient for failing to contain express allegation of knowledge); United States v. Jackson, 850 F.Supp. 1481, 1499-1500 (D.Kan.1994) (holding that indictment alleging defendants corruptly endeavored to obstruct grand jury investigation sufficiently alleged knowledge and intent); United States v. Schwimmer, 649 F.Supp. 544, 548 (E.D.N.Y.1986) (finding that phrase corruptly endeavors encompasses knowledge of a judicial proceeding and intent to impede it).
54 Defendant argues that the District Court erred in denying his motion for a judgment of acquittal on Count 109 because the evidence at trial was insufficient to establish either that a grand jury proceeding was pending at the time the documents were destroyed, or that defendant knew the grand jury proceeding was pending. This argument fails. 55 The indictment charged defendant with shredding WBL documents on December 18, 1992. Defendant contends that no grand jury proceeding was pending at that time, because Lyons, the agent of the grand jury, did not present the evidence that he had collected to the grand jury until January 29, 1993. Until that time, defendant asserts, the investigation was an IRS and FBI investigation, not a grand jury proceeding. Our inquiry into whether a grand jury proceeding is pending focuses on  'whether the subpoena is issued in furtherance of an actual grand jury investigation, i.e., to secure a presently contemplated presentation of evidence before the grand jury.'  United States v. Tackett, 113 F.3d 603, 612 n. 6 (6th Cir.1997) (quoting United States v. Simmons, 591 F.2d 206, 208-09 (3d Cir.1979)). 56 The witnesses at trial included Terry A. Lyons, a special agent with the FBI, who testified that he and an IRS agent investigated Phar-Mor, defendant, and the WBL. Lyons testified that the first grand jury subpoenas were issued August 19, 1992 to banks and accounting firms. These subpoenas had a return date of September 15, 1992. Lyons also testified that he contacted defendant's attorney regarding the investigation on November 2, 1992. Lyons testified that he also served a subpoena seeking WBL documents on Dr. John Geletka, the commissioner of the WBL, on December 4, 1992 and interviewed him regarding that subpoena on December 16, 1992. Lyons also testified that he was acting as an agent of, and records custodian for, the grand jury investigating Phar-Mor. He then testified before the grand jury, summarizing the documents that he had collected, on January 29, 1993. We find that this evidence was sufficient to establish that a grand jury proceeding was pending on December 18. 57 After considering the evidence presented at trial and drawing all inferences in the favor of the government, we also find that the evidence was sufficient to allow a rational juror to infer that defendant had acquired knowledge of the grand jury proceeding from Dr. Geletka. The evidence at trial included Dr. Geletka's testimony that he was a friend of defendant, had served with defendant on a state university board of trustees, and worked with him as commissioner of the WBL. Dr. Geletka testified that in September or October of 1992 he talked to defendant about removing boxes of WBL documents from his office building, and that sometime that fall movers from a local moving company removed everything from his office. FBI agent Lyons testified that when he interviewed Dr. Geletka on December 16, 1992 regarding the subpoenaed documents, Geletka was unable to provide them because they had been removed from the office to the warehouse of the Carney-McNichols Moving Company. Trial evidence included the testimony of Gregory Carney and Larry Hamilton, both of whom worked for Carney-McNichols. They testified that on December 18, 1992, two days after Lyons interviewed Geletka, they watched defendant and two unidentified individuals shred WBL documents. In sum, we agree with the District Court that there was sufficient evidence to support defendant's conviction under § 1503.
58 Defendant argues that reversal of his conviction on Count 109 is also required because the District Court erred in refusing to give requested jury instructions. The District Court's refusal is only reversible error if the following three conditions are met: (1) the [requested] instructions are correct statements of the law; (2) the instructions are not substantially covered by other delivered charges; and (3) the failure to give the instructions impairs the defendant's theory of the case. United States v. Carr, 5 F.3d 986, 992 (6th Cir.1993). 59 The District Court's jury instruction on Count 109 included the following: 60 In order to sustain its burden of proof for the crime of corruptly endeavoring to influence, obstruct, or impede the due administration of justice as charged in Count 109 of the indictment, the government must prove the following three essential elements beyond a reasonable doubt: 61 One. The judicial proceeding identified in the indictment was pending at the time alleged in the indictment. 62 Two. The defendant, Michael I. Monus, knew this proceeding was pending. 63 Three. The defendant, Michael I. Monus, then corruptly endeavored to influence, obstruct, or impede the due administration of justice in the proceeding as detailed in the indictment. 64 Defendant complains that the court did not include his requested explanation that [w]ith respect to the second element of the offense, it is not enough for the government to prove that the defendant knew an investigation was being conducted by the FBI or IRS. Rather, the law requires the government to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant had knowledge that a grand jury proceeding was pending. 65 Although the additional instruction that defendant requested correctly states the law, see Tackett, 113 F.3d at 612 n. 6, we find that the instructions delivered by the District Court substantially cover the information in the requested instructions. The delivered instructions inform the jury that they must find that the defendant knew that the Grand Jury proceedings were pending. We hold, therefore, that there was no reversible error in the jury instructions for Count 109.