Opinion ID: 3049934
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Roland Pugh’s Arguments

Text: Roland Pugh challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to support his conviction for conspiracy to commit bribery of McNair (Count 1). Roland Pugh 65 Swann also claims the district court erred by refusing his proposed jury instruction that good faith is a complete defense to mail fraud. The district court instructed the jury that to convict, it must find beyond a reasonable doubt that defendants “knowingly devised or participated in a scheme to fraudulently deprive the public of an intangible right of honest services” and did so willfully with intent to defraud. The court defined “intent to defraud” as “to act knowingly and with the specific intent to deceive someone.” Because a finding of specific intent to defraud necessarily excludes a finding of good faith, Swann’s requested instruction was “substantially covered by other instructions that were delivered,” and Swann has shown no error in the refusal to give his requested good faith charge. United States v. Opdahl, 930 F.2d 1530, 1533 (11th Cir. 1991) (quotation marks omitted). 85 also argues the government failed to prove a “wheel” or “hub and spoke” conspiracy because there was no evidence he knew the Rast and Dougherty defendants (the other “spokes”) were bribing McNair (the “hub”). This ignores the fact that Roland Pugh directed Grady Pugh to fly McNair’s daughter and FWDE’s superintendent Bill Bailey (who was overseeing construction at McNair’s studio) on the PUGH company airplane to Georgia to pick out carpet for McNair’s studio. Before take-off, Roland Pugh told Grady Pugh that “McNair has called now and says that he’s broke and he doesn’t have enough money to leave for the deposit on the carpet. So, if you would, write a check for the deposit.” Grady Pugh paid the deposit with a $4,820 PUGH check and had it treated on the company’s books as an expense on the “last rehab contract.”66 Roland Pugh also gave McNair money in connection with the project to develop McNair’s studio. When the project began, Roland Pugh told PUGH’s other three owners, Grady Pugh, Andy Pugh, and Yessick, that they had to give money to McNair because he was building a studio and, as ten percent owners, they had to “kick in” their ten percent. Grady Pugh gave approximately $1,500 in 66 Grady Pugh’s testimony in this regard was corroborated by Bill Bailey’s testimony. 86 cash to Roland Pugh’s secretary that time to give to McNair.67 On another occasion, Roland Pugh collected money from the three other PUGH owners to give to McNair for his studio. On July 18 and 19, 2000, three of them wrote checks to cash in proportion to their ownership interests. (Roland Pugh: $7,000, Andy Pugh: $1,000, Yessick: $1,000). Roland Pugh gave Grady Pugh an envelope of money and asked him to give it to McNair. Grady Pugh took it to McNair’s studio where he saw FWDE’s Bailey and told Bailey he (Grady Pugh) was there to help McNair, and that it was “financial help” that McNair needed at that time. Grady Pugh then visited with McNair for a few minutes and set the envelope down between the seats of the van they were in as McNair watched. After McNair retired, Roland Pugh complained to Grady Pugh about McNair’s demand for help building a retirement home, saying that “surely this is the last time we’ll have to do anything for him since he’s out of office.”68 67 We reject Roland Pugh’s claim that his conspiracy conviction falls outside of the statute of limitations because no member of the “Pugh spoke” committed an overt act after August 26, 2000. The Rast and Dougherty defendants took actions in furtherance of the conspiracy well within the statute of limitations. “[A]n individual conspirator need not participate in the overt act in furtherance of the conspiracy. Once a conspiracy is established, and an individual is linked to that conspiracy, an overt act committed by any conspirator is sufficient.” United States v. Thomas, 8 F.3d 1552, 1560 n.21 (11th Cir. 1993). Because Roland Pugh had joined the conspiracy to bribe McNair and because that conspiracy continued into the statute of limitations period, Roland Pugh’s conviction stands even if he took no actions within that period. The district court properly instructed the jury that it could convict Roland Pugh if any co-conspirator committed an act after August 26, 2000. 68 Roland Pugh cites the drug case of United States v. Mercer, 165 F.3d at 1335-36, for the proposition that there is no conspiracy where there is merely a “buy-sell transaction.” As 87 Later, after McNair asked Roland Pugh to pay for the studio’s $40,000 air conditioning system, Roland Pugh gathered funds by writing checks to his daughters-in-law and to cash. Once again, Grady Pugh delivered an envelope of cash to McNair, this time at his house. As a result, there was sufficient evidence for the jury to convict Roland Pugh and to find that he was aware of at least some of the other co-conspirators, such as FWDE and FWDE’s Bailey, given that they were working on separate parts of a larger project. Accordingly, we reject Roland Pugh’s sufficiency of the evidence challenge to his conviction on Count 1. The cases Roland Pugh relies on are inapposite. In United States v. Chandler, 388 F.3d 796, 807-08 (11th Cir. 2004), the “hub” of the conspiracy ensured “there was no connection whatsoever between the various spokes,” and the spokes “knew nothing about each other.” The evidence here shows that Roland Pugh was aware not only of PUGH, Yessick, and Grady Pugh’s involvement in the McNair project, but also that of the Dougherty and Rast defendants’ involvement. For the same reason, United States v. Glinton, 154 F.3d 1245 (11th Cir. 1998), is not on point. Id. at 1251 n.5 (concluding “hub and spoke” conspiracy must have explained earlier, Mercer is materially different from § 666 bribery conspiracy cases. In any event, Roland Pugh’s argument lacks merit as to Count 1 because there is ample evidence that persons other than Roland Pugh and McNair were involved in the transactions in the bribery conspiracy. 88 “some interaction between those conspirators who form the spokes of the wheel as to at least one common illegal object”) (quotation marks omitted).