Opinion ID: 587722
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: False Statement Counts

Text: 18 Defendant argues that there was insufficient evidence to sustain a conviction on any of the false statement charges.  'Evidence is considered sufficient to support a criminal conviction if, when viewed in the light most favorable to the government, a reasonable jury could find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.'  United States v. Ratchford, 942 F.2d 702, 703 (10th Cir.1991) (quoting United States v. Culpepper, 834 F.2d 879, 881 (10th Cir.1987)), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 112 S.Ct. 1185, 117 L.Ed.2d 427 (1992); see also Burks v. United States, 437 U.S. 1, 17, 98 S.Ct. 2141, 2150, 57 L.Ed.2d 1 (1978); United States v. Hooks, 780 F.2d 1526, 1531 (10th Cir.), cert. denied, 475 U.S. 1128, 106 S.Ct. 1657, 90 L.Ed.2d 199 (1986). 19 By charging separate crimes as to each document, the government treated the settlement statement and certificate of commitment, both of which were submitted in support of a single loan, as separate, not integrated documents. In separate counts, the indictment charged defendant with making false statements in the certificates of commitment and again in the settlement statements. Because of the way the government charged and handled the case at trial, we analyze the evidence on the basis of the government's terms, considering each document as standing on its own. Our conclusion that the evidence supports the convictions on the settlement statement counts, but not on the certificate of commitment counts, eliminates our need to reach and discuss the issue of multiplicity. 20 Defendant concedes that the certificates of commitment and settlement statements contain false information, but contends that there is no evidence he made or caused to be made any of the false statements actually charged in counts 2-19. The specific language of the indictment alleges that defendant represented and caused to be represented in HUD Settlement Statements and Certificates of Commitment ... that the buyers made the specified down payments and earnest money deposits, when in truth and in fact, as defendants well knew, these payments were not made by the buyers. I R. 12. Furthermore, the jury was instructed only as to false statements regarding down payment and earnest money deposits; the jury instructions say nothing regarding fees and charges.
21 Defendant asserts that the language of the commitment certificates, that [a]ll charges and fees collected from me as shown in the settlement statement have been paid from my own funds, Appellant's Brief tab K, does not encompass earnest money deposits or down payments. We agree. 22 Although the settlement statements identify a number of items as charges or fees, neither earnest money nor down payment is designated as a charge or fee on the settlement statements. The purpose of the charges and fees certification is to assure that the lender did not impose excessive or unauthorized fees. See, e.g., 24 C.F.R. § 203.27 (down payment and earnest money not mentioned in list of authorized charges, fees or discounts.). The certification is not directed to earnest money or down payment; in fact the certificates of commitment make no statements about earnest money or down payment. A defendant may not be convicted for a statement not charged in the indictment. See Eaton v. Tulsa, 415 U.S. 697, 699, 94 S.Ct. 1228, 1230, 39 L.Ed.2d 693 (1974). 23 We also reject the government's argument that we can uphold the convictions for false statements in the certificates of commitment based on the mortgagee's certification. The mortgagee certifies that [t]he statements made in its application for insurance and in the Mortgagor's Certificate are true and correct to our best knowledge. Appellant's Brief tab K. As to the mortgagor's certificate, we have ruled above that this does not make the charged false statements concerning earnest money and down payment. As to the application for insurance, the record on appeal includes only one of the applications for commitment for insurance, related to count 3. See II R. tab 148, gov't ex. 6. Even assuming they all are the same, and that the government can rely on the mortgagee's certificate--which it apparently did not at trial--we cannot uphold the convictions. The application for commitment for insurance includes, at item 24K, an entry for the cash from borrower, which we interpret to mean down payment; but it makes no representation concerning earnest money. As we note in our discussion of the unanimity issue, infra Part IVA, the indictment and jury charge required the jury to find that defendant made a false statement involving both earnest money and down payment. Therefore, we hold there was insufficient evidence on which to base the nine convictions for making a false statement on the commitment certificates in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1010.
24 Defendant also asserts that the settlement statements do not make the charged false statements concerning earnest money and down payment. The Supreme Court has defined the term false statement in a statute containing language similar to 18 U.S.C. § 1010 as a false factual assertion. See Williams v. United States, 458 U.S. 279, 284, 102 S.Ct. 3088, 3091, 73 L.Ed.2d 767 (1982) (interpreting 18 U.S.C. § 1014). Defendant argues that the settlement statement does not state the down payment at all. The government, however, correctly points out that the amount of down payment or equity can be figured from other information on the settlement statement. 4 25 Defendant next argues that the indictment charged as the false statement that the buyers made the specified down payments and earnest money deposits. Defendant notes that the settlement statement does not expressly state that the buyers are making the payments from their own funds. A false statement, however, can be implied by use of a document [that] makes the factual assertions necessarily implied from the statutes, regulations, and announced policies that created the document. United States v. Waechter, 771 F.2d 974, 979 (6th Cir.1985) (overturning conviction of defendant, finding alleged implied false statement not proven). It is clear that HUD policies in effect at the time required that the buyers pay the earnest money and down payment from their own funds and defendant knew of those policies. Therefore, the government contends that defendant's use of the settlement statement made the implied false statement that the buyers' equity had been paid from the buyers' own funds. 26 Although implying false statements to find a violation of § 1010 can be carried too far, given the facts of this case it is clear that defendant made or caused to be made false entries on the settlement statement. The entries made false statements that the buyers paid earnest money and down payments that in fact defendant knew were never paid by buyers. The government presented sufficient evidence on which the jury could find defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the nine counts of making a false statement on the settlement statements in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1010.B. Conspiracy Count 27 Defendant also asserts that there was insufficient evidence to support his conspiracy conviction. Conspiracy consists of an agreement to violate the law, knowledge by the defendant of the essential objectives of the conspiracy, and knowing and voluntary participation by the defendant in the conspiracy. See United States v. Fox, 902 F.2d 1508, 1514 (10th Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 111 S.Ct. 199, 112 L.Ed.2d 161 (1990). Defendant argues that the jury could have based its guilty verdict on a conspiracy to commit the § 1010 violations charged in counts 2-19, for which he argues there was insufficient evidence. Because we uphold nine of the eighteen substantive violations of § 1010, and because we conclude that there was sufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that defendant and others were involved in a common plan involving false statements to HUD, we must uphold the count 1 conspiracy conviction. IV Jury Instructions 28 Defendant contends that the district court erred in refusing to give two jury instructions requested by defendant. We review a challenge to jury instructions by reviewing the record as a whole to determine whether the instructions state the law which governs and provided the jury with an ample understanding of the issues and the standards applicable. United States v. Cardall, 885 F.2d 656, 673 (10th Cir.1989) (quotation marks and citation omitted). A. Unanimity Instruction 29 Defendant argues he was deprived of his right to a unanimous verdict. See Fed.R.Crim.P. 31(a) (unanimous verdict required); Andres v. United States, 333 U.S. 740, 748, 68 S.Ct. 880, 884, 92 L.Ed. 1055 (1948) (constitutional unanimity requirement). He contends that each false statement count charged two separate incidents of the same offense because each count referred to both earnest money and down payment. 5 Although defendant requested a specific unanimity jury instruction, 6 the trial court gave only a general unanimity instruction, which defendant argues was reversible error. Because defendant requested the instruction, we review this issue for an abuse of discretion. See, e.g., United States v. Beros, 833 F.2d 455, 458 n. 3 (3d Cir.1987). 30 In this circuit, as in most others, 'it is assumed that a general instruction on the requirement of unanimity suffices to instruct the jury that they must be unanimous on whatever specifications they find to be the predicate of the guilty verdict.'  United States v. Phillips, 869 F.2d 1361, 1366 (10th Cir.1988) (quoting United States v. McClure, 734 F.2d 484, 494 (10th Cir.1984)), cert. denied, 490 U.S. 1069, 109 S.Ct. 2074, 104 L.Ed.2d 638 (1989). As we noted in Phillips, other circuits have made exceptions to this rule. 7 31 Defendant urges us to find that the instant case falls outside the general rule that a general unanimity instruction is sufficient because the government charged two distinct acts in each count, both of which could support a violation of § 1010. Each false statement count charged defendant with making the false statement that the buyers paid the specified down payments and earnest money deposits. Defendant points out that earnest money and down payments were different items and were calculated differently. Defendant argues that based on the indictment, some jurors may have found that defendant made a false statement as to earnest money, while others may have found he made a false statement as to down payment, and that the general unanimity instruction was not adequate to ensure a unanimous verdict. We disagree. 32 The indictment and jury charge were stated in the conjunctive, that the buyers made the specified down payments and earnest money deposits, when in truth and in fact, as defendants well knew, these payments were not made by the buyers. I R. 12 (indictment) (emphasis added); see also II R. tab 186 (Instruction No. 5). If the jurors followed the instructions and the requirements of the indictment, as we must assume, to reach a guilty verdict on an individual count each juror had to find that defendant made a false statement involving both earnest money and down payment. In the instant case, the falsity of the earnest money deposits and down payments were intimately intertwined; they were not conceptually distinct acts. Thus, there was no real potential for a nonunanimous verdict, and we hold that the district court did not abuse its discretion in refusing to give a specific unanimity instruction.