Opinion ID: 766923
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Sufficiency of the Evidence Underlying the Extortion Count

Text: 62 At the close of the government's case, and again at the close of the evidence, Mikayelyan and Semenov moved for a judgment of acquittal on the extortion count based on insufficiency of the evidence. The district court denied the defendant's motions for judgment of acquittal and Mikayelyan's motion for a new trial, but granted a new trial to Semenov on an unrelated issue. Semenov and Mikayelyan contend that the district court erred in denying their motions for judgment of acquittal. A. Semenov's Interlocutory Appeal 63 Before reaching the merits of this issue, we must first consider whether we have jurisdiction to entertain Semenov's claim challenging the sufficiency of the evidence underlying his conviction on the extortion count. The district court granted Semenov a new trial on the extortion count, but Semenov asks this court to review his claim that the evidence underlying his conviction was insufficient. He argues that allowing the government to retry him on this count would violate the Double Jeopardy Clause, and that his only opportunity to raise the insufficiency of evidence claim is in the present appeal. In response, the government argues this claim is not colorable because Semenov's original jeopardy has not yet terminated. 64 A claim of double jeopardy must be at least colorable to confer interlocutory jurisdiction on an appellate court. Richardson v. United States, 468 U.S. 317, 322 (1984). To be colorable, a claim must have some possible validity. See id. at 326. Because we rejected the identical double jeopardy claim Semenov raises here in United States v. GutierrezZamarano, 23 F.3d 235 (9th Cir. 1994), we conclude that Semenov has not raised a colorable claim, and we lack jurisdiction to reach the merits. 65 In Gutierrez-Zamarano, the defendant was convicted by a jury of attempted possession of cocaine with intent to distribute. See id. at 236. The district court denied the defendant's post-trial motion for acquittal based on insufficiency of the evidence, but granted the defendant's motion for a new trial on another ground. See id. at 237. On appeal, this court held that a retrial on the defendant's cocaine charge would not violate double jeopardy because the defendant's original jeopardy had not terminated. See id. at 238. The court explained that 66 there has been no event terminating Appellant's original jeopardy. Appellant certainly has not been acquitted. The jury convicted him on the attempt count and the district court found the evidence sup porting this conviction sufficient when it denied his post-trial motion for acquittal . . . . Appellant is thus faced with the unreversed determination by the jury that the prosecution has met its burden of proof. 67 Id. Given that jeopardy had not yet terminated, the court held that the defendant's retrial will not violate the Double Jeopardy Clause regardless of the sufficiency of the evidence at the first trial. Id.; see also Keating, 147 F.3d at 904 n.6 (When Keating is retried, his double jeopardy rights will not be implicated regardless of the sufficiency of the evidence at the first trial . . . because Keating's original jeopardy has not terminated. (citation omitted)); United States v. McAleer, 138 F.3d 852, 857 (10th Cir. 1998); United States v. Ganos, 961 F.2d 1284, 1285 (7th Cir. 1992) (per curiam) (court of appeals lacks jurisdiction to review defendant's claim of insufficient evidence where district court grants a new trial). The same holds true for Semenov's claim in this case. Because the district court granted Semenov a new trial, his original jeopardy with respect to the extortion conviction has not yet terminated, and thus retrial on that count does not violate double jeopardy. B. Sufficiency of the Evidence 68 Because Mikayelyan was not granted a new trial, we do have jurisdiction to reach the merits of Mikayelyan's sufficiency of the evidence claim. The relevant portion of 18 U.S.C. S 894(a) provides: 69 (a) Whoever knowingly participates in any way, or conspires to do so, in the use of any extortionate means 70 (1) to collect or attempt to collect any extension of credit, or 71 (2) to punish any person for the non-re-payment thereof, shall be fined . . . or imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both. 72 (Emphasis added.) An extension of credit is a defined term: 73 To extend credit means [(1)] to make or renew any loan, or [(2)] to enter intoany agreement, tacit or express, whereby the repayment or satisfaction of any debt or claim, whether acknowledged or disputed, valid or invalid, and however arising, may or will be deferred. 74 18 U.S.C. S 891(1). This court has recognized that the statute has a broad sweep, and reflects Congress' desire to craft a flexible  `weapon to be used with vigor and imagination against every activity of organized crime that falls within its terms.'  United States v. Andrino, 501 F.2d 1373, 1377 (9th Cir. 1974) (quoting H.R. Conf. Rep. No. 1397, 90th Cong., 2d Sess. 31, reprinted in 2 U.S.C.C.A.N. 2029 (1968)). 75 Because this case does not involve an express loan, the second part of the definition of extension of credit applies. Thus, the government was required to prove that (1) there was a debt or claim; and (2) there was a tacit or express agreement by the creditor to defer the payment of the debt or claim. Mikayelyan argues that the government did not prove the existence of an extension of credit because the government offered no evidence that the creditor, Pogosian, either tacitly or expressly agreed to defer repayment of the debt. The district court found that the evidence was sufficient and denied Mikayelyan's motion for judgment of acquittal. 76 This court reviews de novo the district court's denial of a Rule 29 motion for acquittal. See United States v. Tubiolo, 134 F.3d 989, 991 (9th Cir. 1998). The district court's interpretation of a criminal statute and the scope of the conduct covered by the statute is a question of law reviewed de novo. See United States v. Ripinsky, 20 F.3d 359, 361 (9th Cir. 1994). This court must review the evidence presented against the defendant in the light most favorable to the government to determine whether  `any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.'  Tubiolo, 134 F.3d at 991 (quoting Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319 (1979)). 77 This court has found an extension of credit where the creditor-defendant agrees to hold a bad check until sufficient funds are deposited, see United States v. Lopez , 803 F.2d 969, 975 (9th Cir. 1986), or where the creditor-defendant agrees to repayment of the debt through installments, and uses extortionate measures only after the payments stop. See United States v. Stauffer, 922 F.2d 508, 513 (9th Cir. 1990). This court also found an extension of credit where the creditor defendant relied on the debtor's repeated assurances that the debt would be paid, and the defendant used extortionate measures only after the debt was not paid. See United States v. Bonanno, 467 F.2d 14, 15-16, 17 (9th Cir. 1972). Finally, in Andrino, this court found an extension of credit where the victims lost money to the creditor-defendant in a card game, payment was not demanded until next day, and threats and violence were used until the victims paid. See 501 F.2d at 1375-76, 1378. 78 Under the reasoning of those cases, there was sufficient evidence underlying Mikayelyan's conviction under section 894. As the district court found in denying Mikayelyan's Rule 29 motion, there were several pieces of evidence from which the jury could have inferred a tacit agreement by the creditor, Pogosian, to defer repayment of the claim. First, the victim, Karapogosian, testified that he had several conversations about the debt prior to 1996, but the band of men assembled by Mikayelyan to collect the debt did not visit Karapogosian until February 1996. Second, at that February 1996 meeting, Mikayelyan suggested to Karapogosian that he call Pogosian and talk to Pogosian about repaying the debt. Third, one of the defendants told Karapogosian that Karapogosian had a debt to pay, that he did not care how Karapogosian got the money, and asked Karapogosian when  he was going to get the money. Fourth, one of the defendants told Karapogosian that if he did not pay, a bad thing  was going to happen to him. Fifth, Gabareyev testified that the purpose of the February 1996 meeting was only to scare  Karapogosian into paying the debt. Finally, Sarkisian told Karapogosian that he should call a family member about putting together the money. Given this evidence, there was sufficient evidence for the jury to find an agreement to defer payment. 79 In sum, we hold that the district court did not err in denying Mikayelyan's motion for judgment of acquittal based on insufficient evidence. We further hold that Semenov's sufficiency of the evidence claim is not colorable on this appeal because he was granted a new trial by the district court. 7 80