Court Opinion

ID: 9463324
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-04 23:02:53.558912+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:38:01.559001
License: Public Domain

BONSAL, District Judge
(dissenting):
I respectfully dissent.
As stated in the majority opinion, the original indictment, on which the defend*801ants were arraigned on November 10, 1975, charged them with 70 counts of mail fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1341) and 10 counts of violations of the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act (15 U.S.C. § 1703(a)). The original indictment, concededly confusing and prolix, was 42 pages long and contained 110 specifications in 29 different categories of alleged misrepresentations and fraudulent selling practices.
Following pretrial conferences in May, June and July 1976, the District Judge was of the opinion that the indictment contained many unnecessary allegations. In an effort to reduce the trial to manageable proportions by limiting the proof to be presented to the jury, the District Judge suggested that a number of factual allegations be deleted from the indictment.
On July 13,1976, the Government obtained a superseding indictment of 26 pages which eliminated much of the evidentiary detail. At a pretrial conference held on the same day, the Government maintained that the superseding indictment did not eliminate any of the proof that would have been offered under the original indictment. After reviewing the superseding indictment, the District Judge was of the opinion that “. . . all of the matter alleged under the original indictment appears in the superseding indictment except five specifications.” United States v. Amrep Corp., et al., S 76 Cr. 644 (Opinion of Judge Metzner dated October 27, 1976 at page 3). Since the Government was unable to indicate any allegation in the superseding indictment which would support these specifications, the District Court ruled that it would “. not take any proof on the following paragraphs which appear in the original indictment and which the government still maintains it will use on the trial of the superseding indictment.” Id.
While the Government argues that the excluded evidentiary items will be relevant to the proof of a scheme to defraud, such a decision lies within the sound discretion of the trial judge and should not be disturbed on appeal absent a clear showing that “. the evidence is a substantial proof of a fact material in the proceeding.” 18 U.S.C. § 3731.
Relevant evidence may be excluded “if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, or misleading the jury, or by considerations of undue delay, waste of time or needless presentation of cumulative evidence.” Fed.Rules Evid. Rule 403. Here, the District Judge stated:
“In this court’s opinion, with its detailed knowledge of the case, the government will not be hampered or prejudiced in its presentation of the case. However, these rulings will aid in narrowing the issues, the scope of proof and the comprehensibility for the court and jury.” United States v. Amrep Corp., supra at 4.
In the balancing of factors required by Rule 403, the trial judge has wide discretion and the ruling that he makes should not be disturbed unless the discretion has been clearly abused. United States v. Dwyer, 2 Cir., 539 F.2d 924 (1976); United States v. Cowsen, 530 F.2d 734 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 426 U.S. 906, 96 S.Ct. 2227, 48 L.Ed.2d 831 (1976); United States v. Wixom, 529 F.2d 217 (8th Cir. 1976).
I would not interfere with the District Judge’s determination excluding certain portions of Friend’s Grand Jury testimony under the doctrine of Bruton v. United States, 391 U.S. 123, 88 S.Ct. 1620, 20 L.Ed.2d 476 (1968). It is not apparent to me why the excluded portions are sufficiently vital to the Government to warrant review. Moreover, if received, the jury would have to be instructed that the evidence could only be considered with respect to Friend and not with respect to the other defendants, injecting an element of possible confusion.
Here, the District Judge has conducted numerous pretrial conferences in an effort to reduce a complex indictment to a manageable size for trial. The District Judge is intimately familiar with the facts of the case, and there is no evidence that he has abused his discretion in these pretrial rulings, nor in his ruling that the Government *802select 20 mail fraud counts which would be tried.
Accordingly, I would deny a review of the District Court’s orders.