Court Opinion

ID: 9392897
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-05-08 17:00:59.793337+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:18:49.813897
License: Public Domain

NOT FOR PUBLICATION                           FILED
                    UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS                        MAY 8 2023
                                                                     MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
                                                                       U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
                           FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,                       No.   22-10115

                Plaintiff-Appellee,             D.C. No.
                                                3:19-cr-00010-MMD-CSD-3
 v.

JEFFREY BOWEN,                                  MEMORANDUM*

                Defendant-Appellant.

                   Appeal from the United States District Court
                            for the District of Nevada
                  Miranda M. Du, Chief District Judge, Presiding

                     Argued and Submitted February 7, 2023
                           San Francisco, California

Before: BYBEE and BUMATAY, Circuit Judges, and BENNETT,** Senior
District Judge. Partial Dissent by Judge BYBEE.

      Defendant-Appellant Jeffrey Bowen appeals his conviction for conspiracy to

defraud the United States, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371. Bowen was the owner

and operator of J&L Distributing, Inc. (“J&L”), a distributor of Kirby-brand vacuum

      *
             This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3.
      **
              The Honorable Richard D. Bennett, United States Senior District Judge
for the District of Maryland, sitting by designation.
cleaners. At trial, the government established that Bowen conspired with his two co-

defendants, Saul Alessa and Jackie Hayes, to conceal Alessa’s income from the IRS

by employing him at J&L from 2010 to 2013 and reporting his income on Hayes’

IRS Forms 1099. Bowen received a nominal prison sentence, and the three co-

defendants were held jointly and severally liable for $502,398.23 in restitution—

accounting for Alessa’s entire tax debt and associated penalties dating back to 1998.

We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291, and we affirm in part and vacate

in part. Specifically, we affirm Bowen’s conviction, we vacate the restitution award,

and we remand for a recalculation of the proper amount of restitution.

      Motion for Judgment of Acquittal: This court reviews the denial of a Rule

29 motion for judgment of acquittal based on insufficiency of the evidence de novo,

and will affirm if “any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements

of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.” United States v. Sineneng-Smith, 982 F.3d

766, 776 (9th Cir. 2020) (quoting United States v. Nevils, 598 F.3d 1158, 1163–64

(9th Cir. 2010)) (emphasis in original). Conspiracy to defraud the United States, in

violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371, has three essential elements: “[(1)] An agreement to

achieve an unlawful objective, [(2)] an overt act in furtherance of the illegal purpose,

[(3)] and the requisite intent to defraud the United States.” United States v. Tuohey,

867 F.2d 534, 537 (9th Cir. 1989). Bowen argues that the evidence adduced at trial

cannot sustain a finding of intent, reiterating his trial testimony that Alessa was an

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independent contractor of Hayes, and Hayes was an independent contractor of J&L.

However, several witnesses testified that Alessa was working at J&L, that Bowen

instructed them to conceal this fact on the company’s contracts, books, and records,

and that Bowen manufactured the independent contractor relationship to conceal

Alessa’s income. Accordingly, there is ample evidence by which a rational trier of

fact could conclude that Bowen acted willfully.

      Impeachment Evidence: We review a district court’s decision to exclude

impeachment evidence for an abuse of discretion. United States v. Geston, 299 F.3d

1130, 1137 (9th Cir. 2002). On cross-examination, Jackie Hayes claimed that her

former attorney, Richard Molezzo, failed to convey a plea offer by the Government.

Bowen moved to compel Molezzo to testify to establish that this assertion was false,

and the district court denied his motion. This ruling was not an abuse of discretion.

Whether Hayes lied about this plea offer is a strictly collateral matter—it is generally

irrelevant to the conspiracy at issue and the critical question of Bowen’s scienter.

Fed. R. Evid. 608(b).1 Additionally, Molezzo’s testimony was properly excluded

under Rule 403, as it posed a substantial risk of “confusing the issues” or “misleading

      1
        Although Rule 608(b) does not apply to evidence offered on a theory of
impeachment by contradiction, this exception is ordinarily confined to statements
offered on direct examination. See United States v. Kincaid-Chauncey, 556 F.3d 923,
932–33 (9th Cir. 2009), abrogated on other grounds by Skilling v. United States, 561
U.S. 358 (2010). Even if we were to apply this exception in this appeal, the district
court’s Rule 403 analysis provides an independent basis to affirm.

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the jury.” Fed. R. Evid. 403. Moreover, it was entirely cumulative, as five additional

witnesses testified regarding Hayes’ character for dishonesty.2

      Expert Testimony: We review the exclusion of expert testimony for an abuse

of discretion. Elosu v. Middlefork Ranch Inc., 26 F.4th 1017, 1023 (9th Cir. 2022).

Bowen claims that the district court improperly limited the testimony of his financial

expert, Jeffrey Dean Smith, who testified regarding the tax implications of an

independent contractor relationship. However, the record reflects that the district

court allowed Smith to testify, and that the expert expressed all of the opinions that

Bowen claims were improperly excluded. While the court required Smith to qualify

his testimony with the phrase “if the jury concludes,” Bowen cites no authority for

the proposition that this caveat is error, much less that it is prejudicial. United States

v. Seschillie, 310 F.3d 1208, 1214–15 (9th Cir. 2002); accord Fed. R. Crim. P. 52(a).

Additionally, as defense counsel proposed this limitation, Bowen’s challenge to this

issue is waived under the doctrine of invited error. United States v. Magdaleno, 43

F.4th 1215, 1219–20 (9th Cir. 2022).

      Restitution Award: We review the district court’s restitution order for abuse

of discretion, and we review the underlying factual findings for clear error. United

      2
        Bowen’s claim that this ruling deprived him of “a meaningful opportunity to
present a complete defense” is meritless. Holmes v. South Carolina, 547 U.S. 319,
324 (2006) (citation omitted). Whether Molezzo informed Hayes of a plea offer was
far from “the defendant’s main defense . . . to a critical element of the government’s
case.” United States v. Evans, 728 F.3d 953, 967 (9th Cir. 2013).

                                            4
States v. Batson, 608 F.3d 630, 632–33 (9th Cir. 2010). In a criminal case, a district

court may only order restitution “for actual losses caused by the defendant’s criminal

conduct.” United States v. Gamma Tech Indus., Inc., 265 F.3d 917, 926 (9th Cir.

2001); see 18 U.S.C. § 3664(a). Actual losses must be calculated “by comparing

what actually happened with what would have happened if the defendant had acted

lawfully.” United States v. Fu Sheng Kuo, 620 F.3d 1158, 1164 (9th Cir. 2010).

      The district court held the co-defendants liable for $502,398.23 in restitution,

encompassing Alessa’s entire tax debt and associated penalties from 1998 to 2013.

This was an abuse of discretion. Although “the court can order restitution for . . .

any conduct that was part of the conspiracy,” United States v. Reed, 80 F.3d 1419,

1423 (9th Cir. 1996), the co-defendants were convicted of conspiring to conceal

Alessa’s income between 2010 and 2013. The parties dispute the precise total of

Alessa’s earnings during this timeframe, but their estimates range from $170,000.00

to $200,000.00. Whatever the exact total Alessa earned during the conspiracy years,

this amount constitutes the “actual losses” attributable to the conspiracy, Gamma

Tech Indus., Inc., 265 F.3d at 926, and the maximum amount that the IRS could have

garnished had the conspiracy not occurred, Fu Sheng Kuo, 620 F.3d at 1164.

      The dissent argues that this amount only accounts for the defendant’s ability

to pay and does not properly reflect the government’s “actual losses.” Gamma Tech

Indus., Inc., 265 F.3d at 926. We respectfully disagree. As discussed above, actual

                                          5
losses are calculated “by comparing what actually happened with what would have

happened if the defendant had acted lawfully.” Fu Sheng Kuo, 620 F.3d at 1164.

Additionally, as this Court has previously noted, “loss for restitution purposes covers

only actual loss,” and not “intended loss.” United States v. Hunter, 618 F.3d 1062,

1065 (9th Cir. 2010). Accordingly, the government’s “actual losses” are limited to

the amount it could have actually collected had the conspiracy not occurred, not the

amount the conspirators “intended” to conceal. Whatever the object and purpose of

the conspiracy may be, the record reflects that the conspirators concealed Alessa’s

income when he returned to work at J&L between 2010 to 2013.3

      For the foregoing reasons, we VACATE the restitution award and REMAND

for recalculation. On remand, the district court is instructed to recalculate this award

based on the exact amount of income Alessa received during the conspiracy years.

      AFFIRMED in part, VACATED in part, REMANDED.

      3
        We likewise respectfully disagree with the dissent’s argument that we have
misstated the scope of the conspiracy. We agree that the indictment and judgment
listed March 31, 2014, as the end of the conspiracy, but the government’s “actual
losses” are limited to the total income concealed by the three co-conspirators. The
record indicates that Bowen only concealed Alessa’s income until November 2013,
when Bowen enrolled Alessa as a W-2 employee and began to report his earnings,
and the government acknowledged that the conspiracy extended into 2014 only
because Bowen submitted an IRS Form 1099 that year reporting Alessa’s 2013
commissions in Hayes’ name. However, we make no formal findings regarding the
precise dates of the conspiracy or the exact amount that was concealed.

                                           6
                                                                               FILED
United States v. Bowen, No. 22-10115
                                                                                  MAY 8 2023
BYBEE, J., dissenting in part:                                             MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
                                                                             U.S. COURT OF APPEALS

      I agree with the majority that we should affirm the judgment of the district

court regarding the motion for judgment of acquittal, impeachment evidence, and

expert testimony. I disagree, however, with the panel’s assessment of Bowen’s

restitution award.

      To calculate restitution, we look at the position the victim would have been

in had the defendant acted lawfully. United States v. Fu Sheng Kuo, 620 F.3d

1158, 1164 (9th Cir. 2010). However, in conspiracy cases, a co-conspirator’s

liability expands to include “any conduct that was part of the conspiracy.” United

States v. Reed, 80 F.3d 1419, 1423 (9th Cir. 1996). The limiting factor is the

victim’s actual losses, United States v. Bussell, 504 F.3d 956, 964 (9th Cir. 2007),

not the defendant’s ability to pay, United States v. Kubick, 205 F.3d 1117, 1128

(9th Cir. 1999) (18 U.S.C. § 3663A(f)(1)(A) requires restitution without regard of

the defendant’s economic circumstances). Further, “we have held that restitution

orders can include losses caused by related conduct for which the defendant was

not convicted.” United States v. Meredith, 685 F.3d 814, 827 (9th Cir. 2012).

      Here, the majority makes two errors. First, it limits actual loss to “the

maximum amount the government could have garnished had the conspiracy not

occurred,” Mem. Dispo. at 5 (emphasis added), instead of the government’s actual
losses. This calculation is just another way of saying that the IRS is limited to

collecting what Alessa could have paid during the time of the conspiracy. Our

precedent sets no such limit on calculating restitution.

      The majority also limits the conspiracy’s scope contrary to evidence in the

record. The majority states that “co-defendants were convicted of conspiring to

conceal Alessa’s income between 2010 and 2013.” Mem. Dispo. at 5. But the

indictment charged Bowen, Hayes, and Alessa from “before 2010” to “about

March 2014.” The indictment also charged all three defendants with concealing

Alessa’s business activity in order to convince the IRS that he had “no source of

income that could be used to pay . . . outstanding taxes, penalties, and interest due

and owing.” Thus, the object of their conspiracy was to prevent the collection of

Alessa’s entire tax debt, penalties, and interest. Accordingly, the court described

the purpose of the conspiracy as “to avoid . . . outstanding tax liabilities.”

      With the correct legal framework in mind, the government’s actual losses in

this case total $502,298.23, comprising Alessa’s total unpaid taxes, penalties, and

interest. The district court correctly found that Bowen jointly and severally liable

for the entire restitution award. See Meredith, 685 F.3d at 827.

                                           2
       For these reasons, I would affirm the district court’s calculation of

restitution, and I respectfully dissent from the majority’s disposition regarding

restitution.

                                           3