United States Eighth Circuit

Husband and wife's convictions and a restitution order for conspiracy against the U.S., filing false tax returns, mail fraud, and wire fraud, arising from their management of a nonprofit charter school are affirmed where: 1) the instructions issued by the district court in the case, which incorporated the key elements of Pinkerton liability, correctly and adequately stated the applicable law and, in any event, constituted harmless error at worst; 2) the district court did not abuse its discretion or commit plain error in denying defendants' request for a special verdict form; and 3) any difficulty in calculating an amount of loss for purposes of the restitution order was attributable to a lack of sufficient financial records documenting the manner in which the school utilized state funds.

Appellate Information

• Decided 03/08/2007
• Published 03/08/2007

Judges

• NANGLE, District Judge., Before WOLLMAN and MELLOY, Circuit Judges, and NANGLE, District Judge.

Court

• United States Eighth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Deborah Kay Ellis, argued, St.Paul, Minnesota, for appellant in 06-2584., Katherine Menendez, argued, Minneapolis, Minnesota, for appellant Attorney Federal Public Defender in 06-2585.


• For Appellees:
  
• John Richard Marti, argued, Minneapolis, Minnesota, for appellee Asst. U.S. Attorney.