United States Ninth Circuit

Defendant's conviction and sentence for mail fraud are: 1) affirmed in part, where mailings sent to avoid detection or responsibility for a fraudulent scheme fall within the mail fraud statute, 18 U.S.C. section 1341, when they are sent prior to the scheme's completion and to determine when a scheme is completed, the court looks to the scope of the scheme as devised by the perpetrator, and a reasonable jury could have found that the defendant's September 16, 2004, letter was sent before the completion of the embezzlement scheme he devised; 2) affirmed in part, where the district court properly applied sentencing enhancements for making a misrepresentation during the course of a bankruptcy proceeding and for using sophisticated means; and 3) reversed in part and remanded, where the district court plainly erred by including $44,715.21 in restitution for fraudulent credit card charges and $1,851.38 in restitution for wage overpayments that were not part of the offenses of conviction and by failing to note the waiver of interest on restitution on the judgment.

Appellate Information

• Decided 03/03/2014
• Published 03/03/2014

Judges

• FISHER

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel