Justia U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

In this case, the defendant met a sixteen-year-old runaway in the Bronx and, along with two associates, lured her to their apartment. There, they gave her drug-laced alcohol, sexually assaulted her, and began prostituting her over a period of three weeks. The group took explicit photos, posted online advertisements, arranged clients, and used violence and threats to control the victim. Although the victim initially claimed to be eighteen, the defendant and his associates became suspicious of her age and eventually learned she was sixteen, but continued the operation. The defendant left the group after being injured in a shooting, but remained in contact with his co-conspirators. The victim was eventually rescued by law enforcement, and the defendant was arrested after several months as a fugitive.The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York presided over the trial. The government charged the defendant with sex trafficking conspiracy, sex trafficking a minor, and conspiracy to use interstate commerce to promote unlawful activity. After a jury trial, the defendant was convicted on all counts. The defendant moved for acquittal on the sex trafficking count, arguing that the government failed to prove he knew the victim was underage, and objected to the jury instructions, claiming the relevant statutory language was unconstitutionally vague.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case. The court held that 18 U.S.C. § 1591(c), which allows conviction for sex trafficking a minor if the defendant had a “reasonable opportunity to observe” the victim, is not unconstitutionally vague. The court also found no error in the district court’s use of a general verdict form rather than a special verdict form. The Second Circuit affirmed the judgment of the district court. View "United States v. Concepcion" on Justia Law

Andrew Lawrence pleaded guilty to selling drugs, including crack cocaine, and was sentenced to 36 months of imprisonment and a three-year term of supervised release. Lawrence challenged the procedural and substantive reasonableness of his sentence, arguing that the district court failed to address the Sentencing Guidelines’ differential treatment of crack and powder cocaine and that a supervised release condition permitting him to be searched upon reasonable suspicion lacked adequate on-the-record justification.The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York sentenced Lawrence within the Guidelines range of 33 to 41 months, rejecting the parties' proposal to treat the crack cocaine as powder cocaine, which would have resulted in a lower sentencing range. The court emphasized Lawrence's criminal history and the need for him to change his life trajectory. The court also adopted the search condition from the Pre-Sentence Report (PSR), which included a detailed discussion of Lawrence's background and offense conduct.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case and rejected Lawrence's arguments. The court held that the district court acted within its discretion in treating crack and powder cocaine offenses differently and did not need to address the parties' policy arguments. The appellate court also found that the district court reasonably imposed the search condition, justified by the PSR's recommendations. The Second Circuit affirmed the judgment of the district court, concluding that Lawrence's sentence and conditions of supervised release were procedurally and substantively reasonable. View "United States v. Lawrence" on Justia Law

Lawrence Ray was convicted in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York for multiple crimes, including racketeering conspiracy, extortion, sex trafficking, forced labor, money laundering, tax evasion, and committing a violent crime in aid of a racketeering enterprise. These convictions stemmed from Ray's operation of a criminal enterprise that targeted young adults, primarily his daughter's college roommates, for indoctrination and exploitation, including sex trafficking and forced labor in Pinehurst, North Carolina.The district court sentenced Ray to 720 months of imprisonment, followed by a lifetime term of supervised release. Ray appealed his conviction, arguing insufficient evidence to support his convictions, the unconstitutionality of the racketeering statutes, improper admission of expert testimony, and the substantive unreasonableness of his sentence.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed Ray's appeal. The court found sufficient evidence to support Ray's convictions, including the existence of an enterprise, the commission of violent crimes to maintain or increase his position in the enterprise, and the coercion of victims into sex trafficking and forced labor. The court also rejected Ray's constitutional challenge to the racketeering statutes, noting that such challenges have been consistently rejected in the past.Regarding the expert testimony, the court held that the district court did not abuse its discretion in admitting the testimony of Dr. Hughes, a clinical and forensic psychologist, who provided general background on coercive control tactics without directly linking her testimony to Ray or his victims. The court also found that the district court properly balanced the probative value of the testimony against its potential prejudicial effect.Finally, the court concluded that Ray's 720-month sentence was substantively reasonable, given the gravity of his crimes and the need for deterrence, incapacitation, and just punishment. The court affirmed the judgment of the district court. View "United States v. Ray" on Justia Law

Defendants Gary Denkberg and Sean Novis were involved in a mass-mailing fraud scheme from 2004 to 2016, sending fake prize notices to consumers, leading them to believe they had won large cash prizes. Victims were instructed to pay a small processing fee to claim their prizes, but instead received a "sweepstakes report" with publicly available information. The scheme generated approximately $80 million from over three million transactions. Despite complaints and a 2012 cease-and-desist agreement with the USPS, Defendants continued their fraudulent activities using new shell companies.The United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York convicted Denkberg and Novis of multiple counts of mail fraud, wire fraud, use of fictitious names, and aiding and abetting mail fraud. The jury acquitted Denkberg on some counts but found both defendants guilty on the remaining charges. Denkberg was sentenced to 66 months in prison, while Novis received 90 months. Both were also ordered to pay significant fines and forfeitures.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case. The court held that sufficient evidence supported the convictions, including evidence of fraudulent intent and material misrepresentations. The court found that the District Court's supplemental jury instructions were not in error and that the admitted testimony and letters from state attorneys general were not hearsay. The court also determined that the admission of the letters did not violate the Confrontation Clause and that the District Court did not abuse its discretion by prohibiting defense counsel from introducing certain evidence due to a failure to comply with a protective order. The Second Circuit affirmed the District Court's judgments of conviction. View "United States v. Novis" on Justia Law

Klaudio Sterkaj was charged with transporting aliens within the United States after being stopped by the New York State Police while driving two Albanian citizens who had entered the U.S. illegally. He waived indictment and pleaded guilty to the charge. The government recommended a sentence of 6 to 12 months, while the U.S. Probation Office suggested 0 to 6 months. However, the District Court imposed a 24-month sentence, citing Sterkaj's refusal to cooperate with the government as a factor.The United States District Court for the Northern District of New York adopted the Probation Office's findings but varied upward from the recommended sentence due to Sterkaj's lack of cooperation. Sterkaj's counsel objected to the sentence as being outside the guidelines, preserving the argument for appeal. Sterkaj then appealed the sentence, arguing that the District Court committed procedural error by considering his refusal to cooperate.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case and found that the District Court's decision to increase Sterkaj's sentence based on his refusal to cooperate was procedurally unreasonable. The Court of Appeals held that under United States v. Stratton, a district court may not increase a defendant's sentence due to their refusal to cooperate. The Court rejected the government's argument that intervening Supreme Court decisions had cast doubt on Stratton, maintaining that Stratton remains binding precedent.The Court of Appeals vacated the sentence component of Sterkaj's judgment of conviction and remanded the case to the District Court for resentencing by a different judge to preserve the appearance of justice. View "United States v. Sterkaj" on Justia Law

In this case, the plaintiff, Josue Ortiz, claimed that Detective Mark Stambach fabricated and coerced a confession from him regarding a double homicide in 2004. Ortiz, who suffered from severe mental illness, was subsequently charged and convicted based on this false confession. In 2012, a reinvestigation revealed Ortiz's innocence, leading to the conviction of three other individuals for the murders. Ortiz's conviction was vacated, and he was released in 2014 after over a decade of wrongful imprisonment. A jury found Detective Stambach liable for malicious prosecution, fabrication of evidence, and violating Ortiz’s right against self-incrimination, awarding Ortiz $5 million in compensatory damages and $1.5 million in punitive damages.The United States District Court for the Western District of New York denied Detective Stambach’s post-trial motions for judgment as a matter of law, a new trial, and remittitur. Stambach argued that there was insufficient evidence for the jury to find in favor of Ortiz on any of the claims and that the damages awarded were excessive.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case. The court concluded that sufficient evidence supported the jury’s findings on all three causes of action. The court noted that the jury could reasonably infer from the circumstantial evidence that Detective Stambach fabricated the confession and acted in bad faith. The court also found that the jury’s award of compensatory and punitive damages was justified based on the evidence presented at trial. Consequently, the Second Circuit affirmed the judgment of the district court, upholding the jury’s verdict and the damages awarded to Ortiz. View "Ortiz v. Wagstaff" on Justia Law

In 2019, Xin “Chris” Gu, a protégé of Qing Ming “Allen” Yu, was shot and killed. Yu, angered by Gu's departure from his company and subsequent competition, conspired with Zhe Zhang and others to murder Gu. Yu promised Zhang business connections in exchange for his participation in the murder. Zhang, along with other conspirators, planned and executed the murder, with Zhang acting as the getaway driver. Both Yu and Zhang were charged with conspiracy to commit murder for hire and murder for hire under 18 U.S.C. § 1958(a).The United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York convicted both defendants on both counts and sentenced them to life imprisonment. The defendants appealed, arguing insufficient evidence of an agreement involving pecuniary value, a mid-trial change in the government's theory, failure to disclose exculpatory evidence, and an erroneous interpretation of the mandatory minimum sentence under section 1958(a).The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case. The court held that the promise of business connections constituted something of pecuniary value, thus supporting the jury's finding of guilt. The court found no basis in precedent for the defendants' claim of a due-process right against surprise by the government's theory. The court also determined that the withheld evidence was not material and did not prejudice the defendants. Finally, the court agreed with the district court that section 1958(a) imposes a mandatory minimum sentence of life imprisonment.The Second Circuit affirmed the district court's judgment, upholding the convictions and life sentences of both defendants. View "United States v. Zhang" on Justia Law

Darrell Robinson was convicted of being a felon in possession of firearms, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g), after law enforcement officers found six firearms in his vehicle during a search. Robinson pled guilty to the charge and was sentenced to 50 months’ imprisonment and three years of supervised release. The district court also imposed a special condition of supervised release that allowed for the search of Robinson’s electronic devices upon reasonable suspicion of a violation of a condition of supervision.The United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York adopted the Presentence Investigation Report (PSR) without modification and imposed the special search condition as recommended in the PSR. Robinson did not object to the PSR or the special condition during sentencing but later moved to correct the judgment, arguing that the electronic search condition was not orally pronounced at sentencing. The district court denied the motion, finding that it had met its obligation by referencing the PSR.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed Robinson’s appeal, where he argued that the electronic search condition was not orally pronounced, was procedurally unreasonable, and violated his Fourth Amendment rights. The court found that the district court’s reference to the PSR was sufficient to impose the special condition, and the need for the condition was self-evident given Robinson’s extensive criminal history and dishonesty with law enforcement. The court also held that the condition, which required reasonable suspicion, did not violate Robinson’s Fourth Amendment rights due to his diminished expectation of privacy while on supervised release.The Second Circuit affirmed the judgment of the district court, upholding the special condition of supervised release allowing for the search of Robinson’s electronic devices. View "United States v. Robinson" on Justia Law

The case involves Salifou Conde, who was convicted of wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit both frauds. The fraudulent activities were related to the theft of rent assistance checks from New York City's Human Resources Administration (HRA). These checks, intended for qualifying individuals' landlords, were often returned as undeliverable and subsequently misappropriated by Conde and his co-conspirators. The fraudulent checks were deposited into various bank accounts, including Conde's, and used to pay for services such as cable and internet.In the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Conde was found guilty on all counts following a jury trial. He was sentenced to 55 months in prison and a five-year term of supervised release. The evidence against him included bank records, ATM surveillance footage, and an electronically generated record from a telecommunication company showing payments for services linked to the fraudulent bank accounts.Conde appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, arguing that the telecommunication company's record was improperly admitted as a self-authenticating business record, violating his Sixth Amendment right of confrontation. The appellate court reviewed the district court's decision for abuse of discretion and found no error. The court held that the record was admissible under Federal Rules of Evidence 803(6) and 902(11) as a business record, and its admission did not violate Conde's confrontation rights. Consequently, the appellate court affirmed the district court's judgment. View "United States v. Conde" on Justia Law

Mirsad Kandic, a legal permanent resident of the United States, relocated to Syria in 2013 to serve as a foreign fighter for ISIS. He later moved to Turkey, where he became a recruiter and emir for ISIS media, using social media to spread propaganda and assist recruits. Kandic also ran an online weapons market, smuggled money into Syria, created false passports, and provided intelligence to ISIS leadership. He recruited Jake Bilardi, an Australian teenager, who later became a suicide bomber, resulting in over 30 deaths. Kandic was arrested in Sarajevo in 2017 and extradited to the Eastern District of New York.A grand jury indicted Kandic on six counts, including conspiracy to provide material support to ISIS and substantive violations of providing material support. The district court denied Kandic's motion to dismiss the conspiracy count, and a jury found him guilty on all counts. The jury also found that the conspiracy resulted in the death of Jake Bilardi and other individuals. Kandic was sentenced to two terms of life imprisonment and four concurrent terms of 20 years' imprisonment.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case. Kandic argued that the conspiracy count was impermissibly duplicitous, the remaining counts were multiplicitous, and the district court abused its discretion by excluding certain evidence. The Second Circuit rejected these arguments, holding that the conspiracy count was not impermissibly duplicitous because the jury was properly instructed on unanimity and the special verdict sheet ensured a unanimous verdict. The court also found that the remaining counts were not multiplicitous and that the district court did not abuse its discretion in excluding the hearsay evidence. The judgment of the district court was affirmed. View "U.S. v. Kandic" on Justia Law