98 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 1611, 98 Daily Journal D.A.R. 2261 United States of America v. John Raymond Fisher, United States of America v. John Raymond Fisher

137 F.3d 1158
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
DecidedMarch 6, 1998
Docket96-30162
StatusPublished

This text of 137 F.3d 1158 (98 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 1611, 98 Daily Journal D.A.R. 2261 United States of America v. John Raymond Fisher, United States of America v. John Raymond Fisher) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
98 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 1611, 98 Daily Journal D.A.R. 2261 United States of America v. John Raymond Fisher, United States of America v. John Raymond Fisher, 137 F.3d 1158 (9th Cir. 1998).

Opinion

137 F.3d 1158

98 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 1611, 98 Daily Journal
D.A.R. 2261
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
John Raymond FISHER, Defendant-Appellant,
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
John Raymond FISHER, Defendant-Appellant.

Nos. 96-30162, 96-30278.

United States Court of Appeals,
Ninth Circuit.

Argued and Submitted Sept. 8, 1997.
Decided March 6, 1998.

George G. Curtis, Portland, Oregon, for appellant.

Leslie K. Baker, Assistant United States Attorney, Portland, Oregon, for appellee.

Appeal from the United States District Court For the District of Oregon; James A. Redden, District Judge Presiding, Malcolm F. Marsh, District Judge Presiding. D.C. Nos. 95-00267-1-JAR, 95-00089-MPFM.

Before: CANBY, T. G. NELSON and KLEINFELD, Circuit Judges.

Opinion by Judge CANBY; Partial Concurrence and Partial Dissent by Judge KLEINFELD.

CANBY, Circuit Judge:

John Raymond Fisher appeals his jury conviction and resulting sentence for being a felon in possession of a firearm, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g) (1994). He also appeals his separate jury convictions and resulting sentences for contempt of court and failure to appear, violations of 18 U.S.C. §§ 401 and 3146 (1994), respectively. The two appeals have been consolidated. We affirm the conviction and sentence for gun possession, and the conviction for contempt of court. We reverse the conviction for failure to appear. We vacate Fisher's sentence for contempt of court and remand to the district court for resentencing.

INTRODUCTION

Fisher is a convicted felon. During September 1994, Fisher and two other persons were renting a two-bedroom residence on 74th Avenue in Portland, Oregon. A magistrate issued a warrant to search the residence on the basis of a police affidavit. When law enforcement officers executed the search warrant, they discovered six loaded firearms.

A federal grand jury indicted Fisher for being a felon in possession of a firearm, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g). He was then arrested, and the court released him from custody under conditions. Fisher did not comply with the conditions, and left town without notice.

Fisher's original trial date of May 31, 1995 had been continued to June 27, 1995. When Fisher failed to appear at a scheduled pretrial motions hearing on June 16, the district court vacated the June 27 trial date.

Fisher surrendered to authorities in early July. A federal grand jury indicted him for contempt of court and failure to appear, see 18 U.S.C. §§ 401, 3146, and a jury convicted Fisher on both counts. The trial judge sentenced Fisher to two concurrent 33 month prison sentences.

A second jury subsequently convicted Fisher on the gun possession charge. The second trial judge sentenced Fisher to 78 months in prison, to be served consecutively to his two 33 month sentences.

Fisher now raises several challenges to both convictions and to his sentences for contempt and failure to appear. We will set forth the facts in more detail as we discuss each of his contentions.I. Failure to Appear

Fisher's indictment charged him with failing to appear "for pretrial motions and trial" from on or about May 31, 1995 until June 28, 1995. To prove Fisher guilty of violating § 3146, the government was required to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Fisher "(1) was released pursuant to that statute, (2) was required to appear in court, (3) knew that he was required to appear, (4) failed to appear as required, and (5) was willful in his failure to appear." Weaver v. United States, 37 F.3d 1411, 1413 (9th Cir.1994). Fisher contends that there was insufficient evidence of element (4), because there was never any fixed date on which he was required to appear and did not. We conclude that he is correct.

a. The May 31 trial date.

When Fisher was released after his initial arrest, one of the conditions of his release was that he "appear at all proceedings as required." There is no question that Fisher knew that he was required to appear for his trial scheduled on May 31, 1995. Other conditions of his release required Fisher to maintain contact with pretrial services, to submit to drug testing, and not to change his residence or employment without prior approval of a pretrial services officer. Fisher violated all three of the latter conditions and his pretrial services officer was unable to locate him. A warrant for his arrest was accordingly issued on May 25, 1995.

In the meantime, however, on May 16, Fisher's counsel had moved for a continuance because he needed more time to investigate the case and prepare for trial. The court granted the motion on May 22 and set a new trial date of June 27, 1995. It is not clear whether Fisher received notice of the new trial date, but if he did not, the failure is due to his becoming a fugitive. As a consequence, he is charged with knowledge of that date. See Weaver, 37 F.3d at 1413. Lack of notice is therefore not the problem with Fisher's conviction.

Fisher could not, however, be convicted of failing to appear for trial "as required" on May 31, when trial had been continued to June 27. He simply was not "required" to appear on May 31.1

b. The June 16 pretrial motions hearing.

On June 8, the trial court set a hearing on pretrial motions for June 16. When Fisher did not appear at that hearing, the trial court vacated the June 27 trial date. Fisher can be charged with notice of the June 16 hearing; any failure on his part to receive notice was a consequence of his fugitive status. See Weaver, 37 F.3d at 1413-14. The crucial question, however, is whether Fisher was required to attend the June 16 hearing. We conclude that nothing in the record indicates that Fisher was required to appear that day.

The district court's minute order setting the June 16 hearing date did not require Fisher to attend. The government argues that Fisher was required to attend by Fed.R.Crim.P. 43(a), which states that "[t]he defendant shall be present at the arraignment, at the time of the plea, at every stage of the trial including the impaneling of the jury and the return of the verdict, and at the imposition of sentence...." Putting aside for the moment the fact that the Rule appears to be more of a shield for the defendant than a sword for the prosecution, the Rule does not apply in terms to Fisher's pretrial motions hearing. That pretrial hearing was not an arraignment nor did it involve the taking of a plea. We find no authority for considering it a "stage of the trial." Several other circuits have reasoned that, for the purposes of Rule 43, a trial commences when the parties begin jury selection. See United States v. Krout, 56 F.3d 643, 645-46 (5th Cir.1995); United States v. Camacho, 955 F.2d 950

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