Commonwealth v. Labadie

972 N.E.2d 66, 82 Mass. App. Ct. 263
CourtMassachusetts Appeals Court
DecidedJuly 25, 2012
DocketNos. 11-P-1002 & 11-P-1069
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 972 N.E.2d 66 (Commonwealth v. Labadie) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Massachusetts Appeals Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Commonwealth v. Labadie, 972 N.E.2d 66, 82 Mass. App. Ct. 263 (Mass. Ct. App. 2012).

Opinion

Wolohojian, J.

The defendant Susan Carcieri was employed as the assistant manager of the Wyman Gordon Federal Credit Union (Wyman Gordon) and lived with her husband, the defendant George Labadie, across the street from Wyman Gordon. Carcieri knew that on August 27, 2002, Wyman Gordon was holding extra cash in its safe in anticipation of a long holiday weekend and end-of-month paychecks. At approximately 7:50 a.m. that morning, she telephoned 911 to report that an unknown man had forced his way into the bank behind her as she was opening Wyman Gordon for business and that he had compelled her to open the safe. Several circumstances, including the fact that Carcieri was only loosely bound when police arrived at the scene, made investigators suspicious of her story. Suspicion solidified two days later when bundles of cash in denominations stolen from Wyman Gordon, including some still wrapped in distinctive bands from the Federal Reserve Bank (Federal Reserve), were found in the couple’s home.3 Many other circumstances confirmed the idea that the defendants were responsible for the theft.4 A jury convicted Carcieri of embezzlement from a bank by a bank employee, G. L. c. 266, § 52, and Labadie as a joint venturer.5

The primary questions with which we are presented6 (both [265]*265raised first on appeal) are whether a Federal credit union is a “bank” for purposes of G. L. c. 266, § 52, and, if it is, whether the crime of embezzlement from a Federal credit union is within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Federal courts. We also consider Labadie’s challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence supporting his counterfeiting convictions.

1. Embezzlement from a Federal credit union. The indictment charged Carcieri with violating G. L. c. 266, § 52, as “an employee of Wyman Gordon Federal Credit Union, [who] did fraudulently convert or fraudulently take and secrete with intent to do so, money belonging to such bank.” Labadie was charged as a joint venturer in the same crime. General Laws c. 266, § 52, as amended by St. 1934, c. 270, § 3, provides:

“An officer, director, trustee, agent or employee of a bank, as defined in section one of chapter one hundred and sixty-seven, who fraudulently converts, or fraudulently takes and secretes with intent so to do, any bullion, money, note, bill or other security for money which belongs to and is in possession of such bank, or which belongs to any person and is deposited therein, shall, whether intrusted with the custody thereof or not, be guilty of larceny from said bank.”

(Emphasis added). As the emphasized language indicates, only thefts from banks that fall within the definition contained in G. L. c. 167, § 1, are subject to prosecution under the statute.

A “bank,” as defined by G. L. c. 167, § 1, as amended by St. 2004, c. 461, § 1, is “any association or corporation chartered by the commonwealth under chapter 168, 170, 171 or 172, or an individual, association, partnership or corporation incorporated or doing a banking business in the commonwealth subject to the supervision of the [Commissioner of Banks (Commissioner)].” It is undisputed that Wyman Gordon is not chartered or incorporated by or in the Commonwealth; the undisputed evidence at trial was that Wyman Gordon was authorized under Federal law. There was also no evidence at trial that Wyman Gordon is under the oversight or supervision of State banking authorities. On this basis, the defendants argue that Wyman Gordon is not a “bank” within G. L. c. 167, § 1.

[266]*266Although the Commonwealth acknowledges that Wyman Gordon is not chartered or incorporated by or in the Commonwealth, it argues that Federal credit unions generally (and therefore Wy-man Gordon particularly) are within the purview of the Commissioner by virtue of 209 Code Mass. Regs. § 50.01 (2010) and, therefore, Wyman Gordon is a “bank” within the meaning of G. L. c. 167, § 1. Title 209 Code Mass. Regs. §§ 50.00 (2010) is entitled “Parity with Federal Credit Unions” and 209 Code Mass. Regs. § 50.01 provides:

“The purpose of 209 [Code Mass. Regs. §§] 50.00 is to specify authorized powers and activities of credit unions, pursuant to [G. L.] c. 171, § 6A, and to establish procedures and requirements, applicable to credit unions seeking to exercise powers granted to or conduct activities authorized for federal credit unions under federal law, to the extent that such powers are not otherwise prohibited.
“In determining whether or not to authorize any power or activity, the Commissioner shall also determine whether or not competition among credit unions will be unreasonably affected and whether public convenience and advantage will be promoted.
“A credit union may, under [G. L.] c. 171, § 6A and 209 [Code Mass. Regs. §§] 50.00, exercise only those powers and engage in only those activities expressly authorized by the Commissioner as set forth in 209 [Code Mass. Regs. §§] 50.00. Powers and activities not so authorized are prohibited.”

We see nothing in this regulation that subjects Federal credit unions to supervision by the Massachusetts Commissioner of Banks. Indeed, for purposes of the regulation, the term “credit union” is defined as one “chartered pursuant to [G. L.] c. 171 and subject to examination and supervision by the Commissioner under [G. L.] c. 167.” 209 Mass. Code Regs. § 50.04 (2010).7 Moreover, Federal credit unions are referred to in [267]*267§ 50.01 only to identify the types of non-Federal credit unions that are subject to the regulation.

Even were we to assume that Federal credit unions are “banks” within the meaning of G. L. c. 167, § 1, the language and history of the embezzlement statute, G. L. c. 266, § 52, demonstrate that the Legislature did not intend to bring thefts from Federal credit unions within its reach. From 1825 through 1836, the statute applied only to embezzlements from banks incorporated within the Commonwealth.8 The statute was amended in 1836 to extend to embezzlement from “any incorporated bank,”9 and similar language was used in the 1860, 1892, 1902, and 1911 versions of the statute.10 This amended language was “broad enough to include banking corporations organized under the laws of the United States and located in Massachusetts, as well as like corporations created by the laws of this state.” Commonwealth v. Felton, 101 Mass. 204, 205 (1869), citing Commonwealth v. Tenney, 97 Mass. 50, 56 (1867). Although embezzlement from a national bank was within the broad language contained in the statute from 1825 until amended in 1922, see note 13, infra, the Supreme Judicial Court held that embezzlement from national banks was outside the jurisdiction of our State courts because Congress enacted its own act in 1864 making “full and ample provision for the punishment of the crime of embezzlement and fraudulent appropriation of any funds of a national bank by any cashier, &c., of such [268]*268bank.”11 Id. at 206.12 Thus, although the language of our embezzlement statute was broad enough to encompass Federal banks, our case law made clear that application of the statute to Federal banks was outside our jurisdiction.

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Related

Labadie v. Cruz
230 F. Supp. 3d 38 (D. Massachusetts, 2017)
Commonwealth v. Labadie
3 N.E.3d 1093 (Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, 2014)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
972 N.E.2d 66, 82 Mass. App. Ct. 263, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/commonwealth-v-labadie-massappct-2012.