Humlen v. United States

49 Fed. Cl. 497, 2001 U.S. Claims LEXIS 97, 2001 WL 609285
CourtUnited States Court of Federal Claims
DecidedMay 31, 2001
DocketNo. 97-637C
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 49 Fed. Cl. 497 (Humlen v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Federal Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Humlen v. United States, 49 Fed. Cl. 497, 2001 U.S. Claims LEXIS 97, 2001 WL 609285 (uscfc 2001).

Opinion

OPINION

MARGOLIS, Senior Judge.

This contract action is before the Court on defendant’s motion for summary judgment pursuant to Rule 56 of the United States Court of Federal Claims (“RCFC”). Plain[500]*500tiff, a former government informant, contends that he is entitled to relief because the government failed to compensate him according to the oral terms of his written contract. After carefully considering both parties’ written and oral arguments, the Court concludes that plaintiffs claims for breach of contract, intentional denial of existence of contract, request for equitable accounting and declaratory relief, i.e., Counts I and IV-VI of the complaint, are denied. The government’s motion for summary judgment is granted.1

FACTS

In 1993, United States Customs Service (“USCS”) Agent Michael F. O’Shaughnessy (“O’Shaughnessy”) contacted the plaintiff, Peder Humlen, on numerous occasions regarding an ongoing investigation of Colum-bian cartel leader John Jairo Montoya’s (“Montoya”) drug trafficking activities.2 At these meetings, O’Shaughnessy asked plaintiff to become a USCS confidential informant to assist in the arrest and conviction of Montoya. In exchange for plaintiffs services, O’Shaughnessy allegedly promised plaintiff 25% of any amounts of money or property recovered through his efforts, cooperation and assistance, and $500 per kilogram of cocaine seized by the USCS. Plaintiff agreed and on February 22, 1993, O’Shaughnessy formally requested authorization from the Special Agenb-in-Charge, John Luksic, to name plaintiff as a USCS confidential informant. Plaintiff was approved as such on March 3,1993.

The USCS paid plaintiff an initial $1,000 lump-sum for information on June 22, 1993, and a subsequent $5,000 lump-sum for information on January 27, 1994. In late 1993, plaintiff stopped providing information to the USCS and was officially “deactivated” as a USCS confidential informant on October 26, 1994.

In early 1994, Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) Special Agents Craig How-land (“Howland”) and Ralph Hope (“Hope”) sought plaintiffs assistance in a parallel FBI attempt to secure Montoya’s conviction. Plaintiff was formally “opened” as an FBI cooperative witness and agreed to wear equipment to record conversations with the subjects of an FBI criminal investigation known as Steelwind.3 Plaintiff alleges that Special Agents Hope and Howland promised to reimburse him for his reasonable expenses and compensate him up to $2,000 per month. Additionally, plaintiff claims that the FBI, through Special Agents Hope and Howland, promised to pay him 25% of any monies recovered from property or money forfeiture, $500 for every kilogram of cocaine seized, and a lump-sum award of up to $250,000 at the conclusion of the investigation. Although plaintiff claims that but for these alleged promises he would not have agreed to participate, he signed the equipment agreement in January 1994 with the following waiver: “I have given this written permission to the above named Special Agents [Hope and Howland] voluntarily, and without threats or promises of any kind.”

Thereafter on January 20, 1994, plaintiff executed a “Non-Personal Services Agreement” (the “Agreement”) with the FBI to formalize his status as a confidential informant. This agreement was reviewed by the FBI Contracts Unit at FBI Headquarters and signed by the FBI Supervisory Special Agent of the Chief Contracting Officer, James R. Dietz (“Dietz”), a duly authorized contracting officer. Under the terms of the Agreement, plaintiff would provide the FBI with information regarding Montoya’s drug trafficking activities in exchange for a monthly compensation of, at most, $2000. Additionally,

The FBI may, at its sole option and choice, elect to furnish Humlen with an award of money upon the completion of the [501]*501investigation. The amount of any award is at the complete and total discretion of the FBI and/or the Attorney General of the United States and, as stated in 28 U.S.C. § 524 [ (1994) ], any award for information or assistance leading to a civil or criminal forfeiture is at the complete and full discretion of the Attorney General and shall not exceed the lesser of $250,000 or one-fourth of the amount realized by the United States from the property forfeited.

Df. App. 311-12 U 3 (emphasis added). In addressing the scope of the Agreement, the document expressly stated:

This document constitutes the full and complete agreement between Humlen and the FBI. Modifications to this agreement will have no force and effect unless and until such modifications are reduced to writing and signed by all parties thereto.

Df. App. 313 ¶ 16 (emphasis added). The Agreement also provided that Special Agent Hope is the “designated representative for the FBI Contracting Officer.” Df.App. 314.

Plaintiff asserts that when FBI Special Agents Rowland and/or Hope presented the Agreement for his signature, he asked the agents why the written contract differed from the oral promises they had made to him regarding the 25% reward, the $500 per kilogram of cocaine seized, and the “up to $250,000 lump-sum.” In response, the agents allegedly explained that the Agreement had to be “couched” in that way because it was a discoverable document in any future criminal prosecution and thus could be used to discredit plaintiffs reliability and credibility. Plaintiff maintains that the agents assured him that despite the wording of the contract, he would receive 25% of all forfeited money and property, as well as $500 per kilogram of cocaine seized.

Based in part on information provided by plaintiff, Montoya was arrested and pleaded guilty on November 27, 1995 to Interstate Travel and Transportation in Aid of Racketeering Enterprise, among other charges. In addition, plaintiff claims his information led to the arrest of three of Montoya’s colleagues, the seizure of 428 kilograms of cocaine, the seizure and eventual forfeiture of $754,000, a residence on Allesandro Street in Los Angeles, a Nissan pick-up truck, two Ford Aerostar vans, and a 1990 Blue Cáma-ro.4 He attributes the seizures to both the USCS and the FBI. The government, on the other hand, maintains that plaintiff’s information supplied to the FBI in the Steelwind Investigation led to the arrest of Montoya’s colleagues, and the seizure of over 230 kilograms of cocaine and approximately $50,000. Information provided to the USCS, however, did not result in any arrests, seizures and/or forfeitures of any money or property by the USCS.

During the course of the FBI Steelwind Investigation, plaintiffs handling agents changed due to transfer assignments. The chain of assignment began with Special Agent Howland who reassigned plaintiff to Special Agent Hope. When Special Agent Hope was transferred to another field office, plaintiff then was reassigned to Special Agent Norman Embry (“Embry”) and then finally to Special Agent Lorena Sierra (“Sierra”). Plaintiff maintains that throughout the investigations, FBI Special Agents Rowland, Hope, Embry and Sierra5 and USCS Agent O’Shaughnessy repeatedly assured him that he would receive his anticipated remuneration for continued cooperation in the investigative effort as Special Agents Hope and Howland originally promised.

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Bluebook (online)
49 Fed. Cl. 497, 2001 U.S. Claims LEXIS 97, 2001 WL 609285, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/humlen-v-united-states-uscfc-2001.