Nelson v. United States

Ninth Circuit

Nelson v. United States

178 F.2d 458, 1949 U.S. App. LEXIS 2544

Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit·Decided December 12, 1949·No. 12280_1·Published·Cited by 7 cases

Opinion

PER CURIAM.

This is an appeal from a judgment and sentence imposed upon appellant following his plea of guilty to two counts of an indictment charging a violation of Criminal Code, § 215, 18 U.S.C. § 338 1 (using the mails to promote fraud). While only a single fraudulent scheme is alleged, appellant was charged with sending six letters to six different addressees to promote the scheme. After the plea of guilty to two counts, four other counts were dismissed on motion of the government. Appellant was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment on each count, to run consecutively, and to pay a fine of $1,000 on each of the two counts.

Appellant contends that there was but one crime because only one fraudulent scheme was alleged, and thus only one sentence could be imposed. The contention is without merit. We have held that several letters mailed in pursuance of one scheme to defraud constitute separate offenses under the statute, and separate sen *459 tences may be imposed for each violation. Becker v. United States, 9 Cir., 91 F.2d 550.

The judgment is affirmed.

1

. 1948 Revised Criminal Code, 18 U.S.C.A § 1341.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

PER CURIAM.

This is an appeal from a judgment and sentence imposed upon appellant following his plea of guilty to two counts of an indictment charging a violation of Criminal Code, § 215, 18 U.S.C. § 338 1 (using the mails to promote fraud). While only a single fraudulent scheme is alleged, appellant was charged with sending six letters to six different addressees to promote the scheme. After the plea of guilty to two counts, four other counts were dismissed on motion of the government. Appellant was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment on each count, to run consecutively, and to pay a fine of $1,000 on each of the two counts.

Appellant contends that there was but one crime because only one fraudulent scheme was alleged, and thus only one sentence could be imposed. The contention is without merit. We have held that several letters mailed in pursuance of one scheme to defraud constitute separate offenses under the statute, and separate sen *459 tences may be imposed for each violation. Becker v. United States, 9 Cir., 91 F.2d 550.

The judgment is affirmed.

1

. 1948 Revised Criminal Code, 18 U.S.C.A § 1341.

Nelson v. United States, 178 F.2d 458, 1949 U.S. App. LEXIS 2544 (9th Cir. 1949).

Pincite

178 F.2d 458 (Nelson v. United States) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.