United States v. Bank
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Opinion
Mark S. Davis, CHIEF UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
*453This matter is before the Court on Defendant Daryl G. Bank's ("Defendant" or "Bank") Motion to Dismiss for Double Jeopardy Violation. Def.'s Mot., ECF No. 139. Defendant moves to dismiss the pending indictment against him in light of the United States Supreme Court's decision in Kokesh v. SEC, --- U.S. ----,
I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
In the second superseding indictment issued by a Grand Jury of this Court on May 25, 2018, Bank was charged with the following counts:
• Conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, in violation of18 U.S.C. § 1349 (Count 1);
• Mail fraud, in violation of18 U.S.C. §§ 2 , 1341 (Counts 2-6);
• Wire fraud, in violation of18 U.S.C. §§ 2 , 1343 (Counts 7-12);
• Conspiracy to sell unregistered securities and to commit securities fraud, in violation of18 U.S.C. § 371 (Count 13);
• Unlawful sale of unregistered securities, in violation of 15 U.S.C. §§ 77e, 77x and18 U.S.C. § 2 (Counts 14-18);
• Securities fraud, in violation of 15 U.S.C. §§ 77q, 77x and18 U.S.C. § 2 (Counts 19-22);
• Conspiracy to launder monetary instruments, in violation of18 U.S.C. § 1956 (h) (Count 23);
• Engaging in unlawful monetary transaction, in violation of18 U.S.C. §§ 2 , 1957 (Counts 24-28).
Second Superseding Indictment, ECF No. 105. These charges arise from allegations that Bank and others executed a scheme to defraud investors.
A separate prior civil enforcement action was initiated on April 6, 2015 by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona against Bank and others for several investment activities, some of which form the basis of the securities offenses in the second superseding indictment now before this Court. Gov't Resp. 2, ECF No. 147 (citing SEC v. Janus Spectrum LLC, No. CV-15-609 (D. Ariz.)). On February 8, 2018, the District of Arizona entered a final judgment against Bank in the civil enforcement action, holding Bank civilly liable for a disgorgement of $ 4,494, 900, pre-judgment interest in the amount of $ 802,553, and a civil penalty of $ 4,494,900 pursuant to 15 U.S.C. §§ 77t(d), 78u(d) (3). SEC v. Janus Spectrum LLC, No. CV-15-609,
Defendant filed the instant motion on November 27, 2018. Def.'s Mot., ECF No. 139. Defendant claims that the 2017 Supreme Court decision in Kokesh, which declared SEC disgorgement a penalty, bars pursuit of the instant criminal action under the Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment because Defendant has already been punished for some of the activity with which he is charged. Def.'s Br. 2, ECF No. 140. The Government replied on December 11, 2018, arguing (1) that Defendant unfairly delayed filing the *454instant motion, (2) that he waived his right to pursue a Double Jeopardy claim, (3) that he cannot claim Double Jeopardy because he only received a civil punishment, and (4) that, even if Double Jeopardy applied, it would only apply to the pending criminal charges associated with the specific investment activities involved in the civil action. Gov't Resp., ECF No. 147. Defendant filed a reply on December 20, 2018, contesting most of the Government's assertions, but conceding that Double Jeopardy would only bar some of the charges in the indictment because only a portion of the criminal allegations are related to the investment activities punished by the civil action.1 Def.'s Reply, ECF No. 155. Accordingly, Defendant is pursuing a partial dismissal of the pending criminal charges based on the conduct that was punished by the Janus Spectrum case. Having been fully briefed, this matter is now ripe for disposition.
II. LEGAL STANDARD
The Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment of the United States Constitution states that "No person shall ... be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb ...." U.S. Const. amend. V. This guarantee protects criminal defendants from both multiple punishments and successive prosecutions for the same offense. United States v. Dixon
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Mark S. Davis, CHIEF UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
*453This matter is before the Court on Defendant Daryl G. Bank's ("Defendant" or "Bank") Motion to Dismiss for Double Jeopardy Violation. Def.'s Mot., ECF No. 139. Defendant moves to dismiss the pending indictment against him in light of the United States Supreme Court's decision in Kokesh v. SEC, --- U.S. ----,
I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
In the second superseding indictment issued by a Grand Jury of this Court on May 25, 2018, Bank was charged with the following counts:
• Conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, in violation of18 U.S.C. § 1349 (Count 1);
• Mail fraud, in violation of18 U.S.C. §§ 2 , 1341 (Counts 2-6);
• Wire fraud, in violation of18 U.S.C. §§ 2 , 1343 (Counts 7-12);
• Conspiracy to sell unregistered securities and to commit securities fraud, in violation of18 U.S.C. § 371 (Count 13);
• Unlawful sale of unregistered securities, in violation of 15 U.S.C. §§ 77e, 77x and18 U.S.C. § 2 (Counts 14-18);
• Securities fraud, in violation of 15 U.S.C. §§ 77q, 77x and18 U.S.C. § 2 (Counts 19-22);
• Conspiracy to launder monetary instruments, in violation of18 U.S.C. § 1956 (h) (Count 23);
• Engaging in unlawful monetary transaction, in violation of18 U.S.C. §§ 2 , 1957 (Counts 24-28).
Second Superseding Indictment, ECF No. 105. These charges arise from allegations that Bank and others executed a scheme to defraud investors.
A separate prior civil enforcement action was initiated on April 6, 2015 by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona against Bank and others for several investment activities, some of which form the basis of the securities offenses in the second superseding indictment now before this Court. Gov't Resp. 2, ECF No. 147 (citing SEC v. Janus Spectrum LLC, No. CV-15-609 (D. Ariz.)). On February 8, 2018, the District of Arizona entered a final judgment against Bank in the civil enforcement action, holding Bank civilly liable for a disgorgement of $ 4,494, 900, pre-judgment interest in the amount of $ 802,553, and a civil penalty of $ 4,494,900 pursuant to 15 U.S.C. §§ 77t(d), 78u(d) (3). SEC v. Janus Spectrum LLC, No. CV-15-609,
Defendant filed the instant motion on November 27, 2018. Def.'s Mot., ECF No. 139. Defendant claims that the 2017 Supreme Court decision in Kokesh, which declared SEC disgorgement a penalty, bars pursuit of the instant criminal action under the Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment because Defendant has already been punished for some of the activity with which he is charged. Def.'s Br. 2, ECF No. 140. The Government replied on December 11, 2018, arguing (1) that Defendant unfairly delayed filing the *454instant motion, (2) that he waived his right to pursue a Double Jeopardy claim, (3) that he cannot claim Double Jeopardy because he only received a civil punishment, and (4) that, even if Double Jeopardy applied, it would only apply to the pending criminal charges associated with the specific investment activities involved in the civil action. Gov't Resp., ECF No. 147. Defendant filed a reply on December 20, 2018, contesting most of the Government's assertions, but conceding that Double Jeopardy would only bar some of the charges in the indictment because only a portion of the criminal allegations are related to the investment activities punished by the civil action.1 Def.'s Reply, ECF No. 155. Accordingly, Defendant is pursuing a partial dismissal of the pending criminal charges based on the conduct that was punished by the Janus Spectrum case. Having been fully briefed, this matter is now ripe for disposition.
II. LEGAL STANDARD
The Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment of the United States Constitution states that "No person shall ... be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb ...." U.S. Const. amend. V. This guarantee protects criminal defendants from both multiple punishments and successive prosecutions for the same offense. United States v. Dixon,
In explaining the parameters of a restriction on multiple punishments, as is relevant in this case, the Supreme Court has "long recognized that the Double Jeopardy Clause does not prohibit the imposition of any additional sanction that could, 'in common parlance,' be described as punishment." Hudson v. United States,
(1)"whether the sanction involves an affirmative disability or restraint"; (2) "whether it has historically been regarded as a punishment" '; (3) "whether it comes into play only on a finding of scienter"; (4) "whether its operation will promote the traditional aims of punishment -- retribution and deterrence"; (5) "whether the behavior to which it applies is already a crime"; (6) "whether an alternative purpose to which it may rationally be connected is assignable for it"; and (7) "whether it appears excessive *455in relation to the alternative purpose assigned."
Hudson,
III. ANALYSIS
A. Timely Filing
In response to Defendant's motion, the Government first argues that Defendant unfairly delayed filing the motion. While the Court recognizes that Defendant could have filed this motion much earlier, he was not required to file it within the pretrial motions deadline, let alone prior to trial. United States v. Jarvis,
B. Waiver
The Government next argues that, in the Janus Spectrum consent judgment, Defendant waived his right to pursue a Double Jeopardy claim. Defendants are permitted to waive their constitutional right to assert a Double Jeopardy claim. See Menna v. New York,
1. Intentional and Knowing
Here, the consent judgment between Defendant and the SEC in the Janus Spectrum case contains the waiver provision at issue. Such provision states: "Defendant waives any claim of Double Jeopardy based on the settlement of this proceeding, including the imposition of any remedy or civil penalty herein." Gov't Ex. 1 at 3, ECF No. 147-1. Although Defendant argues that his waiver could not have been meaningfully knowing and intentional prior to the change of law in Kokesh, which was decided six months after his waiver, there is no indication that Defendant's waiver was not knowing and voluntary based on the law at the time of the waiver, and he does not request to withdraw his waiver based on the new law. See Def.'s Reply ¶ 6. Rather, Defendant argues that Kokesh altered the Double Jeopardy analysis by declaring disgorgement to be punitive (a key factor in the Double Jeopardy analysis), thus creating a viable Double Jeopardy claim that *456did not exist at the time of his waiver and that may have caused him not to waive his right had it existed.
2. Scope of Language
The Government argues that the scope of the language of Defendant's waiver in the consent judgment is sufficient for the Court to deny the instant Double Jeopardy motion. The language of Defendant's waiver provision is broader than that of the one deemed insufficient in Hudson, which did not expressly mention Double Jeopardy. Hudson,
C. Criminal Versus Civil Punishment
The Double Jeopardy Clause is meant to protect against successive punishments. See Dixon,
Under Hudson, whether a penalty is civil or criminal in nature depends on a two-step analysis: (1) "whether the legislature, 'in establishing the penalizing mechanism, indicated either expressly or impliedly a preference for one label or the other,' " and (2) if the legislative preference is civil, whether the "clearest proof," based on seven non-dispositive and non-exhaustive factors, exists to "transform ... a civil remedy into a criminal penalty." Hudson,
Kokesh did not specifically address whether SEC disgorgement is civil or criminal in nature for Double Jeopardy purposes. Rather, the Supreme Court addressed the question of whether disgorgement constitutes a "penalty," as that term is used in
1. Legislative Preference
Under the first step, the Court must determine whether the legislature intended to create a civil or criminal penalty, asking if the legislature " 'indicated either expressly or impliedly a preference for one label or the other.' " Hudson,
a. Statutory Construction
1. Statutory Text
There is some disagreement about which statutory provision actually authorizes disgorgement. Some courts suggest the authority comes from the provisions granting general equity jurisdiction in securities law violation cases ( 15 U.S.C. § 77v(a) and 15 U.S.C. § 78aa ). See, e.g., SEC v. Palmisano,
*458First, the language of sections 77v(a) and 78aa authorizes district courts to exercise jurisdiction over suits in equity in securities litigation. 15 U.S.C. § 77v(a) ("The district courts of the United States ... shall have jurisdiction ... of all suits in equity and actions at law brought to enforce any liability or duty created by this subchapter.") (emphasis added); 15 U.S.C. § 78aa ("The district courts of the United States ... shall have exclusive jurisdiction ... of all suits in equity and actions at law brought to enforce any liability or duty created by this chapter or the rules and regulations thereunder.") (emphasis added). Though the language of these statutes does not expressly label such jurisdiction as "civil," the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure have made it clear that suits in equity are considered civil actions. Fed. R. Civ. P. 2 advisory committee's note to 1937 amendment ("Reference to actions at law or suits in equity in all statutes should now be treated as referring to the civil action prescribed in these rules."). Because suits in equity are treated as civil actions, the references to suits in equity in sections 77v(a) and 78aa, impliedly indicate a preference for the civil label.
Second, sections 77t(b) and 78u(d) (1) both state that, where someone is engaged in or about to engage in conduct that violates the securities laws, the SEC "may in its discretion bring an action in the proper district court of the United States ... to enjoin such acts or practices." 15 U.S.C. §§ 77t(b), 78u(d) (1). Both statutes also authorize the SEC to "transmit such evidence as may be available concerning such acts or practices to the Attorney General who may, in his discretion, institute the necessary criminal proceedings." 15 U.S.C. §§ 77t(b), 78u(d) (1). Though the statutory language authorizing injunctions does not expressly label such authority as "civil," the reference to criminal proceedings as a distinct process controlled by the Attorney General suggests that injunction proceedings are not criminal. This distinction, along with the fact that injunctions are equitable remedies available in suits in equity (which this Court just noted are civil actions), impliedly indicates a preference *459for the civil label in sections 77t(b) and 78u(d) (1).
This Court finds that the language of these statutes ( 15 U.S.C. §§ 77t(b), 77v(a), 78aa, 78u(d) (1) ) indicates that Congress preferred the civil label. Because the disgorgement ordered in Janus Spectrum was necessarily authorized by at least one of these statutes, it logically follows that, despite the lack of express statutory authority for disgorgement, in each of these statutes Congress impliedly indicated a preference that disgorgement be civil in nature. As the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit noted, "[t]he disgorgement remedy, which has long been upheld as within the general equity powers granted to the district court, ... has not been considered a criminal sanction." Palmisano,
2. Statutory Framework
Defendant was ordered, pursuant to the district court's equitable authority in civil enforcement actions, to disgorge profits.5 The civil basis upon which Defendant was ordered to make such disgorgement, and the statutory framework which separates civil and criminal penalties in the securities statutes, also suggest Congress intended SEC disgorgement to be civil in nature. For example, the civil equitable power of district courts can be contrasted with the courts' power to impose criminal sanctions for securities law violations, as expressly authorized by 15 U.S.C § 77x, upon which this criminal indictment rests, and 15 U.S.C. § 78ff, upon which criminal charges under 15 U.S.C. § 78a et seq. may be based. See Ward,
b. Legislative History
Disgorgement was recognized by courts in the 1970s, prior to the existence of civil monetary penalties, as an equitable remedy in civil enforcement actions. See Kokesh,
c. Conclusion for Step One
Step one of the Hudson analysis requires this Court to decide whether the legislature " 'indicated either expressly or impliedly a preference for' " the civil or criminal label. Hudson,
2. Clearest Proof for Transformation
Below, in the second step, the Court applies the seven factors enumerated in Hudson, as well as other considerations, to determine if the "clearest proof" has been established to transform the civil disgorgement penalty into a criminal penalty that triggers Double Jeopardy. Hudson,
a. Affirmative Disability or Restraint
First, the Court looks to "whether the sanction involves an affirmative disability or restraint." Id. at 99,
b. Historically Regarded as Punishment
Second, the Court considers whether disgorgement has, historically, been viewed as a criminal punishment. Monetary penalties have not, historically, been viewed as criminal punishment, as " 'the payment of fixed or variable sums of money [is a] sanction which has been recognized as enforceable by civil proceedings since the original revenue law of 1789.' " Hudson,
Like the defendant in Dyer, the Defendant here argues that Kokesh changes the historical view because disgorgement was found to be a punishment, and therefore a "penalty," for purposes of the use of that word in the statute of limitations at issue.
c. Scienter
Third, this Court must decide whether disgorgement only applies upon a finding of scienter; such a finding would make it more likely that the penalty is criminal in nature. Defendant argues that the scienter element is satisfied because the substantive offenses underlying the civil penalties required a finding of scienter.
Although there is no express statutory authority for disgorgement, the authority to order disgorgement necessarily comes from one of two places: either the statutes granting general equitable authority in SEC enforcement actions ( 15 U.S.C. § 77v(a) and 15 U.S.C. § 78aa ) or the statutes granting courts the authority to order injunctions in SEC enforcement actions (( 15 U.S.C. § 77t(b) and 15 U.S.C. 78u(d) (1) ). Therefore, the Court looks to whether these statutes that authorize disgorgement as an equitable remedy require scienter. See 15 U.S.C. §§ 77t(b), 77v(a), 78aa, 78u(d) (1). The Supreme Court has found that "nothing on the face of [ sections 77t(b) and 78u(d) (1) ] purports to impose an independent requirement of scienter. And there is nothing in the legislative history of either provision to suggest a contrary legislative intent." Aaron v. SEC,
As the statutes do not require a finding of scienter on their face, courts look to whether the substantive statutes and regulations, that formed the basis for the violations, require a finding of scienter. Aaron,
Here, the amended complaint in Janus Spectrum alleged that Defendant violated the following substantive provisions: 15 U.S.C. §§ 77q(a), 77e(a), 77e(c), 78j(a), 78o(a) (1) and
*463Amended Complaint, Janus Spectrum,
d. Traditional Aims of Punishment
Fourth, the Court considers whether the disgorgement ordered in the prior civil enforcement proceeding "promote[s] the traditional aims of punishment - retribution and deterrence." Hudson,
However, Kokesh does not completely alter the prior Double Jeopardy analysis of this factor because, before Kokesh, multiple courts recognized that disgorgement served some deterrent purpose yet still found that disgorgement was not a criminal punishment. See, e.g., Palmisano,
e. Applies to Criminal Conduct
Fifth, the Court looks to whether the conduct for which the civil penalties were imposed may also be punished criminally *464because, if it can, it makes it more likely that the civil penalty is intended to punish the criminal conduct. Although the fact that Congress can create both criminal and civil penalties for the same conduct alone is insufficient to transform civil monetary penalties into criminal penalties, if the same conduct can justify the imposition of both a criminal penalty and a civil penalty, the penalty denominated civil must be looked at more closely to determine if it is intended as criminal. See Hudson,
f. Alternative Purposes
Sixth, the Court asks whether there are alternative purposes for disgorgement in order to determine whether "the remedies have a clear rational purpose other than punishment." Palmisano,
g. Excessive in Relation to Alternative Purposes
Seventh, the Court evaluates whether disgorgement is excessive in relation to the alternative purposes noted in the previous factor because disproportionate penalties are more punitive and, thus, more likely criminal in nature. Disgorgement is meant to be limited to the amount of illegal profits gained by a defendant. See Gotchey,
h. Additional Considerations
The purpose of analyzing the factors above is to determine whether they generate the "clearest proof" that disgorgement is " 'so punitive either in purpose or effect' as to 'transform what was clearly intended as a civil remedy into a criminal penalty.' " Hudson,
1. Punitive Nature
Kokesh clearly impacted the analysis of the Hudson factors. Most notably, it shifted the "traditional aims of punishment" factor in Defendant's favor. See supra Part III.C.2.d. However, Defendant's argument asks this Court to find that Kokesh did more than just shift one factor in his favor; Defendant asks the Court to find that Kokesh impacted the Hudson analysis to an extent that it made disgorgement so punitive in nature that disgorgement now qualifies as criminal punishment. The question of whether disgorgement is a criminal punishment for Double Jeopardy purposes, as Defendant asks this Court to decide, "is distinct from (although overlapping with) the question of whether [disgorgement] is a penalty rather than a remedy," as the Kokesh Court decided. Saad v. SEC,
That distinction is important to the analysis here. There are numerous civil penalties that are punitive but not criminal for Double Jeopardy purposes. See, e.g., Hudson,
*466Hough v. Mozingo, No. 1:04CV609,
2. Limited Holding of Kokesh
Also crucial to this Court's decision is the explicitly limited nature of Kokesh,10 which declared disgorgement a penalty only for the purposes of the statute of limitations in
It is important to recognize what the Court did not say in Kokesh. The Court did not say that SEC civil disgorgement is a criminal punishment. Nor did it say anything about Double Jeopardy. Defendants ask us to read between the lines in the Kokesh opinion. They assert it should be read broadly to mean that every "penalty" is a "punishment," and in turn that every "punishment" necessarily implicates the Double Jeopardy Clause. This is based on the general language from Kokesh defining "penalty" as a "punishment, whether corporal or pecuniary, imposed and enforced by the State, for a crime or offen[s]e against its laws."Id. at 1642 (alteration in original) (quoting Huntington v. Attrill,146 U.S. 657 , 667,13 S.Ct. 224 ,36 L.Ed. 1123 (1892) ). But even if a civil penalty is a punishment, the Double Jeopardy Clause still allows the successive imposition of some "sanctions that could ... be described as punishment." Hudson v. United States,522 U.S. 93 , 98-99,118 S.Ct. 488 ,139 L.Ed.2d 450 (1997) (citation omitted). Rather, only multiple criminal punishments are prohibited.Id. And apart from a single mention of the word "crime," nothing in Kokesh suggests that the Court considered SEC disgorgement to be a criminal *467punishment. Kokesh,137 S. Ct. at 1642 (quoting Huntington,146 U.S. at 667 ,13 S.Ct. 224 ). Therefore, Defendants' broad reading seems improper, especially considering that just four years earlier the Supreme Court analyzed the exact same statute of limitations at issue in Kokesh-28 U.S.C. § 2462 -as the "general statute of limitations for civil penalty actions." Gabelli v. SEC,568 U.S. 442 , 444,133 S.Ct. 1216 ,185 L.Ed.2d 297 (2013).
Dyer,
For these reasons, this Court declines to extend the reach of the limited holding in Kokesh to overturn years of case law expressly declaring that disgorgement is civil and, thus, does not trigger Double Jeopardy. See, e.g., Dyer,
3. Waiver
Although the Court declined to deny the motion to dismiss for Double Jeopardy on the basis of the waiver in the consent judgment alone, the Court now factors the waiver into its analysis here because the seven factors from Hudson are not exhaustive. Trogden,
i. Conclusion for Step Two
In step two of the Hudson analysis, the Court must determine whether the civil penalty is actually criminal in nature. Hudson,
IV. CONCLUSION
For all the reasons stated, the Court finds that the civil penalty imposed in the Janus Spectrum case does not bar pursuit of the instant criminal action against Defendant. Defendant's motion to dismiss is, therefore, DENIED. The Clerk is DIRECTED
*468to send a copy of this Opinion and Order to all counsel of record.
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