United States v. Bonds

526 F.2d 331, 1976 U.S. App. LEXIS 13187
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
DecidedJanuary 23, 1976
DocketNo. 74-3745
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 526 F.2d 331 (United States v. Bonds) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Bonds, 526 F.2d 331, 1976 U.S. App. LEXIS 13187 (5th Cir. 1976).

Opinion

RIVES, Circuit Judge:

The defendant1 appeals from a judgment of conviction on all counts of a nine count indictment. Each count charged the defendant with causing the interstate transportation of a falsely made and forged security, in violation of sections 2 and 2314, Title 18, United States Code. Each count described a different forged check as the security transported. The court sentenced the defendant to imprisonment for three years on each count, the sentences to ran concurrently.

On appeal the defendant presents for review the overruling of her pre-trial motions to suppress; certain rulings on the admissibility of evidence; the denial of defendant’s motion for severance of Counts One, Two, and Three from the remaining six counts of the indictment; and the denial of the defendant’s motion for a directed verdict of acquittal on Counts One, Two, and Three.

We find no reversible error and affirm the judgment of conviction.

The evidence established beyond any doubt that all nine checks were forged and were transported in interstate commerce in violation of sections 2 and 2314, Title 28, United States Code. The questions in dispute concerned the identity of the defendant as a guilty person under each count of the indictment. Six of the forged checks were drawn on the account of Dodds & Elwell Associates with the Manchester Bank, Manchester, New Hampshire — the cheeks described in Counts 1, 3 and 4, 7, 8, and 9. Estelle Johnson was the fictitious name selected as payee for three of those checks, those described in Counts 1, 3 and 4. The fictitious payee of the check described in Count 7 was Paulette Beard. The forged checks described in Counts 8 and 9 were made payable to Patricia Benson.

The check described in Count 2 was on the account of Robert King, Jr., with the Union Planters National Bank, Memphis, Tennessee, and was also made payable to Estelle Johnson.

I. The Motions to Suppress

On appeal, the defendant insists that she was arrested illegally. For such relevance, if any, as the legality of defendant’s arrest may have, we note that when represented at trial by counsel other than her appellate counsel she filed two motions to suppress, in neither of which did she make any claim of illegal arrest. After an extensive pre-trial hearing the district judge denied the motions in an order which reads in pertinent part:

“ORDERED that the Motion To Suppress All Oral Statements Made By Defendant Including Background [334]*334And Personal History be and hereby is denied inasmuch as such statements were knowingly, understandingly, freely and voluntarily made;
“ORDERED that Motions To Suppress 1. Any identification made as a result of a lineup, 2. Any and all eyewitness identification which arises as a result of photographic identification, and 3. All checks, documents, be and hereby is denied inasmuch as the lineup and photographic displays were not unnecessarily or impermissibly suggestive or conducive to, any substantial likelihood of irreparable misidentification, and the admissibility of the checks and documents must be determined at trial.”

On the third day of the trial the defendant did object to the introduction of a set of fingerprints on the ground that they were taken when she was under an illegal arrest. Her counsel admitted however that he had no witness to prove an illegal arrest. (III.R. 504.) 2

While she was in the jail prior to indictment, two F.B.I. agents interviewed her. She read the written form stating her constitutional rights, stated that she understood it and signed the form. She made no confession but, according to Agent White, she “denied any knowledge about the cashing of any fraudulent checks. And she gave us some descriptive data concerning herself, and the interview was completed.” IV.R. 53. None of the descriptive data and no statement made by the defendant was introduced at the trial.

The defendant testified that she was left under the suspicion that she had no alternative but to give the agents information about her personal background. IV.R. 31, 32. Upon her first interview by the two agents, the defendant had given her name as Carolyn Dailey instead of Carolyn Bonds. Agent White testified that on this first interview she was very cooperative and offered no objection to giving any background information.

He admitted some doubt as to the second interview, testifying as follows:

“Q Well, at any time during the course of any of these interviews did you ever say to her or imply to her in any way, or suggest to her, that you had a right to get accurate descriptive data from her about her background as distinguished from the facts of the case?
A I think the second interview I may have told her that we had the right to know who she was.
BY THE COURT:
Q How about on the first interview?
A No, sir. Because the first time I assumed the descriptive data and all the information was accurate.”
* * * # *
“Q Now, you did you mention that you were entitled, the second time, that you had a right to know who she was?
A I am not sure exactly what the words were, but I may have conveyed that impression to her. It is possible I conveyed that impression to her that we may have had the right to know who she was.”
* * * * * *
“Q Did anything that you or the other agent said or did, or anything that was said or done on you all’s behalf, or the local authorities, tend to create a belief in this young lady’s mind that she had no alternative but to answer questions to you?
A No, sir. I think we made it quite clear that she didn’t.”
* * * * * *
“Q And she did never tell you all, T don’t want to talk to you all about it. I don’t want to discuss this. I don’t want to talk about that’?
[335]*335A No, sir.
Q She never did show any reluctance to discuss anything with you?
A No, sir.”

Notwithstanding the candor of Agent White’s testimony we think that the district court understood its meaning. Of course, the choice of credibility as between the testimony of the defendant and that of the F.B.I. agent was for the jury. We hold that no reversible error was committed in denying the motions to suppress. We agree with the oral findings of the district judge:

“It is almost conclusively shown here that this defendant, who admits that she has had at least an eleventh grade education, who has worked for several months as a waitress in two different locations, who can read and write and can understand what she reads, that she read this Waiver of Rights form. She stated to the agent that she understood it, and she consented to and did submit herself to an examination without any objection, in fact, upon waiver of her right on the first examination.

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United States v. Strangstalien
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United States v. Bonds
530 F.2d 976 (Fifth Circuit, 1976)

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Bluebook (online)
526 F.2d 331, 1976 U.S. App. LEXIS 13187, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-bonds-ca5-1976.