United States v. Ceballos-Lepe

977 F. Supp. 2d 1085, 2013 WL 5584874, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 147516
CourtDistrict Court, D. Utah
DecidedOctober 10, 2013
DocketNo. 2:12CR00662-DN-EJF
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 977 F. Supp. 2d 1085 (United States v. Ceballos-Lepe) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Utah primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Ceballos-Lepe, 977 F. Supp. 2d 1085, 2013 WL 5584874, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 147516 (D. Utah 2013).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF UNITED STATES’ MOTION TO DISMISS AND DENYING PETITIONER CEBALLOS’ MOTION FOR LEAVE TO AMEND

DAVID NUFFER, District Judge.

Plaintiff United States of America has moved to dismiss the petition of Rosa Guillermina Ceballos in this ancillary proceeding.1 Petitioner Ceballos has moved to amend her petition.2 The Government argues that the petition should be dismissed because it failed to comply with the pleading requirements of 21 U.S.C. § 853(n)(3) and because petitioner Ceballos lacks standing since she has no specific legal interest in the property subject to forfeiture under 21 U.S.C. § 853(n)(2). The Government further argues that any amendment would be futile.3

For the reasons set forth herein, the United States’ motion for dismissal is GRANTED and Petitioner Ceballos’ motion to amend is DENIED.

Factual Background

On September 20, 2012, law enforcement officers arrested Arnolodo Ceballos-Lepe after he arranged to sell one pound of methamphetamine to an undercover officer. At the time of his arrest, officers seized $1,659 from him. Officers also arrested Mr. Ceballos-Lepe’s accomplice and seized one pound of methamphetamine and $2,190 from the car the accomplice was driving (which had also been driven at times by Mr. Ceballos-Lepe).

Officers obtained search warrants for two homes where Mr. Ceballos-Lepe resided. In one home, they found $15,000 buried in a basement crawl space, along with 1.5 pounds of methamphetamine. In another home they found cash totaling $43,950 hidden in various locations throughout the house (such as a kitchen cabinet, a sunglasses case, in garbage cans below liners, and under a bathroom sink). Officers also found three pay/owe sheets showing the amount of drugs received and amounts of money paid or owed.

On October 24, 2012, a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Mr. Ceballos-Lepe with Possession of Methamphetamine with Intent to Distribute, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), (Count I).4 On May 17, 2013, Mr. Ceballos-Lepe pleaded guilty to this charge, and he agreed to forfeit the proceeds he obtained as a result of his drug distribution.5 Specifically, he agreed to forfeit the $1,659 seized from his person, the $2,190 seized from the car, the $15,000 seized from one of his residences, the $43,950.00 seized [1088]*1088from his other residence, the car from which drugs and money were seized (a 1998 Acura, VIN# JH4UA2650WC007176), and the motorcycle Mr. Ceballos-Lepe drove to complete the drug sale (a blue and white Suzuki 1200, Utah temporary tag P001772252).

On May 30, 2013, the United States moved6 to forfeit this property, and the Court entered an Order of Forfeiture7 on the same day. This order provided, among other things, that those who claimed an interest in the property forfeited by Mr. Ceballos-Lepe could file a petition to adjudicate his or her claimed interest, as set forth in 21 U.S.C. § 853.

On June 3, 2013, the United States sent notice of the forfeiture action to Petitioner Ceballos, through her attorney, along with a copy of the forfeiture order. The judgment explained how a third party asserts an interest in criminally forfeited property. On June 28, 2013, Petitioner Ceballos’s attorney filed a Petition Asserting Legal Interest on Behalf of Ceballos.8 This petition, however, was not signed by Petitioner Ceballos, but only by her attorney.

Petitioner Ceballos claims that she is entitled to some portion of the forfeited funds because in September 2011, she loaned 400,000 pesos to Mr. Ceballos-Lepe. She does not assert an ownership or security interest in any of the specific property subject to forfeiture. Her loan agreement with the Defendant, however, appears to grant her a security interest in property in Mexico, and the United States has not sought forfeiture of this Mexican property.9

On August 19, 2013, Ceballos filed a motion for leave to amend her petition with the proposed amended petition.10 In her amended petition Ceballos identified the specific property she was claiming as the $43,950 seized from the defendant’s residence.11

Standard of Review

Ancillary proceedings are governed by Fed.R.Crim.P. 32.2. Rule 32.2(c)(1)(A) permits a court to dismiss petitions prior to any hearing on the merits for lack of standing or failure to state a claim. Such a motion is treated like a motion under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b): all allegations in the petition are assumed to be true, and the petition may be dismissed only if it is clear that no relief could be granted under any set of facts that could be proved consistent with the petitioner’s allegations. Fed.R. Crim.P. 32.2(c)(1)(A); Pacheco v. Serendensky, 393 F.3d 348, 352 (2d Cir.2004); United States v. White, 779 F.Supp.2d 984, 988 (D.Minn.2011).

Analysis

As a preliminary matter, the government argues that Ceballos’ petition failed to comply with the pleading requirements of 21 U.S.C. § 853(n)(3). The court acknowledges that the standards in § 853(n)(3) are not simply technical requirements, but are construed strictly to discourage false or frivolous claims. United States v. Ginn, 799 F.Supp.2d 645, 647 (E.D.La.2010). See also United States v. Burge, 829 F.Supp.2d 664, 667 (C.D.Ill.2011) (“Federal courts require strict compliance with the pleading requirements of § 853(n)(3) primarily because there is a substantial danger of false claims in forfei[1089]*1089ture proceedings.”) (citations omitted). While it is clear that Petitioner Ceballos’s original petition failed to satisfy the standards in § 85S(n)(3), the court need not decide this matter on that issue. Regardless of the form of Ms. Ceballos’s petition or her proposed amended petition, she cannot satisfy the standing requirements of 21 U.S.C. § 853(n)(2).

In addition to satisfying the pleading standards, the petitioner has the burden of demonstrating her standing in this ancillary proceeding. United States v. Cambio Exacto, S.A., 166 F.3d 522, 526 (2d Cir.1999); United States v. Brinton, 880 F.Supp.2d 1158, 1159-60 (D.Utah 2012).

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Bluebook (online)
977 F. Supp. 2d 1085, 2013 WL 5584874, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 147516, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-ceballos-lepe-utd-2013.