United States v. Eric B.

86 F.3d 869, 96 Daily Journal DAR 6218, 96 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 3812, 1996 U.S. App. LEXIS 13141, 1996 WL 282473
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
DecidedMay 30, 1996
Docket94-10588
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 86 F.3d 869 (United States v. Eric B.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Ninth 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. Eric B., 86 F.3d 869, 96 Daily Journal DAR 6218, 96 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 3812, 1996 U.S. App. LEXIS 13141, 1996 WL 282473 (9th Cir. 1996).

Opinions

MANUEL L. REAL, District Judge:

On September 7,1994, Eric B., who at the time was twelve-years-old, killed a seven-year-old child on a Navajo Indian Reservation in Arizona. The cause of death was a single bullet to the head. Eric B. was tried and adjudicated a juvenile delinquent. The court found that Eric B. had committed an act of involuntary manslaughter under 18 U.S.C. § 1112.

Erie B. now appeals claiming a violation of the Speedy Trial Act (Act), under 18 U.S.C. § 5036. In addition, Eric B. asks us to find that the district court erred by (1) denying his motion for judgment of acquittal; (2) failing to find the United States Attorney impermissibly obtained a grand jury subpoena; and (3) failing to find that Eric B.’s privacy right provided for under, inter alia, 18 U.S.C. § 5038 was violated.1

We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291, based on the entry of final judgment by the district court on December 12, 1994. Having considered the pleadings and argument before this Court, we affirm the district court’s decision.

I.

FACTS

On the afternoon of September 7, 1994, Eric B., then twelve-years-old, received a gun from a friend at school. Eric B. was aware that two bullets were in the weapon when he took possession of the gun.

Beginning on his bus ride home from school to Chilehinbeto, a small Navajo community in Arizona, and throughout the rest of the afternoon, Eric B. showed the gun to several of his schoolmates. After arriving in Chilehinbeto, Eric B. showed the gun to a ten-year-old named Jimmy Sharkey. Aware that the gun was loaded, Eric B. pointed the gun at Jimmy. Shortly thereafter, Eric B. and Jimmy went to a field, where Eric B. shot one bullet at some rocks. Eric B. then unscrewed the barrel, dropped the spent casing on the ground, removed the one remaining bullet and put it in his pocket.

Eric B. went on to have several encounters with other juveniles in which Eric B. would point the gun at the person and pull the trigger. Samantha Charlie, a fifteen-year-old, was one such person. After pointing the empty gun at Samantha, Erie B. pulled the remaining bullet from his pocket and put it back in the gun. Eric B. then offered the gun to Samantha and suggested she go shoot Tamara Zonnie, one of Samantha’s friends.

Next, Eric B. took the now loaded gun and came across eleven-year-old Myron Redmoustache. Eric B. pointed the loaded gun at Myron and pulled the trigger. The gun did not fire.

Finally, just minutes after leaving Myron, Erie B. came across some juveniles playing in an area known as “the bridge.” One of these juveniles was seven-year-old Nathan Crank. Eric B. pointed the gun at Nathan and shot him in the forehead. Eric B. then gave the gun to a boy named Tyrell and instructed him to hide the gun.

Within a few hours of the shooting, tribal police arrested Eric B. and placed him in custody. That evening tribal authorities notified the FBI of the shooting. On September 8, 1994, the FBI contacted the United States Attorney and the tribal authorities about the case. The grand jury issued a [872]*872subpoena for Eric B.’s school records on September 9,1994, and FBI agents met with tribal authorities on that same day. FBI agents stayed in Chilchinbeto until the 10th of September, during which time the FBI requested information regarding any prior juvenile adjudication Eric B. may have had.

On September 12, 1994, an FBI agent interviewed the juvenile who had given Eric B. the gun. On that same day, the agent interviewed Erie B. and received documentation from tribal authorities that Eric B. had no prior delinquency history. The FBI never undertook jurisdiction of the case, leaving the matter to the tribal court.

On September 15, 1994, the United States Attorney filed an Information charging the juvenile with committing an act of delinquency — second degree murder. Federal authorities arrested and placed Eric B. into federal custody on September 16,1994, Erie B. making his initial appearance that same day. Trial was later set for October 14, 1994.

At trial the district court found Eric B. did not commit second degree murder. The court held that the government had proven the lesser included offense of involuntary manslaughter, under 18 U.S.C. § 1112.

The district court held a disposition hearing on December 12, 1994, at which time it permitted the victim’s family to be present. The district court also received several letters from the public expressing concern about the facts of the case and beseeching the court to ensure justice was done.

II.

DISCUSSION

A.

APPELLANT’S RIGHT TO A SPEEDY TRIAL UNDER 18 U.S.C. § 5036

We first address whether Eric B.’s speedy trial rights under the Act were violated. This is a mixed question of law and fact, and therefore the appropriate standard of review is de novo. United States v. McConney, 728 F.2d 1195 (9th Cir.) (en banc), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 824, 105 S.Ct. 101, 83 L.Ed.2d 46 (1984).

The Act provides for the number of days that may elapse before a juvenile must be brought to trial, if the juvenile is being detained pending trial. The applicable section, 18 U.S.C. § 5036, specifies:

If an alleged delinquent who is in detention pending trial is not brought to trial within thirty days from the date upon which such detention was begun, the information shall be dismissed on motion of the alleged delinquent or at the direction of the court, unless the Attorney General shows that additional delay was caused by the juvenile or his counsel, or consented to by the juvenile and his counsel, or would be in the interest of justice in the particular case. Delays attributable solely to court calendar congestion may not be considered in the interest of justice. Except in extraordinary circumstances, an information dismissed under this section may not be reinstituted.

According to Erie B., the government failed to bring this case to trial within this thirty day requirement. Tribal authorities arrested Eric B. on September 7,1994. Five days later, on September 12, the FBI possessed all documentation necessary for certification, which is a statutory prerequisite for proceeding against a juvenile in federal court. See 18 U.S.C. § 5032. Eric B. was placed into federal custody four days later, on September 16,1994.

Erie B. contends in this case that the clock started to run either on September 9 or, at the very latest, September 12.

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Bluebook (online)
86 F.3d 869, 96 Daily Journal DAR 6218, 96 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 3812, 1996 U.S. App. LEXIS 13141, 1996 WL 282473, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-eric-b-ca9-1996.