United States v. Goo

10 F.R.D. 332, 1950 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3646
CourtDistrict Court, D. Hawaii
DecidedMay 31, 1950
DocketCr. No. 10284
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 10 F.R.D. 332 (United States v. Goo) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Hawaii primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Goo, 10 F.R.D. 332, 1950 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3646 (D. Haw. 1950).

Opinion

McLaughlin, Judge.

On February 9, 1950, the defendant, represented by two attorneys, Harry Hewitt, Esq., and John Alexander, Esq., of the firm «of Hewitt & Alexander, appeared in Court, and when the Government announced its ■desire to file three felony charges against the defendant in the form of an information the defendant waived his constitutional right and consented to the filing of the charges in that form.

Immediately thereafter defense counsel informed the Court that the defendant waived reading of the information, and was ready to plead. (As will appear infra, the defendant and his attorneys had had for some time in advance a copy of the information.) Thereupon the defendant arose and when asked by the presiding judge regarding his plea as to each count, the defendant replied as to each count that he was guilty.

The three pleas were recorded and the defendant adjudged guilty on each charge.

The Court then called upon the Government for a statement of the facts, after which it gave the defendant an opportunity to be heard. Through his attorney, the defendant stated he had no excuses or explanations to offer. The defendant himself remained silent.

A pre-sentence investigation was ordered by the Court, the due date of which was set as February 20, 1950. At the same time the Court stated that the defendant might do well to consider during the interval the matter of discharging his civil liability. The Court admonished the defendant, however, that it should be recognized that this judge usually sent tax dodgers to prison and that payment of the taxes and penalties on the civil side was not to be taken as an assurance that the defendant would not be sentenced to prison. The defense represented that it would, pending the arrival of the date set for sentence, look into the civil tax aspects of the case.

Within a few days, the defendant in person, without either of his attorneys, appeared in this Judge’s chambers desirous of seeing the Judge about his case. Ilis request was refused. Still a bit later the Court received a telephone call from a friend who had been requested to see if he could intercede in the defendant’s behalf. The Court refused to listen.

Within a day or so the defendant discharged his attorneys, and they were excused by the Court. The Court was then notified that Attorney Peter Lee and Attorney Garner Anthony, of the firm of Robertson, Castle & Anthony, would enter appearances for the defendant, and the Court consented to the new attorneys’ assuming the responsibility for defendant’s presence in Court on the date scheduled for sentence.

On that date, February 20, 1950, the new attorneys appeared in Court with the defendant and requested (1) that the defendant be allowed to withdraw his pleas and (2) that since the attorneys had only recently been called into the case, time to check into the matter of the defendant’s civil liability. The first request was denied, while the second was granted to March 13, 1950, and the prior admonition of the Court [334]*334as to its customary type of sentence in a tax case was repeated.

Before the arrival of the new date for sentence, the defendant, acting through his attorney, Alfred L. Castle, represented that it was essential that more time be granted as the civil liability question required that the defendant employ an accountant to make an audit, especially since the Government had lost some of defendant’s canceled checks. The United States Attorney consenting, more time was granted to March 27, 1950.

Near the expiration of this third period of time to consider payment of the civil liability, Attorneys Anthony and Lee represented that there had been turned up a $23,000 carry back item of loss which might result in there being no tax for the years 1946 and possibly 1945 and 1944, but that the Government would not accept it; hence more time was again needed. Having from the outset directed the Government to cooperate with the defendant if he was disposed to settle his civil liability, the Court stated it would grant more time if the Government agreed. Assistant United States Attorney Ingman, acting in the absence of Assistant Hoddick who handled the case, said he would confer with the Internal Revenue people, and report. This he did, reporting that there was no sense to granting still more time, and its reasons relating to the $23,000 matter, and others, would gladly be recited at a conference with defendant’s counsel.

The Court directed that defendant’s counsel Anthony be telephoned and notified of the Government’s report. This was done by Assistant United States Attorney Richardson, to whom Mr. Anthony abruptly stated that there was no point to a conference to hear the Government’s reasons, and that therefore he would proceed to file a motion.

The motion turned out to be the one now under consideration, a' motion to withdraw the pleas of guilty and to plead anew as not guilty. The motion was accompanied by an affidavit of the defendant, Attorney Castle, the defendant’s accountant, and Attorney Anthony.

The date for hearing the motion was twice changed for cause, first at the Government’s request and then at Attorney Anthony’s request.

Finally, the motion came on for hearing on May 16.

Though on February 20 an oral motion of like nature had been denied, the proportions of this formal motion dictated that the matter be considered again.

The defendant first argued that under Rule 32, Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, 18 U.S.C.A., the motion must be granted as a matter of right. This the Court denied, holding that disposition of the matter rested in the area of judicial discretion. United States v. Searle, 7 Cir., 1950, 180 F.2d 209. See generally Taylor v. United States, 9 Cir., 1950, 179 F.2d 640, and especially the second petition for rehearing, 182 F.2d 473, May 23, 1950, by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Next it was contended the four affidavits should move the Court to grant the motion.

The Court pointed out that the only relevant affidavit was the defendant’s, and that stated only conclusions. A recess was taken to allow the defendant to decide if he wished to submit evidence in support of his factual conclusions.

After the recess the defendant took the witness stand. He testified on direct examination that he had employed Hewitt & Alexander after receiving a letter from the Department of Justice. This he said was but a few days before pleading on February 9. He further said that he talked to Hewitt several times about his plea and the amount of the tax stated in the information (this, of course, was before it wás filed in Court), and that Hewitt told him, “ * * * I am guilty even if I owed them $1, I am guilty just the same, so it is best to plead guilty”; that Hewitt never talked to defendant’s bookkeeper, nor did he recommend hiring an accountant, and made no investigation prior to the date defendant plead guilty. The defendant said he had never been in Court before; that Hewitt said the information stated all the taxes he owed — but after the plea raid he [335]*335owed more than that (civil liability).

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
10 F.R.D. 332, 1950 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3646, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-goo-hid-1950.