United States v. Kurt D. Anderson

329 F. App'x 878
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
DecidedMay 20, 2009
Docket07-14485
StatusUnpublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 329 F. App'x 878 (United States v. Kurt D. Anderson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eleventh 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. Kurt D. Anderson, 329 F. App'x 878 (11th Cir. 2009).

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

Appellant Kurt D. Anderson appeals his convictions, after a jury trial, on multiple counts of robbery and a variety of firearms violations. His challenges are based on three grounds: first, he says the district court abused its discretion in denying a motion to continue his trial; second, the district court abused its discretion in failing to order an evaluation of Anderson’s mental competency and sanity under 18 U.S.C. §§ 4241 and 4242; and, finally, the district court erred in publishing to the jury an unredacted version of the superseding indictment that included the nature of Anderson’s prior conviction, after he had stipulated that he was a convicted felon. After thorough review, we affirm.

I.

The factual and procedural history are straightforward. Anderson and his co-defendant, and close friend, Leon D. Clarke were riding in Clarke’s Mazda automobile when it broke down in Lake Worth, Florida on January 23, 2007. The pair decided to steal another car and then leave Florida, so they had a friend bring them to the Boynton Beach Mall. At the mall, Anderson and Clarke, armed with handguns, walked to the parking lot of the LongHorn Steakhouse and attempted, but failed, to carjack a Lexus (the “Lexus Carjacking”). They then moved to the parking lot of another nearby restaurant where they carjacked an Oldsmobile at gun point, and stole the victims’ wallet and purse (the “Oldsmobile Carjacking”). Anderson and Clarke drove the Oldsmobile to Anderson’s residence and counted the stolen money. They determined that they did not have enough money to leave Florida, and discussed robbing a Publix Supermarket (the “Publix Robbery”).

On February 3, 2007, at approximately 9:30 p.m., Anderson and Clarke drove the Oldsmobile to the Publix Supermarket in Port St. Lucie, Florida to commit the Pub-lix Robbery. They entered the supermarket, with Anderson carrying a rifle and Clarke carrying two handguns. Anderson pointed the rifle at the store manager while Clarke pointed the handguns at a cashier, and they demanded that the cashier open the register. Clarke said to the *880 cashier, “You have three seconds to open the register or I’ll shoot you.” After Clarke took $1700 from the register, he and Anderson drove to Anderson’s residence to count the stolen money.

Later that evening, the pair drove to Stuart, Florida to rob a Texaco gas station (the “Texaco Robbery”). Clarke remained in the car, while Anderson, carrying both handguns, went inside the convenience store, pointed both weapons at the cashier, and demanded that the cashier give him the money in the register and a bag to place it in. The cashier complied with Anderson’s demands. Anderson observed the store’s video monitor and instructed the cashier to give him the tape from the monitor. The cashier could not remove the tape from the recorder, so Anderson smashed the recorder with his handgun and fired one bullet into the recorder and another bullet into the video monitor. Anderson then fled the store.

As Anderson and Clarke drove away from the Texaco station, they counted the stolen money (approximately $500), and discussed stealing still another car to use to drive to Georgia. After midnight, on the morning of February 4, 2007, Anderson and Clarke drove by a Sunoco gas station, saw an Audi pulled up to a gas pump, and carjacked the vehicle (the “Audi Carjacking”). Specifically, Anderson approached the driver’s side of the Audi, pointed a handgun at the driver, and demanded that he get out of the car and leave his wallet, cell phone, and keys; the driver complied. Anderson drove away in the Audi and Clarke followed in the Oldsmobile.

Anderson and Clarke proceeded north on Interstate 95 in the two stolen vehicles and, eventually, consolidated themselves and their belongings in the Audi, switched the license plates on the Audi and the Oldsmobile, poured gasoline over the Oldsmobile, lit it on fire, and then left in the Audi. Anderson and Clarke traveled to Atlanta, Georgia. Clarke was arrested soon thereafter on the evening of February 8, 2007, and Anderson was arrested early in the morning of February 9, 2007. After his arrest, Anderson admitted that he had stolen the Audi, but denied he had brandished a firearm at the time of the theft. At first, Anderson also denied any involvement with the Publix Robbery, but subsequently admitted that he and Clarke had robbed the Publix supermarket. Law enforcement officers recovered Anderson’s .357 caliber revolver inside an air conditioning vent in the hotel room occupied by Anderson and Clarke just before their arrests. Other firearms, ammunition, and more items used by Anderson and Clarke during their crime spree were found in the Audi automobile.

A federal grand jury in the Southern District of Florida indicted Anderson and Clarke on April 26, 2007 for: (1) conspiring to obstruct, delay, and affect interstate commerce by robbing the Publix Supermarket, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1951(a); (2) obstructing, delaying and affecting interstate commerce by robbing the Publix Supermarket, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1951(a) and 2; (3) carrying and brandishing a firearm in relation to a crime of violence (the Publix Robbery), in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 924(c)(1)(A) and 924(c)(l)(A)(ii); (4) possessing a firearm after having previously been convicted of a felony, in violation of 18 U.S.C.- §§ 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2); (5) conspiring to carjack the Audi, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2119; (6) carjacking the Audi with the intent to cause death or serious bodily harm, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 2119 and 2; (7) carrying and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence (the Audi Carjacking), in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 924(c)(1)(A) and *881 924(c)(l)(A)(ii); and (8) possessing a firearm after being convicted of a felony offense, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2). The indictment charged Anderson and Clarke with eight felony counts arising out of two criminal episodes — the Publix Robbery and the Audi Carjacking. Co-defendant Clarke alone was charged with attempting to commit the Lexus Carjacking with intent to cause death or serious bodily harm, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 2119

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Bluebook (online)
329 F. App'x 878, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-kurt-d-anderson-ca11-2009.