United States v. Lenegan

425 F. App'x 151
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Third Circuit
DecidedApril 26, 2011
DocketNos. 09-1339, 09-3730
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 425 F. App'x 151 (United States v. Lenegan) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Third 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. Lenegan, 425 F. App'x 151 (3d Cir. 2011).

Opinion

OPINION OF THE COURT

HARDIMAN, Circuit Judge.

James Lenegan appeals from the District Court’s denial of evidentiary motions and its judgment of sentence. We will affirm.

I

Because we write for the parties, we recount only the essential facts.

In November of 2007, Lenegan was indicted on charges stemming from his role in a conspiracy to burglarize pharmacies and distribute stolen drugs. According to the Government, the conspiracy involved at least eleven individuals who, between December 2002 and June 2005, burglarized thirty-three pharmacies and attempted thirteen more burglaries throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. Lenegan was charged with conspiracy and two counts of burglary and drug distribution arising from break-ins at the Glen Center Pharmacy in Ambler, Pennsylvania, and the Oxford Valley Pharmacy in Levittown, Pennsylvania. At the close of trial, the jury found Lenegan guilty of conspiracy as well as the burglary and distribution counts relating to the Oxford Valley Pharmacy burglary. It found him not guilty of the counts relating to the Glen Center Pharmacy.

[153]*153II

Lenegan challenges five rulings by the District Court, three of which relate to the guilt phase, and two of which relate to sentencing. We address these arguments and the applicable standards of review in turn.

A

Before standing trial in this case, Lene-gan was in custody on unrelated charges, during which time he participated in a proffer session without counsel present, •without signing a proffer letter, and without the benefit of Miranda warnings., Lenegan moved to suppress statements made diming the proffer session. The District Court conducted a thorough “totality-of the circumstances” review and determined that, although the statements were inadmissible in the Government’s case-in-chief because of the Miranda violation, they were nevertheless made voluntarily and could be used to rebut contrary testimony if Lenegan took the stand at trial. In this appeal, Lenegan argues his statements should have been suppressed for all purposes, including impeachment, because they were involuntary.1

We review de novo the District Court’s ruling on the voluntariness of a statement made to law enforcement, and we review the Court’s findings of fact for clear error. United States v. Swint, 15 F.3d 286, 288 (3d Cir.1994) (citing Arizona v. Fulmi-nante, 499 U.S. 279, 287, 111 S.Ct. 1246, 113 L,Ed.2d 302 (1991)).

We evaluate the voluntariness of Lene-gan’s statements based on the totality of the circumstances to determine whether “the confession was the product of an essentially free and unconstrained choice by its maker, that it was the product of a rational intellect and a free will and that the appellant’s will was not overborne.” Id. at 289 (citations omitted) (internal quotation marks omitted). Relevant circumstances include: “police coercion; the length of the interrogation; its location; its continuity; the defendant’s maturity; education; physical condition; and mental health,” as well as whether police “advise[d] the defendant of his rights to remain silent and to have counsel present.” Id. (quoting Withrow v. Williams, 507 U.S. 680, 693-94, 113 S.Ct. 1745, 123 L.Ed.2d 407 (1993)) (citations omitted).

In its ruling on Lenegan’s motion to suppress, the District Court made the following findings of fact, none of which is clearly erroneous. At the time of the proffer session, Lenegan was forty years old and in good physical and mental health. The proffer session was held in a conference room, lasted for one hour, and terminated when Lenegan requested they break for lunch. As to Lenegan’s education level, experience, and maturity, the Court found that he is a high school graduate who has had extensive interaction with the criminal justice system. Moreover, the law enforcement officers present during the session were in plain clothes and carried no visible weapons. Finally, the Assistant United States Attorney made concerted efforts to have Lenegan’s attorney present, and when it was apparent that counsel would not attend, the AUSA both [154]*154allowed Lenegan to speak with counsel on the phone and explained the nature of the proffer session himself. Based on these facts, we agree with the District Court’s determination that Lenegan’s statements during the proffer session were voluntary and were thus admissible for impeachment purposes.

B

Before trial, Lenegan stipulated to the basic facts surrounding forty-four of the burglaries and attempted burglaries. The stipulation contained anticipated testimony from upwards of eighty pharmacy owners and responding police officers, who would have testified as to the occurrence of the burglaries and the amount of loss from each. The stipulation did not contain information about any of the alleged perpetrators, including Lenegan. After Lene-gan signed the stipulation, it came to light that his attorney had a conflict of interest because he had represented one of the victim pharmacies in connection with an insurance claim arising out of the burglary. Lenegan refused to waive the conflict, and new counsel was appointed. Five days before trial, Lenegan moved to withdraw from the stipulation, arguing that he had not understood it and that his consent to it was tainted because he had conflicted counsel at the time. The District Court excised the portion of the stipulation relating to the pharmacy that had precipitated the conflict, but rejected Lenegan’s motion in all other respects. Lenegan renews his arguments on appeal.

“We review a district court’s decision to bind a party to its stipulation under an abuse of discretion standard.” Waldorf v. Shuta, 142 F.3d 601, 616 (3d Cir.1998) (citing Wheeler v. John Deere Co., 935 F.2d 1090,1098 (10th Cir.1991)).

We have noted that “[allowing parties easily to set aside or modify stipulations would defeat th[eir] purpose, wasting judicial resources and undermining future confidence in such agreements,” and “[t]hus ‘[i]t is a well-recognized rule of law that valid stipulations entered into freely and fairly, and approved by the court, should not be lightly set aside.’” Id. (quoting Kohn v. Am. Metal Climax, Inc., 458 F.2d 255, 307 (3d Cir.1972)). Wflien deciding whether it would be manifestly unjust to bind a party to a stipulation, we consider factors such as: “(1) the effect of the stipulation on the party seeking to withdraw the stipulation; (2) the effect on the other parties to the litigation; (3) the occurrence of intervening events since the parties agreed to the stipulation; and (4) whether evidence contrary to the stipulation is substantial.” Id. at 617-18 (citations omitted).

Before the District Court ruled on Lenegan’s motion, both Lenegan and his counsel testified about their discussions concerning the stipulation. Because the Court found counsel’s testimony more credible than Lenegan’s testimony, the Court determined that Lenegan knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily agreed to enter the stipulation. The Court then examined each of the four factors discussed in

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425 F. App'x 151, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-lenegan-ca3-2011.