United States v. Monty Ervin

517 F. App'x 734
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
DecidedApril 22, 2013
Docket12-13156
StatusUnpublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 517 F. App'x 734 (United States v. Monty Ervin) 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. Monty Ervin, 517 F. App'x 734 (11th Cir. 2013).

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

Monty Ervin appeals his convictions and 120-month total sentence for conspiracy to commit tax evasion and three counts of tax evasion. On appeal, Ervin argues that: (1) the district court erroneously denied his motion to suppress evidence; (2) his convictions for tax evasion were unsupported by the evidence and the law; (3) the district court violated his Sixth Amendment rights by imposing sentence enhancements based on facts that were not found by a jury or admitted by Ervin; and (4) he was deprived of a fair and impartial jury when the district court denied his motion for a new trial. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm Ervin’s convictions and sentences.

I.

In 2011, a federal grand jury returned a superseding indictment, charging Ervin and his wife, Patricia Ervin (“Patricia”), with conspiracy to defraud the United States for the purpose of obstructing the lawful government functions of the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371 (Count Two) 1 ; and three counts of tax evasion in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 7201 (Counts Three to Five). Specifically, the indictment alleged that, between 1997 and 2006, the Ervins owned and managed Southern Realty & Property Management, LLC (“Southern Realty”), a property management company that received substantial amounts of rental income each month. As to Count Two, the indictment alleged that, in furtherance of the conspiracy, the Ervins purchased, held, and sold property in the names of nominees (trustees), and they prepared false warranty deeds to facilitate the transfer of property held in the names of those nominees. Further, the Ervins directed rental income from those properties to be paid to Southern Realty, and they obstructed the IRS in its attempt to assess and collect federal income taxes. Finally, as to the remaining counts, the indictment alleged that the Ervins did not file federal tax returns on their taxable income from 2004 to 2006.

Prior to trial, Ervin filed a motion to suppress evidence of photos depicting “food provisions, firearms, and safes” that were taken during a search of his property in March 2011. He asserted that the government would suggest that the photos were incriminating. At the suppression hearing, Ryan Karle, a Deputy United States Marshall, testified that he met with Ervin’s son, Anthony Ervin (“Anthony”), at Anthony’s home. During the meeting, Anthony indicated that he and Ervin stored firearms in a shed on the property. Anthony had access to the shed, and he allowed Agent Karle to take photos of its contents.

After the hearing, the magistrate judge issued a report and recommendation that the district court deny Ervin’s motion. Specifically, the magistrate found that no evidence supported a finding that Anthony had not voluntarily and knowingly consent *738 ed to the search and photos of the shed. Further, voluntary consent renders the search warrant requirement moot. Because Anthony had mutual use of the property with joint access and control of the area, he had actual authority to consent to the search. As to apparent authority, the same evidence established that Deputy Karle also had a reasonable basis to believe that Anthony had such authority. Additionally, Ervin never alleged that government agents removed him from his property to silence any objection to the search. Finally, after receiving Anthony’s consent, Deputy Karle was not required to also seek Ervin’s consent.

Over Ervin’s objections, the district court adopted the recommendation and denied Ervin’s suppression motion. During Ervin’s two-week trial, the government presented numerous witnesses, including friends and family members of the Ervins who had been designated as trustees for certain properties. Also, Susan Tyson, an IRS auditor, testified regarding her audits of Southern Realty and the Ervins, and she concluded that, for the tax years 2004 to 2006, the Ervins owed a total of $440,386 in taxes. Ultimately, the jury convicted Ervin on all counts.

Prior to sentencing, Ervin filed a motion for a new trial pursuant to Fed.R.Crim.P. 33(b)(1), alleging that Curtis Malone, a government witness, had known one of the jurors, and had a prior dispute with that same juror that resulted in a “heated verbal altercation.” The court held an evi-dentiary hearing, at which Malone and the juror both testified.

After the hearing, the district court denied Ervin’s motion, finding that the juror had testified honestly, during voir dire, that he could be fair and impartial despite his prior relationship with Malone. Notably, a juror-witness relationship does not strongly imply bias. Here, the juror was directly asked about his ability to serve impartially and, without hesitation, he testified that he was able to deliberate without bias and that he reached a verdict solely based on the evidence. The court credited the juror’s testimony and found that he had served without bias. Finally, although the juror had heard from acquaintances, prior to trial, that Ervin had renounced his United States citizenship, he testified honestly that he did not know the Ervins and that he was not influenced by what he had heard.

The presentence investigation report (“PSI”) determined Ervin’s base offense level based on a total tax loss of $937,843. Additionally, the PSI applied (1) a two-level increase for the use of sophisticated means pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 2Tl.l(b)(2); (2) a four-level increase for Ervin’s leadership role under U.S.S.G. § 3Bl.l(a); and (3) a two-level increase for obstruction of justice under U.S.S.G. § 3C1.1. Ervin objected to each of these enhancements.

At sentencing, the government challenged the amount of the tax loss and, after hearing witness testimony on the issue, the court determined that the tax loss amount should be calculated based on gross receipts less expenses. After the parties reached an agreement as to the Ervins’ expenses, the court concluded that the tax loss amount was $1,436,508. Further, the court overruled each of Ervin’s objections to his sentence enhancements, and it discussed its factual findings regarding each enhancement. Ultimately, the court imposed a 120-month total sentence, consisting of 60 months for Count Two, to run consecutively to the concurrent 60-month sentences for Counts Three, Four, and Five.

II.

In reviewing the denial of a motion to suppress evidence, we review the district *739 court’s factual findings for clear error and its application of the law to those facts de novo. United States v. Ponce-Aldona, 579 F.3d 1218, 1221 (11th Cir.2009). Further, we construe the facts in the light most favorable to the prevailing party. Id.

The Fourth Amendment protects “[t]he right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures.” U.S. Const, amend IV.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Blanc v. United States
S.D. Florida, 2020

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
517 F. App'x 734, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-monty-ervin-ca11-2013.