United States v. Patrick

965 F.2d 1390
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedMay 20, 1992
DocketNos. 89-6410 to 89-6412, 89-6443, 89-6444, 91-5075, 91-5076 and 91-5243
StatusPublished
Cited by62 cases

This text of 965 F.2d 1390 (United States v. Patrick) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Sixth 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. Patrick, 965 F.2d 1390 (6th Cir. 1992).

Opinions

SUHRHEINRICH, Circuit Judge.

Joseph Mohwish and Bill Patrick ran a prosperous drug distribution and money laundering business. Delmus Gross’s car dealership was used to launder the drug proceeds. It was Patrick’s job to secure cocaine and marijuana and to locate buyers. Mohwish coordinated the drug operation with Patrick and stored cocaine. Mohwish also owned a holding company for several of his other corporations, including a window manufacturing firm called Season Sash. Mohwish and Gross used these eor-porations on behalf of their money laundering activity.

Gross and Mohwish appeal convictions for acting as accomplices to violations of the Currency Transactions Reporting Act (“CTRA”), 31 U.S.C. §§ 5313, 5322. Gross, Mohwish, and Patrick appeal convictions for conspiracy to violate the CTRA. This same trio requests a new trial because of juror misconduct and an assortment of evi-dentiary and other errors. Mohwish and Patrick appeal convictions for operating a continuing criminal enterprise (“CCE”). Kathy Mohwish and Sue Bell Sheets challenge a forfeiture order entered pursuant to Joseph Mohwish’s CCE conviction. We affirm in part, and reverse and remand in part.

I

Gross and Mohwish were convicted as accomplices for causing the Union Bank & Trust Co. to violate the CTRA. Federal regulations require financial institutions to file a currency transaction report for each cash transaction of more than $10,000. 31 CFR § 103.22(a). In addition, 31 U.S.C. § 5322 makes it a criminal offense to knowingly violate section 103.22(a). The CTRA originally applied only to financial institutions.1

Gross and Mohwish used their respective businesses to prevent detection of drug sales and to avoid the CTRA. Mohwish periodically directed Season Sash’s controller to make interest payments to Gross. Gross would then deposit these checks and return the funds to Mohwish, Patrick, or one of the companies under Mohwish’s control.

Gross instructed his bookkeeper to put less than $10,000 on each deposit slip. The records show seventeen transactions in which Gross received a large cash payment from Mohwish or one of his companies. For each payment, there is an equivalent deposit into Gross’s bank account and, shortly thereafter, a check issued to Mohwish, or an interest he controls, for an identical or similar amount.

[1395]*1395As depositors, Gross and Mohwish could not be held directly liable for violating the CTRA. Instead, they were charged as accomplices under 18 U.S.C. § 2(b) for causing Union Bank & Trust to fail to file a currency transaction report. 31 U.S.C. § 5322.

A violation of sections 5313 and 5322 requires a knowing failure to report. Currency transactions are structured to prevent the financial institution from becoming aware of its reporting obligation. Consequently, the financial institution does not itself knowingly violate the reporting requirement and cannot be held criminally liable. Since the principal, the financial institution, did not commit a crime, the customer who structures transactions cannot be held criminally liable as an accomplice for aiding, abetting, or causing a crime. United States v. Gimbel, 830 F.2d 621, 624-26 (7th Cir.1987); United States v. Larson, 796 F.2d 244, 246-47 (8th Cir.1986); United States v. Reinis, 794 F.2d 506, 507 (9th Cir.1986); United States v. Anzalone, 766 F.2d 676, 682-83 (1st Cir.1985).

* However, accomplice liability exists where the financial institution or an employee has knowledge of the structuring, even though the knowledge is not held by an employee with responsibility for reporting. See United States v. Hayes, 827 F.2d 469, 472 (9th Cir.1987). Union Bank & Trust vice-president David Maynard admitted accepting a “temporary” cash deposit of $100,000 without reporting it. Shortly after Maynard returned this money, Gross sent it back to the bank. Gross directed Maynard to issue cashier’s cheeks in this amount and to structure the transaction to avoid the reporting requirement. Maynard complied although he knew it to be illegal.

Count 15 of the indictment charged Gross and Mohwish with causing the bank’s failure to file a currency transaction report relating to this transaction. Because Union Bank & Trust acted knowingly, we affirm these convictions. We reverse the CTRA convictions brought under counts 14 and 16-30 because there is no evidence that the principal acted knowingly.

Mohwish and Gross claim that the law against structuring is unconstitutionally vague as applied to them. We join other circuits in rejecting this argument. See, e.g., United States v. Richeson, 825 F.2d 17 (4th Cir.1987).

Next we consider a challenge brought by Gross, Mohwish, and Patrick to their convictions, under count 13, for conspiracy to violate the CTRA. They allege insufficient evidence of agreement. It is well-settled that “[n]o formal or express agreement is required. The agreement may be inferred from the acts done in furtherance of the conspiracy.” United States v. Hitow, 889 F.2d 1573, 1577 (6th Cir.1989).

Ample evidence of agreement was presented against each defendant. Mohwish periodically stored Patrick’s cocaine and managed his financial affairs. The facts show that Gross frequently laundered cash for Mohwish. Mohwish, in turn, paid Patrick as a Season Sash employee even though Patrick did no work for the company. Gross directed Maynard to process a cash transaction of $100,000 without filing a currency transaction report. This transaction was part of the money laundering operation, an essential element of the drug distribution enterprise. See United States v. Orozco-Prada, 732 F.2d 1076, 1080 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 845, 105 S.Ct. 154, 83 L.Ed.2d 92 (1984). Therefore, we affirm the convictions of Patrick, Mohwish, and Gross for conspiracy to violate the CTRA.

Gross, Mohwish, and Patrick also assign error to the court’s refusal to instruct the jury that they had no duty to file currency transaction reports. However, the court did inform the jury of relevant statutory provisions placing the reporting requirement on the bank. The jury instructions clearly explained that the defendants could be convicted only if they conspired to cause the reporting requirement to be unfulfilled in violation of 31 U.S.C.

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965 F.2d 1390, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-patrick-ca6-1992.