United States v. Rene R. Bonetti, United States of America v. Rene R. Bonetti

277 F.3d 441, 2002 U.S. App. LEXIS 377, 2002 WL 27129
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
DecidedJanuary 10, 2002
Docket00-4616, 00-4653
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 277 F.3d 441 (United States v. Rene R. Bonetti, United States of America v. Rene R. Bonetti) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Fourth 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. Rene R. Bonetti, United States of America v. Rene R. Bonetti, 277 F.3d 441, 2002 U.S. App. LEXIS 377, 2002 WL 27129 (4th Cir. 2002).

Opinion

*445 Affirmed in part and reversed in part by published opinion. Judge LUTTIG wrote the opinion, in which Judge NIEMEYER and Senior Judge MAGILL joined.

OPINION

LUTTIG, Circuit Judge:

Appellant Rene R. Bonetti challenges his convictions and sentence for conspiracy to harbor an illegal alien, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(l)(A)(v)(I), and harboring an illegal alien, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(l)(A)(iii). The United States cross-appeals the district court’s refusal to award restitution to Bonetti’s victim under the Mandatory Victim Restitution Act. For the reasons that appear, we affirm Bonet-ti’s convictions and sentence, but reverse the district court’s judgment denying restitution.

I.

Rene Bonetti and his wife moved to the United States from Brazil in 1979, and brought Hilda Rosa Dos Santos with them to be their domestic servant. J.A. 208-09. From September 1979 to April 1998, Dos Santos worked for the Bonettis in the United States and lived in their home. Although the Bonettis helped Dos Santos obtain a visa and passport, Rene Bonetti kept Dos Santos’ passport in his possession while she was in the United States. Id. at 210. Bonetti renewed Dos Santos’ visa a few times, but did not renew it again after it expired in 1984. Id. at 211. From that point on, Dos Santos lived in the Bonettis’ house as an unlawful ahen. Dos Santos was illiterate and did not speak or understand any English; she spoke only Portugese. Id. at 206.

For almost nineteen years, Dos Santos worked for the Bonettis in slavery-like conditions. Dos Santos performed arduous labor for many hours a day, never receiving payment for her work. In addition, her living conditions were deplorable, and Bonetti’s wife physically abused Dos Santos on numerous occasions.

Each day, Dos Santos began work between 6:00 and 7:00 am, continued working until 10:00 pm, and remained “on call” to serve the Bonettis well into the night, sometimes as late as 1:00 am. J.A. 260-61. As part of her chores, Dos Santos cleaned the Bonettis’ house every day. Id. 451-52. Once a week, Dos Santos washed the inside and outside of the Bonettis’ windows. Id. at 256. Dos Santos also performed outdoor work such as shoveling snow, id. at 253-57, raking leaves, id. at 453, walking the Bonettis’ dog, id. at 351, and washing the Bonettis’ three car's, id. at 254. "When the Bonettis needed a new gas pipeline, Dos Santos spent four days digging a ditch for the pipeline with a pick ax. Id. at 258-60.

Although there were many empty rooms upstairs in the Bonettis’ $250,000 home, Dos Santos was forced to five in a basement room with no windows or bathroom. J.A. 247. The Bonettis forbade Dos Santos from using their showers; she could bathe only by carrying pails of water downstairs to a tin tub in the basement. Id. at 236-46. Bonetti also installed a padlock on his refrigerator to keep Dos Santos from using it. Id. at 262.

From the time Dos Santos arrived in the United States, Bonetti’s wife violently abused her, sometimes as often as once a day. J.A. 220-21. At first, Bonetti’s wife would hit Dos Santos with her closed fist, but later switched to beating Dos Santos with a shoe. Id. at 221-22. The beatings were so frequent that Dos Santos was unable to recall the first time she was hit. Id. at 222-23. In addition to these routine beatings, there were other, isolated incidents of abhorrent abuse. On one occasion, when Bonetti’s wife did not like the *446 way Dos Santos had prepared her soup, she threw the scalding hot soup in Dos Santos’ face with a spoon, burning her. Id. at 225. On another occasion, Mrs. Bonetti pulled out clumps of Dos Santos’ hair, causing her head to bleed, because she did not like the way Dos Santos was washing the Bonettis’ dog. Id. at 231-32.

Dos Santos suffered further injuries while working for the Bonettis. One day, Dos Santos cut her leg when cleaning up broken pieces of glass in the Bonettis’ house, and her leg became infected. J.A. 265-68. Bonetti purchased gauze and ointment for Dos Santos, but did not take her to the doctor for over a year, even though the wound worsened. Id. at 266-67. When finally taken to a doctor, Dos Santos was diagnosed with osteomyelitis and spent four days in the hospital. Id. at 561, 564. The infection healed, but left a large scar on her leg. Id. at 268.

Dos Santos also developed a cantaloupe-sized tumor in her stomach during her time in the Bonettis’ house. She asked Bonetti to take her to a doctor, J.A. 275-76, but he refused. Ultimately, it was determined that the tumor was a benign uterine fibroid. But by the time that Bo-netti finally did take Dos Santos to the doctor, a hysterectomy was needed to remove the tumor. Id. at 614.

Throughout these nineteen years, Bo-netti falsely told Dos Santos that he was paying her wages into a bank account. J.A. 263. When Dos Santos asked if some of her “wages” could be paid directly to her, Bonetti refused to give her anything. Id. at 273. Not once did Dos Santos receive payment from the Bonettis for her work.

Based upon these facts, Rene R. Bonetti was charged with, and convicted of, conspiracy to harbor an illegal alien, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(l)(A)(v)(I), and harboring an illegal alien, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(l)(A)(iii). The jury found that Bonetti’s conspiracy and harboring were “for the purpose of commercial advantage or private financial gain” under 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(l)(B)(i), and that “during and in relation to” the conspiracy and harboring Bonetti “causefd] serious bodily injury ... to, or place[d] in jeopardy the life of, a[ ] person” within the meaning of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(l)(B)(iii). 1 Accordingly, Bonetti was sentenced to 78 months imprisonment. J.A. 1271.

From these convictions and sentence, Bonetti appeals.

II.

Bonetti first claims that the district court should have entered a judgment of acquittal on the jury’s finding that he, during and in relation to his harboring, “cause[d] serious bodily injury ... to, or place[d] in jeopardy the life of, any person” under section 1324(a)(l)(B)(iii). Bo-netti makes two basic arguments. First, he asserts that the government failed to show that Bonetti himself “caused” Dos Santos’ injuries.

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Bluebook (online)
277 F.3d 441, 2002 U.S. App. LEXIS 377, 2002 WL 27129, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-rene-r-bonetti-united-states-of-america-v-rene-r-ca4-2002.