United States v. Tatoyan

CourtCourt of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
DecidedJanuary 29, 2007
Docket05-50783
StatusPublished

This text of United States v. Tatoyan (United States v. Tatoyan) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Ninth 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. Tatoyan, (9th Cir. 2007).

Opinion

FOR PUBLICATION UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,  No. 05-50783 Plaintiff-Appellee, D.C. No. v.  CR-03-00961-SVW- KRIKOR BAGHDASSAR TATOYAN, 01 a/k/a KRIKOR TATOYAN, Defendant-Appellant. 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,  No. 05-50784 Plaintiff-Appellee, D.C. No. v.  CR-03-00961-SVW- ZENDA BEDROS TATOYAN, a/k/a 02 ZENDA TATOYAN, OPINION Defendant-Appellant.  Appeal from the United States District Court for the Central District of California Stephen V. Wilson, District Judge, Presiding

Argued and Submitted November 17, 2006—Pasadena, California

Filed January 30, 2007

Before: Cornelia G. Kennedy,* Cynthia Holcomb Hall, and Michael Daly Hawkins, Circuit Judges.

*The Honorable Cornelia G. Kennedy, Senior United States Circuit Judge for the Sixth Circuit, sitting by designation.

1121 1122 UNITED STATES v. TATOYAN Opinion by Judge Hawkins UNITED STATES v. TATOYAN 1125

COUNSEL

David J. Bederman, Atlanta, Georgia, for the defendants- appellants.

Brian M. Hoffstadt (argued) and J. Mark Childs, Office of the United States Attorney, Los Angeles, California, for the plaintiff-appellee.

OPINION

HAWKINS, Circuit Judge:

We examine the long-standing requirements surrounding the personal export of cash from the United States, the more recently enacted bulk cash smuggling prohibitions, and the ever-elusive requirement of willfulness. Here, as in many other areas, honesty remains the best policy.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

As they were about to board a flight to Paris at Los Angeles International Airport, Krikor and Zenda Tatoyan (“the Tatoy- ans”) were stopped by United States Customs Inspector 1126 UNITED STATES v. TATOYAN Chung J. Lou (“Inspector Lou”), who was conducting cur- rency enforcement examinations of passengers on that flight. At the time, Krikor had $8,000 cash in his pants pocket and $17,601 cash in two pouches hanging around his neck under- neath his sweater, while Zenda had $10,000 cash in a plastic bag in her purse and $43,717 cash in various pouches in her purse. Although Inspector Lou did not follow, to the letter, the Customs Service’s procedures for conducting currency exami- nations when he examined the Tatoyans,1 he did inform them that there was no law against taking money out of the United States but that, if they were carrying more than $10,000, they must declare it and file a form with the Customs Service. He also informed them that there would be no taxes or penalties on any money they declared.2

When Inspector Lou asked the Tatoyans how much money they were carrying, Krikor responded that he was carrying $8,000 and Zenda said she was carrying exactly $10,000. Although, technically, a person need not fill out Customs Form 4790 unless carrying more than $10,000, Inspector Lou nonetheless asked Zenda to move to a nearby table and com- plete this form. On the form—which Zenda signed and Inspector Lou explained in detail—Zenda declared that she was carrying only $10,000.

Asked to produce the money, Zenda pulled a plastic bag from her purse that contained a bundle of exactly $10,000 cash. A subsequent search of the Tatoyans revealed the addi- 1 According to testimony presented at trial, a Customs Service handbook instructs currency examiners to provide travelers with form CP 503 — which explains the currency reporting requirements—and have them read and sign this form to confirm that they understand these requirements. Inspector Lou failed to follow these procedures. 2 According to the evidence presented at trial, the currency reporting requirements were also posted on placards located at the Tatoyans’ ticket booth and at their departure gate, as well as in the Tatoyans’ passports. Both Krikor and Zenda had traveled internationally prior to their antici- pated November 8, 2003 flight. UNITED STATES v. TATOYAN 1127 tional $43,717 Zenda was carrying, as well as the $8,000 in Krikor’s pants pocket and the $17,601 in his under-sweater pouches. When asked why they had responded the way they did when asked about the money, Krikor explained that the inspector had been talking quickly and that he did not want other passengers to hear how much money he and his wife were carrying. Zenda added that “people just told her to write $10,000.” Interviewed separately, both Tatoyans said the funds were destined for Krikor’s uncle in Iraq who needed financial help. The government presented no evidence at trial to contradict this or to establish that the funds were related to any illicit activity.

As a result of these events, the Tatoyans were each charged with conspiracy, failure to report an attempted transportation of over $10,000 out of the United States, bulk cash smug- gling, and making a false statement to a government official.3 On October 9, 2003, the Tatoyans agreed to a forfeiture settle- ment with the government under which $39,659—one half of the total funds—were administratively forfeited. The Tatoy- ans were later convicted by a jury of all counts and were each sentenced to pay a $100,000 fine, serve three years probation, perform 360 hours of community service, and pay a $400 spe- cial assessment.

Before trial, the district court granted the government’s motion to exclude evidence regarding the apparently innocent purpose of the smuggled funds. The court also declined to adopt the Tatoyans’ proposed jury instructions with regard to bulk cash smuggling under 31 U.S.C. § 5332 and making false statements under 18 U.S.C. § 1001. After sentencing, the court denied the Tatoyans’ Motion for Judgment of Acquittal or for a New Trial. The Tatoyans now appeal their convic- tions, sentences, and the denial of their post-trial motion. 3 These charges were brought under 18 U.S.C. § 371, 31 U.S.C. §§ 5316(a)(1)(A), 5322(a), 31 U.S.C. § 5332, and 18 U.S.C. § 1001, respectively. 1128 UNITED STATES v. TATOYAN DISCUSSION

I. Sufficiency of the Evidence

The Tatoyans first argue that the evidence presented at trial was insufficient to support their currency reporting and bulk cash smuggling convictions under 31 U.S.C. §§ 5322(a) (requiring a “willful” violation of the currency reporting requirement) and 5332(a)(1) (requiring an “intent to evade” the currency reporting requirement) because Inspector Lou failed to follow the Customs Service’s internal procedures for apprising travelers of the currency reporting laws.

A district court’s determination that sufficient evidence supports a conviction is reviewed de novo. United States v. Weber, 320 F.3d 1047, 1050 (9th Cir. 2003). “There is suffi- cient evidence to support a conviction if, viewing the evi- dence in the light most favorable to the government, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.” Id.

[1] Under the currency reporting statutes, a defendant acts “willfully” if he has “knowledge of the reporting require- ment” and a “purpose to disobey the law.” Ratzlaf v. United States, 510 U.S. 135, 141 (1994).

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