United States v. Tyler

220 F. Supp. 3d 563, 2016 WL 6728683, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 157491
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedNovember 15, 2016
DocketCRIMINAL NO. 1:96-CR-106
StatusPublished

This text of 220 F. Supp. 3d 563 (United States v. Tyler) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Tyler, 220 F. Supp. 3d 563, 2016 WL 6728683, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 157491 (M.D. Pa. 2016).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

William W. Caldwell, United States District Judge

I. Introduction

After a remand from the Third Circuit, we scheduled this case for another trial. Currently before the court are Defendant’s motions (set forth in one document) to dismiss the indictment, arguing that retrial is barred by the Sixth Amendment’s Confrontation Clause, the Fifth Amendment’s Double Jeopardy Clause, and the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause. For the reasons that follow, the motions will, be denied.

II. Background

In August 2000, defendant, Willie Tyler, was convicted of obstructing justice by tampering with a witness by murder, 18 U.S.C. § 1512(a)(1), and by tampering with a witness by intimidation and threats. Id. § 1512(b). The charges arose from the murder of Doreen Proctor on April 21, 1992, who was to be a witness later that day in a state-court drug trial against De[566]*566fendant's brother, David Tyler. Defendant was sentenced to life imprisonment.1

His convictions were upheld on direct appeal, see United States v. Tyler, 281 F.3d 84 (3d Cir. 2002)(‘‘Tyler 2002”), and survived several postconviction challenges, including one under 28 U.S.C. § 2255. (Doc. 280, memorandum and order of August 11, 2003, denying Defendant’s section 2255 motion).

In 2009, Defendant initiated proceedings cognizable under 28 U.S.C. § 2241, contending that under Arthur Andersen LLP v. United States, 544 U.S. 696, 125 S.Ct. 2129, 161 L.Ed.2d 1008 (2005), and Fowler v. United States, 563 U.S. 668, 131 S.Ct. 2045, 179 L.Ed.2d 1099 (2011), he was convicted for conduct that later changes in the law established was not criminal. On March 20, 2012, we denied relief. United States v. Tyler, 2012 WL 951479 (M.D. Pa.). On appeal, the Third Circuit reversed and remanded, requiring that Defendant be given the opportunity to show that under Arthur Andersen and Fowler he was actually innocent of the obstruction-of-justice offenses. United States v. Tyler, 732 F.3d 241 (3d Cir. 2013)(“Tyler 2013”).

In pertinent part, the government organized the indictment as follows. Count II charged one offense, obstruction of justice under 18 U.S.C. § 1512(a)(1) by tampering with a witness by murder. The murder was to prevent either one of two things, as the statutory language required: (1) the victim’s attendance at future criminal proceedings (the official proceeding provision, subsection (a)(1)(A)), and (2) the victim’s communication to a law enforcement officer of information relating to the possible commission of a federal offense (the investigation-related communications provision, subsection (a)(1)(C)). Count III charged one offense, obstruction of justice under 18 U.S.C. § 1512(b) by tampering with a witness by intimidation and threats. Like Count II, the conduct was to prevent either one of two things, as the statutory language required: (1) the victim’s attendance at future criminal proceedings (the official proceeding provision, subsection (b)(2)(D)), and (2) the victim’s communication to a law enforcement officer of information relating to the possible commission of a federal offense (the investigation-related communications provision, subsection (b)(3)). Defendant was found guilty of both offenses on a general verdict.

On remand, the parties briefed whether Defendant could show that he was actually innocent of conduct that would satisfy either of these provisions and hence show he was innocent of the obstruction-of-justice offenses. As part of its briefing, the government conceded that, in light of the changes in the pertinent law, it could no longer prove Defendant’s guilt under the official proceeding provision. United States v. Tyler, 35 F.Supp.3d 650, 653 (M.D. Pa. 2014)(“Tyler 2014”). In regard to the. other provision, the investigation-related communications provision, we concluded he had not shown that he was actually innocent of conduct that would satisfy that provision. Id. at 656. In accord with the Third Circuit’s instructions, once we decided Defendant had not shown his actual innocence on both provisions, we vacated the convictions on both Counts II and III and ordered a new trial on those counts based on a violation of the investigation-related communications provision. Id.

Defendant then filed his currently pending pretrial motions to dismiss the indict[567]*567ment, arguing that he should not be subjected to another trial.

III. Discussion

A. The Confrontation Clause Claim

Defendant contends the Sixth Amendment’s Confrontation Clause bars a retrial because the government is relying on a single hearsay statement supposedly made by the victim Doreen Proctor to a law-enforcement officer as the sole proof for the investigation-related communications provision. And since this hearsay statement is the sole proof, he cannot be retried.

As noted, we have decided that a new trial should take place on both Counts II and III based on a violation of the investigation-related communications provision. In the language of the statute, that provision requires, in relevant part, that the government show that the obstruction of justice (either by murder or intimidation) was intended to “prevent the communication by any person to a law enforcement officer... of the United States of information relating to the commission or possible commission of a Federal offense. ...” 18 U.S.C. § 1512(a)(l)(C)(mur-der) and 1512(b)(3)(intimidation). In Fowler, the Supreme Court held that “‘in a case.. .where the defendant does not have particular federal law enforcement officers in mind[] the Government must show a reasonable likelihood that, had.. .the victim communicated with law enforcement officers, at least one relevant communication would have been made to a federal law enforcement officer.’ ” Tyler 2013, 732 F.3d at 248 (quoting Fowler, 563 U.S. at 677, 131 S.Ct. at 2052)(emphasis in Fowler). “[T]he Government must show more than ‘a mere possibility that a communication would have been with federal officials’ and ‘that the likelihood of communication to a federal officer was more than remote, outlandish, or simply hypothetical.’” Id. (quoting Fowler, 563 U.S. at 676, 678, 131 S.Ct. at 2051, 2052).

In the instant case, as we noted in Tyler

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Bluebook (online)
220 F. Supp. 3d 563, 2016 WL 6728683, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 157491, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-tyler-pamd-2016.