United States v. Winkle

430 F. Supp. 67, 1977 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17011
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Florida
DecidedMarch 8, 1977
DocketNo. 76-69 Cr. T-K
StatusPublished

This text of 430 F. Supp. 67 (United States v. Winkle) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Winkle, 430 F. Supp. 67, 1977 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17011 (M.D. Fla. 1977).

Opinion

ORDER

KRENTZMAN, District Judge.

The Court has for consideration the motion for new trial filed by attorney, Arnold D. Levine, on November 19, 1976, and supplemented by additional grounds filed with the Court February 10, 1977, on behalf of the defendant, Ernest A. Winkle. Said motion, the matters in the file, the testimony relating to said motion and memoranda, and argument of respective counsel have been considered by the Court, and it is of the opinion that it should be, and it is, DENIED.

Count One of the indictment herein charged Mr. Winkle, Leonarda Winkle, Joseph N. Distefano and Alan Colmar with conspiracy to defraud the United States in [68]*68violation of Title 18, Section 371, United States Code.

Counts Two through Twenty inclusive charged all of the above, except Mr. Col-mar, with violations of Sections 2 and 1001, Title 18, United States Code.

Initially, Ernest A. Winkle and Leonarda Winkle, his wife, were both represented by attorney Bernard H. Dempsey, Jr. Shortly before trial Mr. Dempsey moved to be relieved as counsel for Mrs. Winkle citing a conflict of interest, and represented that if she was severed from the trial she would be represented by Mr. Levine. She was severed, testified for Mr. Winkle at trial, and after the verdicts herein the charges against her were dismissed by the government.

Mr. Dempsey represented Mr. Winkle during trial, filed a motion for new trial which was denied September 16, 1976, and appeared with Mr. Winkle at sentencing.

Mr. Distefano was represented by separate counsel, as was Mr. Colmar.

The trial began Thursday, July 22, 1976. The parties had been told that Thursday evening the trial would be continued until Monday, July 26 to allow the Court to attend to other pending matters. Voir dire selection of jurors began about 9:30 a. m. All parties and attorneys were present, except Mrs. Winkle, and were introduced to the jury. After the noon recess the Court was told at a bench conference that Mr. Colmar intended to plead. The other parties were informed. All concerned requested that the trial be continued until his plea had been considered by the Court. At 2 p. m. the jury panel was excused until 9:30 a. m. Monday, July 26. At a hearing during the late afternoon of Friday, July 23, Mr. Colmar’s plea to a misdemeanor was accepted and he was dismissed as a defendant in the case.

On Monday neither Mr. Colmar or his attorneys were present. At a bench conference I asked the attorneys their suggestion concerning what, if anything, I should tell the jury concerning his absence. The government asked that I tell them nothing. Mr. Dempsey, counsel for Mr. Winkle, said he had “no position” as to that question.

I asked the jury panel if any one of them had read or heard anything about the case over the weekend, received a negative answer, and told the jury nothing concerning Mr. Colmar’s absence.

A jury was selected, the trial ensued and required about seventeen trial days.

During the trial Mr. Distefano was dismissed as a defendant in Counts Two through Twenty inclusive.

The jury returned verdicts on August 17, 1976, finding Mr. Winkle guilty as to each of the nineteen counts charging violations of Title 18, Section 1001, United States Code.

The jury could not agree as to a verdict as to either Mr. Winkle or Mr. Distefano on the conspiracy charge and a mistrial as to each on Count One was declared.

Mr. Winkle was sentenced on September 24, 1976, and notice of appeal was filed September 27, 1976.

The case against Mrs. Winkle and against Mr. Winkle and Mr. Distefano on Count One was reset for trial, and on September 7, 1976 the government dismissed the remaining counts against them.

On November 8, 1976 I extended time for filing appeal transcript until December 27, 1976.

On November 9, 1976 Mr. Levine, as counsel for Mr. Winkle, filed a notice of intention to interview the trial jurors. Therein he stated that during a telephone conversation with Mr. Dempsey on October 28, 1976 he was advised by Mr. Dempsey that on August 17, 1976, after the verdict was returned that day, Mr. Dempsey had talked with one of the jurors, Bryan Putnam. Mr. Levine suggested the need to interview Mr. Putnam and the other jurors.

The Court noticed a hearing at which time Mr. Putnam was directed to be present.

On November 17, 1976 a motion for substitution of Mr. Levine as counsel for Mr. [69]*69Winkle, to which Mr. Dempsey consented, was filed and was granted by the Court.

On December 2,1976 Mr. Winkle’s motion to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to temporarily stay proceedings in that Court and relinquish jurisdiction to this Court was granted.

Testimony was taken of the following persons: Bryan Putnam, a member of the jury, on November 18, 1976; Attorney Dempsey on November 19, 1976; and Marjorie Graham on December 16, 1976. The testimony has been transcribed and will be a part of the record on appeal.

Briefly, it was the juror Putnam’s testimony that during the deliberation when they were discussing the conspiracy count he heard one of the jurors — a Mrs. Graham — say that Mr. Colmar had pled guilty before trial, but that he didn’t hear her say how she knew that. Mrs. Graham later testified that since Mr. Colmar was there the first day of the trial she “just supposed that he had pleaded guilty”, but that she had not read anything about that or “had no way of knowing that”.

As has been mentioned, the jury did not return verdicts as to either Mr. Winkle or Mr. Distefano as to Count One, the conspiracy charge.

Excerpts from the transcript as to instructions given the jury are as follows.

On Monday, July 26, after Mr. Colmar had pled in the absence of the jury on July 23, before resuming voir dire:

“THE COURT: Now, good morning. The weekend, of course, has intervened and you will remember that I had asked you not to read anything or look at anything or hear anything about this ease. Since that time, it may be that by inadvertence or mistake or otherwise, you may have read or heard or seen something about this case or any of the parties whose names you heard mentioned. Did you? If you did, it would be of help to let us know. All right. Thank you.”

Later on that day—

“THE COURT: All right. Now you will remember that I told you what the case was about. I referred to what is called an indictment, told you that that is not evidence, you should not consider it against the defendants. I told you who the parties were and who their attorneys were. Except for what you have heard here last Thursday in Court, have any of you ever heard anything about these alleged events? If you have, would you hold your hand up? Any of you know any of the parties whose names were mentioned?”

Typical of instructions at end of each recess, this one given July 29, 1976:

“At any rate, we are going to recess now until Monday morning. That will be Monday — next Monday. I think — I ran off my calendar, so whatever that is. It’s August first, I assume. Saturday is the 31st. So, it will be August 2nd, 9:30.
Please keep an open mind about the case. Don’t talk about it, read about it, look at anything, hear anything or let anyone who

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430 F. Supp. 67, 1977 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17011, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-winkle-flmd-1977.