Nature of the Case
To access this section all you need to do is click here and register.
Facts
D was a financial advisor. His principal clients were three elderly widows: Mrs. Maurita Johnson, who entrusted him with $1,090,000; Mrs. Corrine Parker, who entrusted him with $800,000; and Mrs. Annie Hallford, who entrusted him with $70,000. D “invested” his investors' money in a luxurious personal residence. D never opened investment accounts in the names of either Mrs. Johnson or Mrs. Parker. D learned of the pending charges against him. During a search of D's home, the contents of his computer were examined and a failed e-mail transmission was discovered. That e-mail was addressed to a radio personality known as 'Delilah,' but it was returned as undeliverable because the wrong e-mail destination had been used. Over D’s objection grounded in Rule 403, the failed e-mail was admitted into evidence.
Its message was: . . .I was successful in business earning in excess of $200K per year, but that never seemed good enough for her. . . . I built one of the biggest houses in Odessa for her. She wanted for nothing in material matters. . . . I am in the financial services industry and deal with large amounts of money. I misappropriated, (or as another listener of your show mentioned the same earlier, and you straightened him out to admit stole), a large amount of money. Nobody was hurt because of their resources, but that does not excuse, and I am not trying to justify my actions, what and why I did what I did. Delilah, today my attorney got a fax from the assistant attorney general of the United States. They are wanting me to admit what I did and face 3-4 years in a federal prison. I know I am guilty. I did a wrong thing because of the right reason . . . love.
The jury heard the entire e-mail and portions were reproduced on a large illustration placed within the jury's view. The trial judge issued a cautionary instruction, stating in relevant part that 'it is pretty clear that . . . this e-mail was written at a time when the Government was only considering . . . charges of bank fraud. It was not written at a time when the Government was considering a mail fraud charge.' D was convicted and appealed.
Holding and Decision
To access this section all you need to do is click here and register.
Legal Analysis
To access this section all you need to do is click here and register.
© 2007-2024 ABN Study Partner.
© 2024 Casebriefsco.com. All Rights Reserved.