U.S. v. Ryder
| Decision Date | 14 July 2005 |
| Docket Number | No. 03-3478.,No. 03-3479.,03-3478.,03-3479. |
| Citation | 414 F.3d 908 |
| Parties | UNITED STATES of America, Appellee, v. Alfred K. RYDER, Appellant. United States of America, Appellee, v. Mary Ann Ryder, Appellant. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit |
Ronald Lee Wheeler, argued, Des Moines, IA, for Alfred K. Ryder.
B. John Burns, argued, Federal Public Defender, Des Moines, IA, for Mary Ann Ryder.
Mary C. Luxa, argued, Assistant U.S. Attorney, Des Moines, IA (Stephen Patrick O'Meara and Matthew G. Whitaker, on brief), for appellee.
Before WOLLMAN, HANSEN, and BYE, Circuit Judges.
Alfred K. Ryder and his wife Mary Ann Ryder each appeal their respective convictions related to bankruptcy fraud in these consolidated appeals. Following oral argument, both appellants also filed supplemental motions, which we have considered, seeking review of their respective sentences under Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S. 296, 124 S.Ct. 2531, 159 L.Ed.2d 403 (2004), and United States v. Booker, ___ U.S. ___, 125 S.Ct. 738, 160 L.Ed.2d 621 (2005). We affirm both of the defendants' convictions, but remand to the district court for resentencing in light of Booker.
On July 6, 1995, Alfred and Mary Ann Ryder, as individuals, filed for protection against creditors under Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code. The Ryders took the position that all of their farming assets were owned by a corporation rather than by themselves personally, and they did not disclose in their personal bankruptcy schedules any real property, livestock, crops, or farm equipment. Based on their failure to disclose assets from their farming operation to the bankruptcy trustee throughout the drawn out bankruptcy proceedings, a grand jury indicted the Ryders on federal bankruptcy fraud charges in December 2002. On May 9, 2003, a jury found Alfred and Mary Ann guilty on several counts. The bankruptcy proceeding still had not been concluded at the time of the criminal trial.
Following a jury's verdict, we state the facts in the light most favorable to the verdict. United States v. Maxwell, 363 F.3d 815, 817 (8th Cir.2004). Alfred and Mary Ann Ryder have farmed in southern Iowa for many years. At the time they filed for bankruptcy, they, or entities they controlled, owned approximately 4,300 acres of farmland in Iowa, Missouri, and Illinois. Alfred took care of the business end of the farming operation while Mary Ann primarily provided manual labor. Alfred's brother, Thomas Ryder, also farmed in Illinois and incorporated Ryder Farms, Inc. of Illinois in the late 1970s. Alfred and Mary Ann incorporated Ryder Farms, Inc. of Iowa1 in 1986. Numerous deeds were recorded throughout the 1980s, purporting to convey various parcels of farmland between the Ryders and the two corporations. The corporate documents of Ryder Farms, Inc. of Iowa varied from year to year regarding the named officers and directors as well as whether the corporation owned any farmland. Documents filed with the Secretary of State listed Alfred and Mary Ann as the named officers and directors through 1995, but the documents were changed after the Ryders filed for bankruptcy to list Thomas Ryder, Lucille Ryder, and Jane Ryder as the named officers and directors, even though Lucille had died in July 1994.
In the Chapter 7 proceedings, Alfred Ryder originally denied any ownership interest in Ryder Farms, Inc. of Iowa. Throughout various hearings, Alfred testified that he and Mary Ann had given their stock in Ryder Farms, Inc. of Iowa to Thomas and Lucille Ryder long before they filed for bankruptcy. He also testified that Ryder Farms, Inc. of Iowa owned no land, and that it had transferred land in the past to Ryder Farms, Inc. of Illinois, which it then leased back from Ryder Farms, Inc. of Illinois. Alfred changed his testimony in a May 1999 bankruptcy hearing, testifying that the farmland was owned by Ryder Farms, Inc. of Iowa. Thomas Ryder's son, a director of Ryder Farms, Inc. of Illinois, testified at the criminal trial that Ryder Farms, Inc. of Illinois had never owned any real property.
The Ryders also failed to disclose to the bankruptcy trustee their entitlement to government subsidy payments for their participation in the conservation reserve program (CRP), whereby they, as individuals, received government payments for keeping part of their farmland idle. Until 1996, they had reported to the relevant county Farm Service Agency (FSA) that the producer for the land involved in the CRP program was Ryder Farms, Inc. of Iowa, of which they each owned a 50% interest. They changed the reporting in 1996 (after they filed for bankruptcy) to list themselves individually as the "producers" to maximize the amount of payments for which they were eligible under the program. In changing the listed "producer" for subsidy purposes, the Ryders reported to the FSA that they had dissolved Ryder Farms, Inc. of Iowa.
Additionally, the Ryders concealed Mary Ann's interest in land in Illinois and income she received from renting that property. Mary Ann and her two sisters inherited farmland in Scott County, Illinois, from their grandfather following the termination of their father's life estate upon his death in 1988. Mary Ann and her sisters held the land as tenants in common. Although there was no evidence that Mary Ann's grandfather's will was ever probated, Mary Ann's sister, Margaret McGlasson, testified that they had inherited the land and began renting the land to Bruce Dahman after her father's death, dividing the profits equally. Mary Ann paid her share of property taxes on the land. Neither the Scott County, Illinois, land nor an entitlement to the rent payments was listed on the bankruptcy schedules, and both Alfred and Mary Ann told the bankruptcy trustee that they had no interest in any land in Illinois.
The evidence at trial also showed that the Ryders failed to disclose ownership of land in Wayne County, Iowa. A few months after filing for bankruptcy, Alfred Ryder purchased 244 acres of farmland in Wayne County, Iowa, by posing as his brother, Thomas. The property was placed in the name of Napland Farms (Napland is Mary Ann's maiden name), which Alfred claimed was formed by a group of hunters. Although Alfred told the bankruptcy trustee that none of his or Mary Ann's funds were used by Napland Farms to purchase the land, Mary Ann's social security number was associated with Napland Farms. The land was paid for with a $30,045 cashier's check listing Napland Farms as the remitter and a $30,000 money order purporting to bear the signature of Thomas Ryder. Thomas Ryder's son testified at the criminal trial that the signature was not his father's. The attorney representing the estate from which Alfred purchased the land also testified at the criminal trial and identified Alfred as the person who posed as Thomas Ryder in the transaction.
Even after the trustee discovered the Ryders' interest in various parcels of land and attempted to bring the property into the bankruptcy estate, Alfred Ryder continued to thwart the trustee's efforts. On January 12, 2000, Alfred, acting in his capacity as president, filed a Chapter 12 bankruptcy petition on behalf of Ryder Farms, Inc. of Iowa in the Western District of Missouri, listing the farmland, farm equipment, crops, and livestock in which he had claimed to have no interest in the Chapter 7 bankruptcy case. The Chapter 12 filing triggered an automatic stay for actions involving any of the listed property. The Chapter 12 case was transferred to the Southern District of Iowa and dismissed by the bankruptcy court that was presiding over the Chapter 7 case. Mary Ann was not involved in the Chapter 12 filing. Alfred later filed a Chapter 11 petition on behalf of Ryder Farms, Inc. of Iowa in the Western District of Missouri on March 8, 2002. Again, Mary Ann was not involved in the Chapter 11 filing. It too was transferred to the Southern District of Iowa and dismissed by the bankruptcy court. Prior to the dismissal, the automatic stay triggered by the Chapter 11 filing prevented the Chapter 7 trustee from proceeding with a planned sale of land in Missouri.
Alfred and Mary Ann were indicted as codefendants on one count of conspiring to conceal assets, 18 U.S.C. § 371, and four counts of concealing assets, 18 U.S.C. § 152(1) & (2). Alfred was also indicted on thirteen counts of money laundering, 18 U.S.C. § 1956(a)(1)(B)(i). A jury convicted Alfred of the conspiracy count, all four counts of concealment of assets, and nine of the money laundering counts. A final order of forfeiture in the form of a personal money judgment in the amount of $136,301.79 was entered upon the jury's guilty verdict on the money laundering counts. See 18 U.S.C. § 982(a)(1); Fed.R.Crim.P. 32.2(b)(3). The district court sentenced Alfred to 41 months of imprisonment. Mary Ann was convicted of the conspiracy count and two of the concealment counts-one count related to real property in Illinois, and one count related to farm equipment, livestock, and crops. She was acquitted of the other two concealment counts. Mary Ann received a sentence of twelve months and one day. On appeal, Alfred argues that there was insufficient evidence presented at trial to support the money laundering convictions. Mary Ann argues that there was insufficient evidence to support her conviction on any of the counts, that the district court erroneously allowed hearsay testimony, and that the district court erred in instructing the jury on reasonable doubt.
Following a jury verdict in favor of the government, "[w]e review the sufficiency of the evidence de novo, viewing evidence in the light most favorable to the government, resolving conflicts in the government's favor, and accepting all reasonable inferences that support the verdict." United States v. Parker, 364 F.3d 934,...
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