United States v. Russo, 71-2390 Summary Calendar.
| Decision Date | 04 March 1972 |
| Docket Number | No. 71-2390 Summary Calendar.,71-2390 Summary Calendar. |
| Citation | 455 F.2d 1225 |
| Parties | UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Joe RUSSO et al., Defendants-Appellants. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit |
Ray Sandstrom, Sandstrom & Hodge, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., for Rodovich & Wade.
Joel D. Robrish, Miami, Fla., for Russo & Holet.
Robert W. Rust, U. S. Atty., Jerome B. Ullman, Asst. U. S. Atty., Miami, Fla., for plaintiff-appellee.
Before WISDOM, GODBOLD and RONEY, Circuit Judges.
The evidence in this case showed that in late September 1970 defendant Rodovich and a friend, Calarusse, passed approximately $2,000 in counterfeit money on a trip from Miami to Connecticut and were arrested in Connecticut. The Connecticut charges relate to this case only in an evidentiary sense.
The two returned to Miami, and Calarusse began to cooperate with United States Secret Service Agents. He arranged for a meeting on October 1 between Rodovich and undercover agent Ward, who at that meeting made a buy from Rodovich of $2,060 counterfeit currency. Ward negotiated with Rodovich for a larger buy at a future time. Rodovich revealed that he was dealing with an out of town source of supply but mentioned no names. Thereafter Rodovich, not knowing that he was dealing with Secret Service Agents, communicated directly with Ward and a second undercover agent, D'Amelio, who Ward introduced to Rodovich as his (Ward's) source of funds to buy the bogus money.
As a result of these dealings, a large buy was arranged for November 10 at the Miami airport. Rodovich, Ward and D'Amelio met at the terminal. Rodovich made a telephone call from a pay phone, and after a few minutes received a call at that same phone. He then told the agents the money was being brought to the airport. About 45 minutes later, and immediately after a car identified only as bluish in color had stopped at the terminal door, Russo and Holet entered the terminal bearing a suitcase which, it later developed, contained $250,000 of counterfeit bills. They met Rodovich, and the suitcase was put in a locker. While Holet and Russo remained close by, Rodovich took Ward to the locker and they examined the contents of the suitcase. Rodovich, Ward, and D'Amelio then went to another locker nearby where genuine money to make the buy had been placed. As the three of them were at this locker, and Russo and Holet were standing nearby, Wade entered and approached Holet and asked, A few moments later the numerous surveilling agents arrested the four defendants and made sham arrests of the two undercover men.
Wade was searched and found to have in his pocket a slip of paper with the telephone number of the pay station at which Rodovich had made and received his calls, and car keys which were found to be those for Russo's blue car, parked at the airport.
All defendants were convicted of conspiracy to violate the counterfeit laws. Rodovich was convicted also of possessing and delivering the $2,660 which he sold to Ward on October 1. Russo was convicted also of possessing two bogus bills found in his pocket when he was arrested.
Rodovich asserted the defense of entrapment and on appeal claims there was entrapment as a matter of law. He took the stand and testified only as to his dealings with Calarusse which led to the October 1 sale to Ward. On cross-examination he admitted passing counterfeit money on the trip to Connecticut with Calarusse.
Rodovich was not, as a matter of law, entrapped. There was sufficient evidence of governmental inducement to put upon it the burden of proving that the inducement did not overpersuade or undermine the will of an unwilling man. But the evidence of predisposition, in the form of passing...
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