US v. Roberto, Crim. No. 5:91CR00009.

• Decision Date: 03 February 1992
• Docket Number: Crim. No. 5:91CR00009.
• Citation: 801 F. Supp. 946
• Parties: UNITED STATES of America v. Joseph M. ROBERTO.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Connecticut

801 F. Supp. 946

UNITED STATES of America v. Joseph M. ROBERTO.

Crim. No. 5:91CR00009.

United States District Court, D. Connecticut.

February 3, 1992.

Robert J. Devlin, Jr., Asst. U.S. Atty., New Haven, Conn., for plaintiff.

Andrew Bowman, Westport, Conn., for defendant.

RULING ON DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR JUDGMENT OF ACQUITTAL

ELLEN B. BURNS, Chief Judge.

After a three-day jury trial and pursuant to Fed.R.Crim.P. 29(b)-(c), the Defendant, Joseph M. Roberto, has moved for a judgment of acquittal following his conviction on a one-count indictment of receiving or soliciting a gift or thing of value because of any of his actions, decisions, or other duties as a Trustee of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 191 Health Services and Insurance Plan. In addition to returning a verdict of guilty, the jury specifically found on the Special Verdict and Interrogatory Form that Roberto received carpentry, plumbing, and electrical work in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1954.

Roberto contends that his conviction under 18 U.S.C. § 1954 should be overturned because there was insufficient evidence to support the jury's verdict on every essential element of the statute. Specifically, the Defendant claims that United States v. Palmeri, 630 F.2d 192 (3rd Cir.1980), cert. denied, 450 U.S. 967, 101 S.Ct. 1484, 67 L.Ed.2d 616 (1981), requires the relief requested because the Government failed to prove that the gift or thing of value was received "because of" his duties as a plan Trustee. Roberto contends that, since there was no direct evidence offered as to communications between himself and the electrical contractor, Stavola Manson Electric Co., Inc., regarding the work performed in the basement of his Trumbull, Connecticut home, the "because of" element of section 1954 was not satisfied. (Def.'s Mem.Supp.Mot.J. Acquittal at 3-4). Roberto claims the same flaw with the plumbing work performed by employees of A & M Piping Contractors Inc. (Id. at 4-5). Finally, Roberto claims that the testimony regarding the friendship between himself and the plumbing and carpentry (Bismark Construction Co., Inc.) contractors dispels the notion that the work performed in the basement of his home was provided "because of" his duties as a Trustee of the Local 191 Health Services and Insurance Plan. (Id. at 5). The Court disagrees, and, for the reasons that follow, the Defendant's motion is denied.

DISCUSSION

The standard in this circuit for granting a motion for judgment of acquittal is settled. See United States v. Fiore, 821 F.2d 127, 128 (2d Cir.1987). In evaluating such a motion,

the evidence must be viewed in the light most favorable to the verdict; all inferences must be drawn in the Government's favor; the Defendant bears a heavy burden; the verdict must be sustained if there is substantial evidence to support it; and ... the conviction must be sustained if any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.

Id. (citing, inter alia, Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 2789, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979)); see also United States v. Bryser, 954 F.2d 79, (2d Cir.1992); United States v. Brown, 937 F.2d 32, 35 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 112 S.Ct. 323, 116 L.Ed.2d 264 (1991); United States v. Macklin, 927 F.2d 1272, 1277 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 112 S.Ct. 146, 116 L.Ed.2d 112 (1991); United States v. Buck, 804 F.2d 239, 242 (2d Cir.1986); United States v. Artuso, 618 F.2d 192, 195 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 449 U.S. 861, 101 S.Ct. 164, 66 L.Ed.2d 77 (1980). This standard "gives full play to the responsibility of the trier of fact fairly to resolve conflicts in the testimony, to weigh the evidence, and to draw reasonable inferences from the basic facts to the ultimate facts." Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 2789, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979). Viewing the evidence most favorably to the Government and crediting every inference in its favor, the Court finds that the evidence was sufficient to support the jury's verdict convicting Roberto under 18 U.S.C. § 1954.

Section 1954 prohibits, inter alios, a trustee of any employee welfare benefit plan from receiving, agreeing to receive, or soliciting "any ... gift ... or thing of value because of ... any of his actions, decisions, or other duties relating to any question or matter concerning such plan." 18 U.S.C. § 1954. This proscription extends to "all persons who exercise control, direct or indirect, authorized or unauthorized, over the fund." United States v. Palmeri, 630 F.2d 192, 199 (3rd Cir.1980), cert. denied, 450 U.S. 967, 101 S.Ct. 1484, 67 L.Ed.2d 616 (1981); accord United States v. Robilotto, 828 F.2d 940, 946 (2d Cir.1987), cert. denied, 484 U.S. 1011, 108 S.Ct. 711, 98 L.Ed.2d 662 (1988).

Undisputed evidence demonstrated that Roberto, at the relevant times, was a Trustee of the Local 191 Health Services and Insurance Plan, which is an employee welfare benefit plan within the purview of section 1954. Furthermore, undisputed evidence demonstrated that Roberto personally received in part, and solicited and received in part, a gift or thing of value from contractors doing substantial business with the employee welfare benefit plan, that is, carpentry, plumbing, and electrical labor and materials used to remodel the basement of his Trumbull, Connecticut home. Roberto contends, however, that the Government failed to proffer sufficient evidence so that a reasonable jury could fairly conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that he received the remodeling work and materials "because of ... any of his actions, decisions, or other duties relating to any question or matter concerning" the employee welfare benefit plan. 18 U.S.C. § 1954. The Court disagrees.

The statute itself, within the context of its legislative history, reveals that Congress sought to outlaw not only kickbacks but also other conflict-of-interest payments to assure that the financial integrity of the plans administered would not be jeopardized by breaches of trust. United States v. Romano, 684 F.2d 1057, 1064 (2d Cir.) ("Congress used very broad language to prohibit receipt of `any fee, kickback, commission, gift, loan, money, or thing of value,' rather than just kickbacks."), cert. denied, 459 U.S. 1016, 103 S.Ct. 375, 376, 74 L.Ed.2d 509 (1982). Hence, the statute was intended in part "to ensure that anticipated benefits would be available when needed." United States v. Soures, 736 F.2d 87, 89 (3rd Cir.1984) (citing H.R.Rep. No. 998, 87th Cong., 1st Sess. 7, reprinted in 1962 U.S.C.C.A.N. 1532, 1535), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 1161, 105 S.Ct. 914, 83 L.Ed.2d 927 (1985).

Specifically, section 1954 prohibits the receipt of any gift or thing of value not only "with intent to be influenced" but also "because of" any action, decision, or other duty concerning the employee welfare benefit plan. Thus, "the broad language used in the statute reflects Congress's sic intent to reach all fiduciaries who profit (other than by their regular compensation) as the result of their" actions, decisions, or other duties relating to any question or matter concerning the plan. United States v. Romano, 684 F.2d at 1064 (footnote omitted).¹

Under the "because of" prong of section 1954, the jury is not required to find that any specific action or decision was actually taken in order to find the Defendant guilty. United States v. Friedland, 660 F.2d 919, 926 (3rd Cir.1981), cert. denied, 456 U.S. 989, 102 S.Ct. 2268, 73 L.Ed.2d 1283 (1982).² Nor is the Government required to prove that the Defendant received a gift or thing of value in order to influence his acts or decisions. United States v. Pieper, 854 F.2d 1020, 1025 (7th Cir.1988). Rather, the Government needs only to establish that the Defendant received the gift or thing of value "`because of' his status, which gave him at least ostensible authority to exercise influence over the" employee welfare benefit plan's decisions. Id.; United States v. Friedland, 660 F.2d at 926-27. A violation of section 1954 does not, however, flow solely from the status of the accused, and the jury was so instructed in this case.³

Based upon the following summary of the evidence, a rational jury could have found beyond a reasonable doubt that the Defendant received the gratuitous remodeling work and materials because of his duties and authority as a plan Trustee.

As to the carpentry work, Roberto requested Joseph Murphy, a superintendent for Bismark Construction Co., Inc., to send some workers to his home in Trumbull, Connecticut for a basement renovation. At the time of the request, Murphy was working on a major construction project for the Local 191 Health Plan. Murphy knew Roberto as a Teamster official from the weekly project briefings, and Roberto's request was made on the site of the project. Murphy relayed the request to Gregory Raucci, the owner and President of Bismark Construction, who later directed Murphy and another employee of Bismark to Roberto's home for the renovation. Murphy testified that he never discussed payment for this work with anyone, including Raucci, and that Roberto never asked for a price quote for the carpentry services.⁴ Moreover, Murphy stated that the normal business practice of Bismark Construction was to maintain detailed records for each job; yet, none of those records were kept for the work performed at Roberto's home.

Raucci had become acquainted with the Local 191 officials, including Roberto, because of the ongoing renovation of the Local's Health Plan building and annex and the weekly business meetings regarding the progress of the construction. Raucci testified that he knew Roberto was a union Trustee and that the value of the renovation of the Health Plan building and annex to Bismark Construction was approximately $1,900,000. According to Raucci, Roberto and Anthony Rossetti, another Local 191 Trustee, were the two people directly responsible for monitoring...