United States v. Aldridge
2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 8297
| 7th Cir. | 2011Background
- Aldridge and co-defendants formed Century Financial, Inc. (CFI) and operated as its directors, offering CDs purporting FDIC insurance and 6% quarterly returns to Chicago investors.
- Proceeds from roughly $1.7 million in CD sales were transferred to Aldridge family accounts in Florida for personal use.
- Rivera, Aldridge's wife and CFI corporate secretary, began supplying materials to the SEC in 2006 after discovering concerns about Aldridge.
- Aldridge was indicted on six counts of wire fraud and aiding and abetting wire fraud; he was convicted on all counts after trial.
- At sentencing, the court adjusted the Guidelines range from the PSR (168–210 months) to a lower advisory range (97–121 months) but ultimately imposed 144 months due to Hawaii conduct and other factors.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Suppression of Rivera materials as Fourth Amendment search | Aldridge claims Rivera acted as government agent; warrantless search. | Rivera private actor with no authority to consent; searches unlawful. | Rivera acted as a private actor; no suppression required. |
| Sufficiency of evidence for fraud convictions | Casmay and Tracy testified Aldridge directed CFI's scheme. | Defendant offered weak excuses; insufficient for intentional fraud. | Evidence adequate for reasonable jury to convict. |
| Reasonableness of sentence and procedural handling of guidelines | Court properly used Hawaii conduct to justify longer sentence beyond range. | Procedural error in reconfiguring guidelines; not harmless. | Sentence affirmed; any error harmless; not reversed. |
Key Cases Cited
- United States v. Hall, 142 F.3d 988 (7th Cir. 1998) (Fourth Amendment applies when private party acts as government agent)
- United States v. Shahid, 117 F.3d 322 (7th Cir. 1997) (agency factors to determine private-party conduct as government action)
- United States v. Koenig, 856 F.2d 843 (7th Cir. 1988) (private-party conduct and agency considerations in searches)
- United States v. Payner, 447 U.S. 727 (1980) (no suppression for evidence seized from third party not before court)
- United States v. Basinski, 226 F.3d 829 (7th Cir. 2000) (lack of authority to consent; apparent authority standard)
- United States v. Matlock, 415 U.S. 164 (Supreme Court 1974) (consent exception to the warrant requirement)
- Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38 (2007) (reasonableness of sentence; standard for outside-guidelines)
- Carter, 538 F.3d 784 (7th Cir. 2008) (upholding above-guidelines sentence if justified by reasons under 3553(a))
- Rita v. United States, 551 U.S. 338 (2007) (sentencing framework under 3553(a))
- Anderson, 517 F.3d 953 (7th Cir. 2008) (harmless-error analysis in sentencing)
- United States v. Hach, 162 F.3d 937 (7th Cir. 1998) (standard for Rule 29 sufficiency review)
- United States v. Pribble, 213 F.3d 409 (7th Cir. 2000) (sufficiency review guidance)