United States v. Cohen

The First Circuit affirmed Defendant’s convictions for one count of conspiracy to convert government property, fourteen counts of conversion of government property, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and Defendant’s sentence to a term of imprisonment of fifty-four months.Defendant’s convictions stemmed from his role in using bank accounts that he owned or controlled in order to negotiate fraudulently-obtained federal tax refund checks. The First Circuit held (1) Defendant’s argument that the district court erred in permitting a prior settlement with the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office to be used at trial failed; (2) the district court did not err in permitting the government to introduce expert testimony at trial regarding the Massachusetts rules about Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts (IOLTA) accounts for attorneys; and (3) the district court did not err in imposing three sentencing enhancements in calculating Defendant’s sentencing range under the Sentencing Guidelines. View "United States v. Cohen" on Justia Law