United States of America v. The Real Property Commonly Known as 101 West Hermosa Drive, San Gabriel, California 91775 et al
Filing
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ORDER granting Plaintiff's 14 Motion to Stay. All proceedings in this case are STAYED until its companion criminal case, United States v. Shelburne, et al., CR17-0203-JCC, is resolved, either through a verdict or by way of plea. The United States is DIRECTED to file a status report in six months from the date of this order. Signed by U.S. District Judge John C Coughenour. (TH)
THE HONORABLE JOHN C. COUGHENOUR
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON
AT SEATTLE
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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
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Plaintiff,
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ORDER
v.
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CASE NO. C17-1138-JCC
THE REAL PROPERTY COMMONLY
KNOWN AS 101 WEST HERMOSA DRIVE,
SAN GABRIEL, CALIFORNIA 91775, LOS
ANGELES COUNTY, PARCEL NO.
536021022, TITLED IN THE NAME OF DEK
GROUP, LLC;
ALL FUNDS CONTAINED IN WELLS
FARGO BANK ACCOUNT NUMBER
XXXXXX4582, HELD IN THE NAME OF
BRIAN K. BURNETT;
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AND
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ALL FUNDS CONTAINED IN BANK OF
AMERICA ACCOUNT NUMBER
XXXXXXXX9392, HELD IN THE NAME OF
DEK GROUP, LLC,
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Defendants.
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This matter comes before the Court on Plaintiff’s motion to stay proceedings (Dkt. No.
14). Having thoroughly considered the Plaintiff’s briefing and the relevant record, the Court
ORDER
C17-1178-JCC
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hereby GRANTS the motion for the reasons explained herein.
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I.
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BACKGROUND
Plaintiff United States of America brings this civil forfeiture proceeding against the
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above-captioned assets that it believes constitute or are derived from proceeds traceable to an
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alleged bank fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and concealment of money laundering in
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violation of federal law. (Dkt. No. 14 at 2.) The United States is concurrently prosecuting a
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related criminal case before the Court. United States of America v. Alexandra Shelburne, et al.,
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CR17-0203-JCC, Dkt. No. 1 (W.D. Wash. 2017). In that case, defendants are being prosecuted
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for aggravated identity theft, bank fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, money laundering,
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and conspiracy to commit money laundering. (Dkt. No. 14 at 2.) As part of the criminal case, the
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United States also seeks forfeiture of some of the same assets identified in this case. (Id.)
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Trial in the criminal case is scheduled for March 12, 2018. (Id. at 3.) The United States
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continues to investigate the criminal case. (Id.) The United States asks to stay this civil forfeiture
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proceeding because of the ongoing criminal investigation and the likelihood that the criminal
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case will resolve some of the forfeiture issues in this civil case. (Id.) No parties have objected to
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the United States’ proposed stay.
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II.
DISCUSSION
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A.
Legal Standard for Stay of Civil Forfeiture Proceedings
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Federal law establishes a standard for district courts to use to decide whether to stay civil
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forfeiture proceedings when there is a parallel criminal case. Under 18 U.S.C. § 981(g)(1): “the
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court shall stay the civil forfeiture proceeding if the court determines that civil discovery will
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adversely affect the ability of the government to conduct a related criminal investigation or the
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prosecution of a related criminal case.” The statute defines a “related criminal case” as “an actual
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prosecution . . . in progress at the time at which the request for the stay . . . is made.” 18 U.S.C.
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§ 984(g)(4). To determine the relatedness of the proceedings, courts should look to “the degree
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of similarity between the parties, witnesses, facts, and circumstances involved in the two
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proceedings.” Id.
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Here, the Court finds that the civil forfeiture action and companion criminal case are
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related. Both the criminal case and civil forfeiture action are currently pending before this Court.
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Both arise out of an alleged scheme committed by the Defendants to steal access devices that
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were then used to wrongfully withdraw money from victims’ bank accounts. Shelburne, et al.,
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CR17-0203-JCC, Dkt. No. 48 at 2; (Dkt. No. 1 at 4.) This scheme provides the basis for the
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forfeiture of assets in both cases, and the criminal indictment seeks forfeiture of some of the
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same assets named in the civil action. Shelburne, et al., CR17-0203-JCC, Dkt. No. 48 at 15–17;
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(Dkt. No. 1 at 55–59.)
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The Court finds that civil discovery would adversely affect the government’s ongoing
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investigation in the criminal case. The broad scope of civil discovery would allow claimants in
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the civil forfeiture action, such as the criminal Defendants, to obtain information about the
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ongoing criminal investigation—for example, the identities and contact information of
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individuals supporting the government in its criminal investigation. (Dkt. No. 14 at 6.) Civil
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discovery could also provide Defendants with the opportunity to obtain investigation materials
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that would not otherwise be available as part of criminal discovery. (Id.) Allowing civil
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discovery could clearly frustrate the government’s ongoing criminal investigation.
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The Court finds that the civil and criminal cases are sufficiently related and that civil
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discovery will adversely affect the government’s ability to investigate and prosecute the criminal
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case. Therefore, a stay of the civil forfeiture action is mandated by 18 U.S.C. § 981(g)(1).
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III.
CONCLUSION
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For the foregoing reasons, Plaintiff’s motion to stay the civil case (Dkt. No. 14) is
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GRANTED. All proceedings in this case are STAYED until its companion criminal case, United
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States v. Shelburne, et al., CR17-0203-JCC, is resolved, either through a verdict or by way of
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plea. The United States is DIRECTED to file a status report in six months from the date of this
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order.
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DATED this 26th day of October 2017.
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John C. Coughenour
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
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ORDER
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