U.S. v. Hawkins

Record contained sufficient evidence to support jury’s guilty verdict on charge of bribery under 18 USC section 666, where record showed that third-party paid defendants to arrange for lower property assessment. Although defendants argued that they could not be convicted of bribery, where they would have lowered assessment regardless of payment and intended to only deceive third-party, section 666 forbids defendants from taking gratuities to perform their duties, as well as taking bribes. However, defendants’ wire fraud convictions under 18 USC 1341 must be vacated where Dist. Ct. erroneously used instruction that told jury that they could convict defendants if they took third-party’s money intending to be rewarded for their official acts. Moreover, defendants’ secret receipt of gratuity does not violate mail fraud offense under section 1341, where theory of charged offense concerned allegation that defendants deprived County of their loyal services by secretly taking third-party’s money.