NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION in Limine Requesting Limiting Instruction Government's… — USA v. Ayvazyan et al (Dkt. 536)

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The Government's Motion for Limiting Instruction and to Exclude Further Reference to or Evidence of a Non-Testifying Co-Defendant's Guilty Plea and Plea Agreement, Document 536 filed 06/16/21 in United States v. Richard Ayvazyan et al., No. CR 20-579(A)-SVW, in the Central District of California. The caption lists a hearing date of June 16, 2021 and a trial date of June 15, 2021 before the Hon. Stephen V. Wilson. The memorandum says that during opening statements counsel for Marietta Terabelian advised the jury that co-conspirator Manuk Grigoryan pleaded guilty. The government proposes a limiting instruction that a person's decision to plead guilty is a personal decision and should not be used as evidence against the defendants on trial. It also renews its hearsay objection to the admission of plea agreements executed by non-testifying co-defendants.

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TRACY L. WILKISON 
Acting United States Attorney 
SCOTT M. GARRINGER 
Assistant United States Attorney 
Chief, Criminal Division 
SCOTT PAETTY (Cal. Bar No. 274719) 
CATHERINE AHN (Cal. Bar No. 248286) 
BRIAN FAERSTEIN (Cal. Bar No. 274850) 
Assistant United States Attorneys 
Major Frauds/Environmental and Community Safety Crimes Sections 
1100/1300 United States Courthouse 
312 North Spring Street 
Los Angeles, California 90012 
Telephone: (213) 894-6527/2424/3819 
Facsimile: (213) 894-6269/0141 
E-mail: 
Scott.Paetty@usdoj.gov 
 
Catherine.S.Ahn@usdoj.gov 
 
Brian.Faerstein@usdoj.gov 
 
DANIEL S. KAHN 
Acting Chief, Fraud Section 
Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice 
CHRISTOPHER FENTON 
Trial Attorney, Fraud Section 
Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice 
1400 New York Avenue NW, 3rd Floor 
Washington, DC 20530 
Telephone: (202) 320-0539 
Facsimile: (202) 514-0152 
 
E-mail: 
Christopher.Fenton@usdoj.gov 
 
Attorneys for Plaintiff 
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 
 
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 
 
FOR THE CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 
 
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, 
Plaintiff, 
v. 
RICHARD AYVAZYAN, 
aka “Richard Avazian” and 
    “Iuliia Zhadko,” 
MARIETTA TERABELIAN, 
  aka “Marietta Abelian” and     
      “Viktoria Kauichko,” 
ARTUR AYVAZYAN, 
aka “Arthur Ayvazyan,” and 
TAMARA DADYAN, 
MANUK GRIGORYAN, 
  aka “Mike Grigoryan,” and 
No. CR 20-579(A)-SVW 
GOVERNMENT’S MOTION FOR LIMITING 
INSTRUCTION AND TO EXCLUDE FURTHER 
REFERENCE TO OR EVIDENCE OF A NON-
TESTIFYING CO-DEFENDANT’S GUILTY 
PLEA AND PLEA AGREEMENT 
Hearing Date: June 16, 2021 
Hearing Time: 9:00 a.m. 
Trial Date:   June 15, 2021 
Location:     Courtroom of the  
             Hon. Stephen V.  
             Wilson 
Case 2:20-cr-00579-SVW     Document 536     Filed 06/16/21     Page 1 of 4   Page ID
#:6443

 
 
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      “Anton Kudiumov,” 
ARMAN HAYRAPETYAN, 
EDVARD PARONYAN, 
aka “Edvard Paronian” and 
    “Edward Paronyan,” and 
VAHE DADYAN, 
 
Defendants. 
 
Plaintiff United States of America, by and through its counsel 
of record, the Acting United States Attorney for the Central 
District of California, Assistant United States Attorneys Scott 
Paetty, Catherine Ahn, and Brian Faerstein, and Department of 
Justice Trial Attorney Christopher Fenton, hereby proposes the 
following limiting instruction relating to references to co-
conspirator plea agreements and moves to exclude evidence of and 
prohibit reference to co-conspirator plea agreements.     
Dated: June 16, 2021 
Respectfully submitted, 
 
TRACY L. WILKISON 
Acting United States Attorney 
 
SCOTT M. GARRINGER 
Assistant United States Attorney 
Chief, Criminal Division 
 
      /s/ 
 
SCOTT PAETTY 
CATHERINE AHN 
BRIAN FAERSTEIN 
Assistant United States Attorneys 
CHRISTOPHER FENTON 
Department of Justice Trial Attorney 
 
Attorneys for Plaintiff 
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 
Case 2:20-cr-00579-SVW     Document 536     Filed 06/16/21     Page 2 of 4   Page ID
#:6444

 
 
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MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES 
During opening statements, counsel for Marietta Terabelian 
advised the jury that co-conspirator Manuk Grigoryan pleaded guilty 
in this case.  The government proposes a limiting instruction 
resembling an instruction endorsed by the Fourth Circuit in United 
States v. Vennie, a case in which defense counsel elicited on cross-
examination the fact that a non-testifying cooperating witness had 
pleaded guilty.  790 Fed. Appx. 506, 510 (4th Cir. 2019).  
Specifically, the government proposes that the Court instruct the 
jury: 
During opening statements, you heard a reference to a guilty plea 
agreement by an individual who is not on trial.  I instruct you that 
any other person’s decision to plead guilty is a personal decision 
about his or her own guilt.  You should not use any individual’s 
decision to plead guilty in any way as evidence against the 
defendants on trial.  You have heard that other co-defendants were 
charged in this case and you should not speculate about the reasons 
why co-defendants were not part of the trial.  I remind you that the 
opening statements that you heard are not evidence.   
In United States v. Halbert, the Ninth Circuit endorsed the 
practice of providing the jury with a limiting instruction making 
clear that a conspirator’s plea agreement may not be used as 
evidence of a defendant’s guilt.  640 F.2d 1000, 1004-07 (9th Cir. 
1981).   
The United States hereby renews its objection, on hearsay 
grounds, to the admission of plea agreements executed by any non-
testifying co-defendants.  As explained by the panel in Vennie, such 
plea agreements are inadmissible for several reasons, including that 
Case 2:20-cr-00579-SVW     Document 536     Filed 06/16/21     Page 3 of 4   Page ID
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the witness who signed the agreement is unavailable to testify about 
his reasons for pleading guilty.  790 Fed. Appx. at 510.  The 
defense has not cited any case in which a court received into 
evidence the plea agreement of a non-testifying co-defendant under 
similar circumstances.  The case cited by counsel yesterday, United 
States v. Bakshinian, did not address the facts now at issue before 
the court.  65 F. Supp. 2d 1104 (C.D. Cal. 1999).  In that case, the 
district court admitted as the statement of a party opponent a 
prosecutor’s closing argument during the trial of a co-conspirator.  
The decision did not address whether the guilty plea of a non-
testifying co-defendant is admissible, and courts have consistently 
held that such a plea is not. 
 
Case 2:20-cr-00579-SVW     Document 536     Filed 06/16/21     Page 4 of 4   Page ID
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