Defendant’s Response to Government’s Notice of Intent to Introduce Inextricably Intertwined Evidence and Rule 404(b) Evidence — No. 0:22-cr-60028 (Dkt. 38, S.D. Fla.)

Summary

A defendant's response to the government's notice of intent to introduce inextricably intertwined evidence and Rule 404(b) evidence, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in United States v. Luke Joselin, Case No. 0:22-cr-60028-WPD-1, as Document 38 of 6 pages. Joselin opposes the government's notice of intent to introduce evidence under Federal Rule of Evidence 404(b). The background states that the indictment charges him with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 1349, nine counts of wire fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 1343 and two counts of aggravated identity theft under 18 U.S.C. § 1028A(a)(1), arising from his alleged involvement in defrauding the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Counsel is Davis Legal Center.

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“Defendant’s Response to Government’s Notice of Intent to Introduce Inextricably Intertwined Evidence and Rule 404(b) Evidence — No. 0:22-cr-60028 (Dkt. 38, S.D. Fla.).” Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/defendant-s-response-to-government-s-notice-of-intent-to-introduce-ine-9552fa0e7b/, SHA-256 5757cef817f1187ad894c2b42bccb7ee43cff8aabe1acecaa9542281a22fd87b.

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Case 0:22-cr-60028-WPD Document 38 Entered on FLSD Docket 07/28/2022 Page 1 of 6

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

Case No.: 0:22-cr-60028-WPD-1
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff,

vs.

LUKE JOSELIN,

Defendant.
____________________________________________/

DEFENDANT’S RESPONSE TO GOVERNMENT’S NOTICE OF INTENT
TO INTRODUCE INEXTRICABLY INTERTWINED EVIDENCE AND
RULE 404(b) EVIDENCE

The Defendant Luke Joselin, by and through undersigned counsel

respectfully files a response in opposition to the government’s notice of intent to

introduce evidence pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 404(b). In support

thereof, Mr. Joselin states:

BACKGROUND

The indictment in this case charges the Defendant, Mr. Joselin with one

count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C § 1349; nine

counts of wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343; and two counts of

aggravated identity theft, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1028 A(a)(1). The

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Case 0:22-cr-60028-WPD Document 38 Entered on FLSD Docket 07/28/2022 Page 2 of 6

charges arise from Mr. Joselin’s involvement with defrauding the Paycheck

Protection Program (PPP).

The indictment alleges that Mr. Joselin did willfully, with intent to

further the object of the conspiracy, and knowingly combine, conspire,

confederate, and agree with Renaldo Harrison, Judlex Jean Louis, and with

others known and unknown to the Grand Jury, to commit offenses against

the United States.

The indictment further alleges that Mr. Joselin and his co-

conspirators created email accounts to facilitate the submission of false and

fraudulent PPP loan applications; created online accounts with Bank

Processor 1 and Bank Processor 2 to upload, edit, and share drafts of false

and fraudulent PPP loan applications; created false and fraudulent tax

forms and bank statements to support the false and fraudulent PPP loan

applications; used Bank Processor 1’s online portal and Bank Processor 2’s

online portal to submit false and fraudulent PPP loan applications; used

false social security numbers or social security numbers stolen from victims

to disguise their own identities as the true applicants.

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Case 0:22-cr-60028-WPD Document 38 Entered on FLSD Docket 07/28/2022 Page 3 of 6

In the motion to use 404(b) evidence, the government alleges that

Mr. Joselin and his co-conspirators sought PPP loans of about $20,000.00

each for sole proprietorships that did not actually exist. The government

also alleges that Mr. Joselin and his co-conspirators sought PPP loans of

about $180,000.00 each for businesses which either operated on a smaller

scale than the applications claimed or had not operated at all for many

years.

Additionally, the government proposes to introduce evidence that

Mr. Joselin and his co-conspirators, in addition to the charged PPP loans,

applied for loans through a separate pandemic relief program: the

Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program.

The Government further proposes to introduce evidence that

before the pandemic, Mr. Joselin and his co-conspirator, Judlex Jean Louis,

jointly possessed stolen victim personal identifying information (PII), and

that the pair always intended to use this PII for fraud and that the PPP just

provided the best opportunity.

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Case 0:22-cr-60028-WPD Document 38 Entered on FLSD Docket 07/28/2022 Page 4 of 6

ARGUMENT AND MEMORANDUM OF LAW

Under Federal Rule of Evidence 403, a court may exclude relevant

evidence if its probative value is substantially outweighed by a danger of

one or more of the following: unfair prejudice, confusing the issues,

misleading the jury, undue delay, wasting time, or needlessly presenting

cumulative evidence. In this case, the probative value of Mr. Joselin’s false

statements in the PPP loan applications and his alleged involvement with

the EIDL loan is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair

prejudice, confusing the issues, and misleading the jury. The EIDL loan is

only tangentially related to the charged offenses.

Contrary to the government’s assertion that the loan is

inextricably intertwined with the instant offense, the evidence about how

Mr. Joselin obtained the EIDL loan is wholly separate from the allegations

in the indictment. Therefore, there is a danger that the evidence that Mr.

Joselin made false statements to obtain the EIDL loan will mislead the jury

and confuse the issues. Moreover, the evidence of the EIDL loan would be

unfairly prejudicial. Accordingly, the Court should exclude the evidence of

the EIDL loan from the trial of this case.

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Case 0:22-cr-60028-WPD Document 38 Entered on FLSD Docket 07/28/2022 Page 5 of 6

Contrary to the government’s argument, the alleged schemes are

not identical. In the instant case, the government is alleging that Mr. Joselin

and his co-conspirators sought PPP loans of about $20,000.00 each for sole

proprietorships that did not actually exist. The government also alleges that

Mr. Joselin and his co-conspirators sought PPP loans of about $180,000.00

each for businesses which either operated on a smaller scale than the

applications claimed or had not operated at all for many years.

Evidence of uncharged criminal conduct is admissible only if

relevant to an issue other than the defendant's character or propensity to

commit a crime. See United States v. Ellisor, 522 F.3d 1255, 1267 (11th

Cir. 2008). The government is seeking to admit evidence of the EIDL Loan

to paint Mr. Joselin in bad light. Accordingly, the Court should preclude the

government from introducing evidence of Mr. Joselin’s involvement with

the EIDL Loan.

CONCLUSION

Based upon the above facts and arguments, this Court should

exclude the evidence the government seeks to introduce pursuant to Federal

Rule of Evidence 404(b).

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Case 0:22-cr-60028-WPD Document 38 Entered on FLSD Docket 07/28/2022 Page 6 of 6

RELIEF REQUESTED

WHEREFORE, the Defense respectfully requests that this Court exclude

the proffered 404(b) evidence from the Trial of this cause.

Date: July 28, 2022

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I HEREBY CERTIFY that on July 28, 2022, I electronically filed the
foregoing which will send a notice of electronic filing to the following:

The United States Attorney’s Office
Southern District of Florida
500 S. Australian Ave.
West Palm Beach, FL 33041

Service sent Electronically via Email

Respectfully Submitted,

THE DAVIS LEGAL CENTER
/s/ Dameka L. Davis, Esq.
Dameka L. Davis, Esq.
Florida Bar No.: 0110587
2719 Hollywood Boulevard, A-1187
Hollywood, Florida 33020
Telephone: 954-256-5958
Fax No.: 954-272-7665
Email: ddavis@thedavislegalcenter.com
Counsel for the Defendant,
Luke Joselin

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HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA 33020
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