Order — United States of America vs. Leslie Danielle Bethea, 2:22-CR-52 (Eastern District of Tennessee)

Summary

An Order, Document 72, filed June 29, 2022 in United States of America v. Leslie Danielle Bethea, Case Nos. 2:22-CR-52 and 2:18-CR-25, in the United States District Court Eastern District of Tennessee, on Defendant's request for release. The order states that a detention hearing was conducted on June 23, 2022 and that the Government and the United States Probation Office opposed release. It states that the United States proffered that Defendant applied for a PPP loan and that the application stated Defendant had not been convicted of a felony in the past 5 years; the Court finds that Defendant poses a flight risk and a danger to the community and that no combination of conditions can reasonably ensure safety or appearance, and remands Defendant to the custody of the Attorney General.

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“Order — United States of America vs. Leslie Danielle Bethea, 2:22-CR-52 (Eastern District of Tennessee).” Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/gov-uscourts-tned-84581-72-0-a221064bdb/, SHA-256 cb9f9ce0b46f7c74fd9da1bcfc117cdae03141cba603ac6f82953c93470a7929.

Full text

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE
GREENEVILLE DIVISION

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, )
)
Plaintiff, )
)
vs. )
) 2:22-CR-52
LESLIE DANIELLE BETHEA, ) 2:18-CR-25
)
Defendant. )
)

ORDER

Defendant appeared before the Court on June 15, 2022, for an initial appearance in these

matters, at which time she requested a detention hearing. A detention hearing was held on June 23,

2022.1 Even though no presumption of detention arises under Defendant’s new charges, because

Defendant was on federal supervised release when she was indicted on the new charges and a

revocation petition is now pending, the Court determined that Defendant bore the burden of proof.

The Government and the United States Probation Office opposed Defendant’s release. Defense

counsel called Defendant’s mother, Donna Carter, as a witness and provided proffer as well, in

support of Defendant’s request for release. The Government proceeded solely by proffer.

After considering the motion, the testimony of Defendant’s mother, and the proffer offered,

the Court advised Defendant that it was unable to grant her request for release. As referenced

above, Defendant was on supervised release at the time the alleged offenses were committed and

a petition for the revocation has been issued. Defendant’s prior conviction was for Conspiracy to

1
A hearing was originally scheduled for June 21, 2022, but was rescheduled to June 23, 2022, due to the Court’s
unforeseen unavailability due to illness on June 21, 2022.

Case 2:18-cr-00025-JRG-CRW Document 72 Filed 06/29/22 Page 1 of 3 PageID
#: 666
Commit Wire Fraud and Wire Fraud. Defendant has a lengthy criminal history dating back to 2001,

which includes convictions for theft and using a false name in Virginia, theft in Texas, and theft

and probation violations in Tennessee. Defendant was still on probation in Tennessee when she

was originally indicted in federal court in 2018. Additionally, while her prior charges were

pending, Defendant was granted pre-trial release, but that release was revoked based upon

allegations of new criminal conduct, i.e., identity theft.

The United States proffered that Defendant applied for a PPP loan in March 2021and her

application contained assertions that she had not been convicted of a felony in the past 5 years,

despite having been convicted of Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and Wire Fraud in this court

in 2019. The application further misrepresented Defendant's 2019 income and her status as a

business owner with employees. Once Defendant obtained the funds she sought, she used them to

travel to Florida, without the knowledge or permission of her probation officer. The purpose of her

travel was to obtain plastic surgery. While in Florida, Defendant stayed an expensive resort, for

which she also used the PPP funds obtained. Additionally, the Government contends that

Defendant claimed to be a Certified Public Accountant and referred approximately 20 other people

for PPP loans, who in turn each paid Defendant approximately $5,000 each.

Defendant's mother, Donna Carter, testified during the hearing and stated that if released

Defendant would live with her. Ms. Carter stated that the home does have internet access but there

are currently no computers in the home. However, there is a gaming console that is connected to

the internet, and cell phones may use the home's wi-fi connection to access the internet. Ms. Carter

stated that she is in poor health and needs Defendant to help care for her and Defendant's two

daughters, who currently live with Ms. Carter. Additionally, Ms. Carter noted that her husband

was experiencing a serious health issue as well.

Case 2:18-cr-00025-JRG-CRW Document 72 Filed 06/29/22 Page 2 of 3 PageID
#: 667
While the Court is sympathetic to Ms. Carter's situation, the Court cannot release

Defendant at this time because she poses both a flight risk and a danger to the community.

Although Ms. Carter offered to serve as a third-party custodian for Defendant, the Court notes that

Defendant has resided with Ms. Carter for much of the time while Defendant was allegedly

committing criminal acts. As such, the Court cannot be confident that Ms. Carter will be able to

reasonably ensure Defendant’s compliance with conditions of release in the future, despite a

sincere desire to do so. Moreover, with access to the internet, Defendant may well continue to

fraudulently attempt to obtain funds using the identity of others. Additionally, Defendant has a

history of using a false identity and leaving the state even while on supervision without the

knowledge of her probation officer or Ms. Carter, who testified that she was unaware that

Defendant travelled to Florida to obtain plastic surgery. Further, Defendant has a long history of

failing to abide by conditions of supervision as demonstrated by her multiple probation violation

and supervised release violations. The Court finds that there is no combination of conditions that

can reasonably ensure the safety of the public nor Defendant’s appearance at future proceedings.

Defendant is remanded to the custody of the Attorney General or to the Attorney General’s

designated representative for confinement in a corrections facility separate, to the extent

practicable, from persons awaiting or serving sentences or being held in custody pending appeal.

Defendant must be afforded a reasonable opportunity for private consultation with defense

counsel. On order of a court of the United States or on request of an attorney for the Government,

the person in charge of the corrections facility must deliver Defendant to a United States Marshal

for the purpose of an appearance in connection with a court proceeding.

SO ORDERED:

s/Cynthia Richardson Wyrick
United States Magistrate Judge

Case 2:18-cr-00025-JRG-CRW Document 72 Filed 06/29/22 Page 3 of 3 PageID
#: 668

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File: gov.uscourts.tned.84581.72.0.pdf
Size: 127,619 bytes
SHA-256: cb9f9ce0b46f7c74fd9da1bcfc117cdae03141cba603ac6f82953c93470a7929
Our copy: gov.uscourts.tned.84581.72.0.pdf
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