United States V. Dandy

MILBURN, Circuit Judge. Defendant Alex Dandy appeals from the judgment of the district court dated May 22, 1992, on his convictions on ten counts of tax offenses, mail fraud, bankruptcy fraud, and obstruction of Justice, all resulting from the jury's finding him guilty. He also appeals from the district court's "Corrected Judgment" entered on June 29, 1992, which eliminated an ambiguity in the judgment concerning his parole eligibility date. On appeal, defendant raises the following issues: (1) whether the trial Judge erred in ruling that the Judge's acquaintance with a government witness did not require his recusal, (2) whether the district court's limitations on cross-examination and its admission of certain evidence denied defendant his Sixth Amendment right to confront witnesses against him, (3) whether prosecutorial misconduct deprived defendant of a fair trial, (4) whether the district court's questioning of witnesses and commenting on the evidence deprived defendant of a fair trial, (5) whether Counts 1 and 2 of the indictment alleging tax evasion are barred by the statute of limitations, (6) whether Count 8 properly charged a violation of the mail fraud statute, (7) whether Count 9 properly charged a violation of the mail fraud statute, (8) whether the district court committed reversible error in refusing to instruct the jury that repayment is a factor to be considered in determining whether a particular transaction is a loan, and (9) whether the district court lacked jurisdiction to enter its corrected judgment. We affirm in part, vacate in part, and remand.