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Bad Men Must Serve the Time for Crimes from Insurance Fraud to Murder\\nAfter a multiple-count indictment against dozens of members of the \\nGangster Disciples five of them, Alonzo Walton, Kevin Clayton, Donald \\nGlass, Antarious Caldwell, and Vancito Gumbs, appealed their convictions\\n and sentences following a joint trial. Each raised several grounds for \\nreversal contending they were overcharged and over-sentenced. Some \\nargued that the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act \\nviolated the Sixth Amendment because the jury failed to find that the \\nconspiracy involved murder.\\n\\nIn United States Of America v. Antarious Caldwell, a.k.a. Fat, a.k.a. \\nPhat, Kevin Clayton, Alonzo Walton, a.k.a. Spike, Vancito Gumbs, Donald \\nGlass, a.k.a. Smurf, a.k.a. Dred, No. 19-15024, United States Court of \\nAppeals, Eleventh Circuit (August 16, 2023) the Eleventh Circuit \\nAffirmed all but one sentence and all convictions.\\n\\nBACKGROUND\\n\\nThe Gangster Disciples began as a loosely affiliated network of street \\ngangs in Chicago but later became a hierarchical national criminal \\norganization. Its hierarchy consisted of a "Chairman" and "national \\nboard" for the country. The "Chief Enforcer" managed a team of \\n"Enforcers" who exacted punishments for violations of the gang\'s rules, \\nsuch as the prohibition against cooperating with the police.\\n\\nRelevant Crimes\\n\\nThe indictment charged an array of criminal activities including \\ncarjacking and insurance fraud, attempted robbery of Eric Wilder, murder\\n \\nPretrial and Trial Proceedings\\n\\nThe principal charge against all the defendants was count one, which \\ncharged that the defendants conspired to conduct and participate \\ndirectly and indirectly in the conduct of the Gangster Disciples through\\n a pattern of racketeering activity in violation of the Racketeer \\nInfluenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, 18 U.S.C. \\xa7 1962(c). \\n\\nDISCUSSION\\n\\nThe Eleventh Circuit concluded that the district court did not abuse its\\n discretion in its pretrial and trial procedural decisions and that the \\ndistrict court also did not abuse its discretion when it declined to ask\\n questions during voir dire about unconscious bias.\\n\\nThe District Court Did Not Impermissibly Depart from Neutrality When It \\nQuestioned a Witness.\\n\\nThe trial judge is more than a referee to an adversarial proceeding. \\nConsistent with the common-law tradition, the judge may comment on the \\nevidence and question witnesses and elicit facts not yet adduced or \\nclarify those previously presented. This questioning is limited only by \\nthe principle that a judge must maintain neutrality between the parties.\\n\\nThe district judge stayed well within these bounds. He asked a single \\nquestion without commenting on the veracity or relevance of the \\nwitness\'s testimony. The district court did not err, let alone clearly \\nerr, when it asked a witness for that information.\\n\\nCaldwell\'s Conviction Under the Armed Career Criminal Act and His \\nSentence Must Be Vacated.\\n\\nThe Supreme Court recently held that attempted Hobbs Act robbery is not a "crime of violence" under section 924(c). 142 S.Ct. at 2020. So, the \\nEleventh Circuit must vacate Caldwell\'s conviction and it remand for the\\n district court to re-sentence Caldwell for his remaining counts of \\nconviction.\\n\\nAll the other convictions and sentences were affirmed.\\n\\nZALMA OPINION\\n\\nInsurance fraud is a serious crime. It is not as serious as murder. But \\nwhen a group of men work together to commit murder and insurance fraud \\nthey are acting beyond reason and deserve as serious a sentence as the \\ncourt can provide in accordance with the law. The appeal was their right\\n and the Eleventh Circuit had the obligation and right to disavow them \\nof their arguments and only changed a sentence because of a change in \\nthe law.\\n\\n(c) 2023 Barry Zalma & ClaimSchool, Inc.\\n\\n Go to the Insurance Claims Library \\u2013 \\nhttps://zalma.com/blog/insurance-claims-library\\\\