In United States v. Singer, No. 18-14294 (June 26,
2020) (Rosenbaum, Jill Pryor, Branch), the Court affirmed the defendant’s
conviction and sentence for attempting to illegally export encryption devices
to Cuba.
First, the Court found sufficient evidence that the
defendant intended to violate U.S. law and took a substantial step towards
committing the offense. As for his
intent, and addressing an issue of first impression, the Court agreed with the
defendant that the government was required to prove that he was aware of the device’s
characteristic that rendered it illegal to export, but the evidence was
sufficient to establish that he was so aware given government notices he
received as well as his own behavior. As
for a substantial step, the Court concluded that the evidence was sufficient to
show that the defendant did more than merely make preparations for the illegal
export.
Second, the Court concluded that the district court did not
err by refusing to give the defendant’s proposed jury instruction on ignorance
of the law. The district court’s
instruction substantially covered the proposed instruction, in that it required
the jury to find that the defendant knew his actions violated federal law or
regulations, and the defendant’s proposed instruction risked confusing the jury
by referring to the concept of “ignorance of the law.” Nor did the court’s failure to give his
proposed instruction impair his ability to present a defense.
Finally, the Court upheld a sentencing enhancement for
obstruction because the district court did not clearly err in finding that the defendant
committed perjury at trial. First, the
Court determined that the district court sufficiently made its own finding of perjury. Second, the Court determined the defendant’s
false testimony was material because it went to one of his defenses at trial.
