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Keywords

equitytrialverdictwillpiracy

defendantverdictdouble jeopardypiracy

Related Cases

Com. v. Cerveny, 387 Mass. 280, 439 N.E.2d 754

Facts

William J. Cerveny operated three nursing homes and a rest home, where he was compensated by the Department of Public Welfare based on annual reports he submitted. Cerveny caused fictitious payments to be made to inflate the equity capital reported, which in turn increased the per diem rates. His accountant, Howard Keeler, testified that Cerveny instructed him to enter false information on the required forms, despite Keeler's ethical concerns. Cerveny was previously convicted of perjury and attempted larceny in related trials, and Keeler was acquitted of attempted larceny.

Cerveny, by means of a wholly owned holding company, owned and operated three nursing homes and a rest home, all providing care to a number of publicly assisted patients. The homes were compensated for this care by the Department of Public Welfare at per diem rates fixed by the commission. Cerveny caused a number of fictitious payments to be made by the holding company to the homes.

Issue

Whether the doctrine of collateral estoppel barred the Commonwealth from prosecuting Cerveny for conspiracy after his alleged coconspirator was acquitted, and whether the indictments were duplicitous.

Cerveny now argues that the convictions are barred by the doctrine of collateral estoppel, on the ground that the alleged coconspirator Keeler was previously acquitted of related crimes.

Rule

The court held that prior determinations of a coconspirator's innocence do not bar subsequent prosecutions of other alleged coconspirators, and that the evidence must support separate conspiracies if multiple charges are brought.

The defendant relies primarily on Ashe v. Swenson, 397 U.S. 436, 90 S.Ct. 1189, 25 L.Ed.2d 469 (1970). In Ashe, the United States Supreme Court held that principles of collateral estoppel are embodied in the Fifth Amendment guarantee against double jeopardy, and are therefore enforceable against the States through the Fourteenth Amendment.

Analysis

The court applied the rule by determining that the acquittal of Keeler did not prevent the Commonwealth from prosecuting Cerveny, as the principles of collateral estoppel do not apply in this context. The court found that the evidence presented was sufficient to support the jury's conclusion that Cerveny and Keeler conspired to defraud the Department of Public Welfare. However, the court also recognized that the evidence did not support the existence of seven separate conspiracies, leading to the conclusion that some indictments were duplicitous.

Conclusion

The court affirmed the convictions on three of the indictments but set aside the verdicts on the remaining four due to duplicity.

We affirm the judgments entered on the three indictments (indictments 40034, 40035, and 75–620), dated nearest the beginning of each year in which conspiracies were charged. The judgments on the remaining indictments are reversed and the verdicts set aside.

Who won?

The Commonwealth prevailed in part, as the court upheld some of Cerveny's convictions based on sufficient evidence of conspiracy.

Cerveny was fined $1,500 on each of the seven conspiracy convictions.

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