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defendantstatuteappealbeyond a reasonable doubt
defendantstatuteappealvisa

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Flores-Figueroa v. United States

Facts

Defendant had presented to his employer counterfeit Social Security and alien registration cards, which contained identification numbers that had been assigned to other people. Defendant argued that, under 1028A(a)(1), the government was required to prove that defendant knew that the numbers on the documents in fact belonged to other people, while the government claimed that no such proof was necessary. Resolving a split in the circuits, the Supreme Court held that 1028A(a)(1) required proof that defendant knew that the means of identification he unlawfully transferred, possessed, or used belonged to another person.

The facts of this case illustrate the legal problem. Ignacio Flores-Figueroa is a citizen of Mexico. In [***857] 2000, to secure [*649] employment, Flores gave his employer a false name, birth date, and Social Security number, along with a counterfeit alien registration card. The Social Security number and the number on the alien registration card were not those of a real person. In 2006, Flores presented his employer with new counterfeit Social Security and alien registration cards; these cards (unlike Flores' old alien registration card) used his real name. But this time the numbers on both cards were in fact numbers assigned to other people.

Issue

Whether the statute requires the Government to show that the defendant knew that the 'means of identification' he unlawfully transferred, possessed, or used, in fact, belonged to 'another person.'

The question is whether the statute requires the Government to show that the defendant knew that the 'means of identification' he or she unlawfully transferred, possessed, or used, in fact, belonged to 'another person.' We conclude that it does.

Rule

A federal criminal statute forbidding 'aggravated identity theft' imposes a mandatory consecutive 2-year prison term upon individuals convicted of certain other crimes if, during (or in relation to) the commission of those other crimes, the offender 'knowingly transfers, possesses, or uses, without lawful authority, a means of identification of another person.' 18 U.S.C. 1028A(a)(1).

A federal criminal statute forbidding '[a]ggravated identity theft' imposes a mandatory consecutive 2-year prison term upon individuals convicted of certain other crimes if, during (or in relation to) the commission of those other crimes, the offender 'knowingly transfers, possesses, or uses, without lawful authority, a means of identification of another person.' 18 U.S.C. 1028A(a)(1) (emphasis added).

Analysis

The Court applied the rule by interpreting the word 'knowingly' as modifying all the subsequently listed elements of the crime, including the requirement that the means of identification belonged to another person. The Court reasoned that ordinary English grammar suggests that the word 'knowingly' applies to all elements of the crime, and that the potential difficulty of proving such knowledge beyond a reasonable doubt did not compel the use of the government's interpretation of the statute.

The statutory provision in [****4] question references a set of predicate crimes, including, for example, theft of government property, fraud, or engaging in various [**1889] unlawful activities related to passports, visas, and immigration. 1028A(c). It then provides that if any person who commits any of those other crimes (in doing so) 'knowingly transfers, possesses, or uses, without lawful authority, a means of identification of another person,' the judge must add two years' imprisonment to the offender's underlying sentence. 1028A(a)(1).

Conclusion

The court of appeals' judgment was reversed, and the case was remanded for further proceedings. 9-0 decision; 2 concurrences in part and in the judgment.

The court of appeals' judgment was reversed, and the case was remanded for further proceedings. 9-0 decision; 2 concurrences in part and in the judgment.

Who won?

Defendant prevailed because the Supreme Court held that the government must prove that the defendant knew the means of identification belonged to another person.

Defendant prevailed because the Supreme Court held that the government must prove that the defendant knew the means of identification belonged to another person.

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