Brownfield

OPINION ON ORDER OF DISMISSAL OF INDICTMENT

I.

INTRODUCTION

Defendant Brownfield’s motion to dismiss the single-count Indictment against him raises an issue of statutory interpretation that is a question of first impression in this Circuit: is an agency of the federal government a “person” for purposes of applying Title 18, United States Code, Section 876 . Based on the arguments and authorities raised by the parties in their briefs and in oral arguments, and the Court’s own independent research, the Court concludes that the answer is “no.” The Federal Bureau of Investigation is not a “person” for purposes of prosecution under 18 U.S.C. § 876 . For that reason, the Court dismisses the Indictment against defendant for failure to state an offense pursuant to Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 7(c)(1).

II.

PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

On December 6, 2000, the Grand Jury indicted defendant Timothy Mark Brownfield for violating 18 U.S.C. § 876 (mailing threatening communications). The single-count Indictment in its entirety reads as follows:

On December 20, 2000, defendant filed a motion to dismiss the Indictment on the ground that the Indictment fails to allege an essential element of…