Bernard Kaplan and Alberto Berumen v. United States

This is an appeal from convictions after a court trial of a five count indictment charging appellants and one other codefendant in Count I with conspiracy to pass counterfeit money ( 18 U.S.C. §§ 371 , 472); Berumen in Counts II and IV with passing counterfeit money (18 U.S. C. § 472); Kaplan with aiding and abetting the passing of counterfeit money by the codefendant in Count III; and Kaplan and the codefendant with possession and concealment of counterfeit money in Count V.

All defendants were acquitted on Count I, Berumen convicted on Counts II and IV, and Kaplan convicted on Counts III and V and the codefendant Reinhardtsen acquitted on both substantive counts.

Jurisdiction below rested on 18 U.S.C. § 3231 . It exists here pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 .

Counsel representing the successful defendant below now represents both appellants. He urges six grounds for reversals, with heavy emphasis on the first two. They are:

1. Appellants were denied effective assistance of counsel due to an inherent conflict of interest;

2. The trial court erroneously examined certain reports of government agents;

3. The denial of the defendant Kap-lan’s motion to suppress six $100 counterfeit…