United States v. Thomas Tierney

Thomas Tierney appeals from a conviction for aiding and abetting the counterfeit of federal reserve notes. Tierney was indicted for one count of conspiring to counterfeit and for two counts of aiding and abetting the manufacture of counterfeit federal reserve notes. He pleaded not guilty to each count. His first trial ended in a mistrial when a government witness invoked the Fifth Amendment. In the second trial, the jury acquitted Tierney of the conspiracy count, but did not agree on the aiding and abetting counts. The Court declared a mistrial on these two counts.

Before a retrial on the aiding and abetting counts, Tierney filed a motion to dismiss alleging that the conspiracy acquittal collaterally estopped the government from retrying him for aiding and abetting. Tierney did not support his motion with either a summary of the evidence or a transcript of his second trial.

When the government informed Tier-ney that it would not call Mike Francis as a witness at the third trial, Tierney filed a motion to obtain a transcript of Francis’ testimony before the grand jury. The Court denied the motion.

The government’s evidence showed that Tierney was president of a mail order…