United States v. Robert Joseph Satterfield

In this case we reverse a robbery conviction, for the appellant was improperly joined with a codefendant for trial.

On October 9, 1974 a ten-count indictment was returned against appellant Satterfield and one Harvey Willard Merriweather. The charges pertained to five Oregon bank robberies committed in the greater Portland area during the summer of 1974. Merriweather and Satterfield were joined in a single indictment charging that Merriweather alone had perpetrated the first, second, and fifth robberies, and that Merriweather and appellant Satterfield together had committed the third and the fourth.

It was never alleged that Satterfield was involved in the first, second, and fifth robberies, whether as a participant in a common plan or in any other manner. The Government conceded as much at trial. The indictment, moreover, did not charge the defendants with conspiracy. A jury found both defendants guilty as charged. We affirm Merriweather’s conviction by separate unpublished memorandum. We reverse the judgment against Satterfield and remand for further proceedings.

At various stages of the proceedings below, Satterfield timely moved for a separate trial on the ground…