United States v. Russell W. Matthews

Matthews appeals his conviction of willfully and knowingly answering a question falsely before a grand jury in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1623 . He argues that the question was susceptible of two interpretations under one of which his answer was not proved to be false.

The grand jury was investigating whether money derived from racketeering activities had been invested in enterprises engaged in interstate commerce. Appellant was questioned about $260,000 in cash that he and one Rasmussen had brought from New York to California. Appellant testified that he had obtained the money carried by him from Rasmussen. The following question and answer form the basis for the charge of perjury:

In support of its charge that appellant knowingly and willfully lied, the government presented evidence to the following effect:

In 1973 appellant had been employed by one Madonna and had begun to look for an enterprise in which Madonna could invest between $200,000 and $300,000. Later that year he undertook to obtain capital for a group, of promoters which was organizing a corporation for the purpose of manufacturing food processing machinery. In September of that year he arranged for Madonna to come…