United States v. Sailor J. Kennedy

Kennedy was convicted on three counts of making false statements to a federally insured bank under 18 U.S.C. § 1014 . There are two substantial questions: (1) whether the indictment was multiplicitous because it charged three violations of Section 1014 when all statements were made to obtain a single loan; and (2) whether it was duplicitous because it allowed conviction on Count II for statements made in several separate documents.

FACTS

. Kennedy is a mortgage broker. He was convicted of obtaining a $350,000 line of credit from the First National Bank of Fairbanks by falsely representing that a nonexistent mortgage and note were a valid subsisting first loan.

Count I alleged that Kennedy stated that he would assign a valid mortgage and note to the bank in return for the line of credit. The proof showed that the “mortgage and note” was merely a proposed transaction. Based on this misrepresentation, the bank advanced the line of credit.

Count II alleged that Kennedy assigned a promissory note and a mortgage, and executed a security agreement regarding the same property involved in Count I. These three documents initiated disbursements of funds from the line of credit.

Count…