United States v. Diane Candoli

Defendant-appellant Diane Candoli appeals from the judgment entered following her convictions for conspiracy under 18 U.S.C. § 371 , attempted arson under 18 U.S.C. § 844 (i), arson under 18 U.S.C. § 844 (i), and mail fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 1341 . Candoli seeks reversal on the following grounds:

I.

Facts

Diane Candoli, Angel Vultchev, and Steven Rostov were indicted on May 14, 1986. They were charged with conspiracy, attempted arson, arson and mail fraud.

Defendant Candoli was the sole owner and operator of a Beverly Hills boutique called Harold’s Place. Rostov worked as the manager at Harold’s Place. Vultchev was Rostov’s roommate.

On July 10, 1984, Rostov and Vultchev were seen by police at approximately 4:30 a.m. parked about 100 yards from Harold’s Place. About an hour later they were observed by police officers travelling the wrong way in a one-way alley. The police officers stopped them. Rostov and Vult-chev gave inconsistent reasons for being in the area. The police officers observed plastic bottles containing gasoline and some matches in the trunk of the car. The car was impounded because it had been reported stolen.

On July 22, 1984, at about 1:00 a.m. fire broke…