United States v. Eric Chen

Eric Chen appeals his conviction for giving false testimony before a grand jury in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1623 . He contends that the district court committed reversible error when it refused to give the jury his requested instruction on bad memory, and that his perjury indictment should be dismissed under the “perjury trap” doctrine. We affirm.

FACTS

Beginning in 1985, the FBI and the Department of the Interior began a joint investigation into possible corruption within the Public Utility Agency of Guam (“PUAG”). In 1986, a Department of the Interior investigator interviewed David Cri-sostomo, a PUAG employee. Crisostomo revealed that he and Gregorio Roberto Ta-itague, another PUAG employee, had received kickbacks totaling $1,200 from Chen back in 1981. Taitague substantially confirmed Crisostomo’s statements. Taitague also stated that he could recall receiving two other kickbacks from Chen — $20 in exchange for a mechanical shoe purchase order and $40 for an electrical pump purchase order. Taitague later pleaded guilty to bribery and wire fraud counts. Crisosto-mo, who had been accepting bribes from other contractors, ultimately pleaded guilty to two counts of bribery.

In…