United States v. Kent Borden Rogers
Opinion
Opinion
O'Scannlain, J.
Rogers pled guilty to mail fraud and was sentenced to eight years imprisonment and ordered to pay $70.7 million in restitution. The government concedes that the imposition of restitution was improper, but the parties disagree on the proper remedy. Rogers also contends that his plea was coerced by the imposition of an IRS jeopardy assessment. We vacate Rogers’ sentence and remand for resentencing or, at the discretion of the district court, for the withdrawal of Rogers’ guilty plea.
I
In April 1988, the IRS brought a jeopardy assessment against Rogers and his company for alleged tax deficiencies for the years 1983 and 1984. Rogers claims that the jeopardy assessment tied up nearly all of his assets.
On May 10, 1989, Rogers, along with others, was indicted on mail fraud charges. On February 26, 1990, Rogers pled guilty to two counts of mail fraud. The plea agreement was silent on the subject of restitution. When Rogers entered his guilty plea, the district court did not discuss with him the possibility of restitution. Rogers was sentenced on October 22, 1990 to eight years in prison and was ordered to pay $70.7 million in restitution to Bank of America.