United States v. Lula Mae Hobbs
Opinion
Opinion
Kleinfeld, J.
Lula Mae Hobbs was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service, structuring financial transactions to evade currency reporting requirements, and money laundering. Under 26 U.S.C. § 6103 (h)(5), she had a right to know whether any of the prospective jurors had been audited or investigated by the IRS. The relevant statutory language is as follows:
26 U.S.C. § 6103 (h)(4)-(5) (emphases added). The statutory right was denied, and the presumption of prejudice was not overcome, so the conviction must be reversed.
I. Facts.
According to the indictment, Hobbs repeatedly brokered real estate transactions for a narcotics dealer in Los Angeles. She arranged for the properties to be put in the names of straw men, and for multiple cashiers’ checks to be purchased in amounts under $10,000 and used for payment. She was charged with money laundering, structuring financial transactions to evade currency reporting requirements, and conspiring to assist the leader of the narcotics operation to evade federal income taxes on his drug income. Although most of the other defendants eventually pleaded guilty, Hobbs and Yvonne Stribling went to trial.