United States v. Alfonso Labrada Gurolla, United States of America v. Jose Reyes Ortega-Gonzalez, United States of America v. Manuel Barraza Leon

Appellants Alfonso Labráda Gurolla (“Labrada”), Jose Reyes Ortega-Gonzalez (“Ortega”), and Manuel Barraza Leon (“Barraza”) are three Mexican bankers who were arrested in the largest money laundering sting in United States history: Operation Checkmark. Appellants were tried and convicted of money laundering and related offenses and sentenced, respectively, to 87, 121, and 78 months in prison. Appellants raise numerous arguments on appeal, the most significant of which is Ortega’s contention that the district court erred by refusing to allow him to present an entrapment defense to the jury. Resolving this question requires that we address an interesting preliminary inquiry: whether, on appeal, Ortega’s sworn declarations, which were presented to the district court ex parte and under seal, in opposition to the government’s pretrial motion to preclude him from raising an entrapment defense, and which remain under seal to this day, must be disclosed to the government so that it can respond fully to the arguments presented in his opening brief. We hold that Ortega’s sealed declarations are protected from disclosure on appeal. On the merits, we hold that the district court erred when it…