United States v. William Nelson Davis

William Nelson Davis (“Davis”) appeals his conviction and sentence for escape, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 751 (a). We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . Davis argues that the district court erred in denying his motion to dismiss the indictment for failure adequately to allege criminal intent. Because the indictment sufficiently tracked the language of § 751(a), and because the term “escape” as used in the indictment unambiguously set forth the proper criminal intent, we affirm.

BACKGROUND

Davis was convicted for bringing into the United States an illegal alien without presentation, a violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324 (a)(2)(B)(iii). He was sentenced to twelve months and one day in prison, with two years subsequent supervised release. Pursuant to his conviction, he was lodged in the Pacific Furlough Facility in San Diego, California, but on November 2, 2001, he was found to be missing. An investigation and a search of the facility indicated that Davis had left the facility without authorization. On December 19, 2001, an indictment issued charging Davis with escape, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 751 (a). The indictment alleged:

Davis was taken back into custody…