United States v. Bert Douglas Montgomery

On limited remand pursuant to United States v. Ameline, 409 F.3d 1073, 1085 (9th Cir.2005) (en banc), the district court did not “obtain the views of counsel” before it decided not to re-sentence Appellant Bert Montgomery. Montgomery argues that the district court, in not obtaining the views of counsel, did not comply with the instructions laid down in Ameline . We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We hold that our decision in Ameline requires the district court to obtain the views of counsel before it decides whether Ame-line re-sentencing is warranted. Because the district court did not do so, we remand Montgomery’s case for a second time.

I. Factual Background

Bert Montgomery was involved in a complex fraud scheme that led to the temporary closing of the Bank of Saipan and millions of dollars of loss. Montgomery, along with his business partner DuSean Berkich, endeavored to purchase a controlling interest in the Bank of Saipan. To accomplish this, they convinced Tomas Aldan, the CEO and Chairman of the Board of the Bank of Saipan, to serve as their “inside man” by promising him lucrative benefits and kickbacks. The three then attempted, by various fraudulent means,…