In United States v. Ubaldo, --- F.3d ---, No. 14-50093 (9th Cir. 2017), the Court rejected a variety of defense arguments and affirmed the defendants' convictions.
The case arose from a sting operation in which FBI agents purchased weapons in the Philippines and transported them back to the U.S.
The opinion covers a lot of ground, none of it good for the defense. Of note:
- The Court held that the weapons importation statutes, §§ 922(l) and 2778(b)(2) apply extraterritorially.
- Even though the FBI agents did the shipping and the defendants were not the but-for cause of the shipping, the Court found the evidence sufficient to support the convictions under a broad aiding and abetting theory.
There are also rulings on Franks, Rule 16, 404(b), destruction of evidence, and jury instructions.
