United States v. Abdelaziz, No. 22-1129 (1st Cir. 2023)
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In this appeal arising from the prosecution of alleged misconduct related to college admissions the First Circuit affirmed John Wilson's conviction for filing a false tax return in violation of 26 U.S.C. 7206(1) and vacated Gamal Abdelaziz's and Wilson's other convictions, holding that several errors required vacatur.
Among other things, the government alleged in charging Defendants that Defendants conspired with other parents to commit "honest services" fraud and property fraud, two types of mail and wire fraud. Defendants were convicted on all counts. The First Circuit vacated in part, holding (1) Defendants were not entitled to a judgment of acquittal on the basis that payments to accounts controlled by the alleged victim of a bribery scheme cannot violate 18 U.S.C. 666; (2) the "honest services" theory is invalid as a matter of law under Skilling v. United States, 561 U.S. 358 (2010); (3) the district court erred in instructing the jury that admissions slots constitute property; and (4) the government failed to prove that Defendants agreed to join an overarching conspiracy charged in the indictment and that this variance prejudiced Defendants.
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