USCA1 Opinion

March 26, 1993

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIRST CIRCUIT
_____
No. 92-1358
UNITED STATES
Appellee,
v.
GEORGE CHAPDELAINE,
Defendant, Appellant.
___________
ERRATA SHEET
The opinion of this
amended as follows:
On page 5, line 8
with " 2113(a)".
On page 5, line
between "transporting
"vehicles".
On page 7, line 3
"c" in "1st cir."

Court issued

of first

on

March 25,

1993, is

full paragraph: replace

"

1"

10 of first full paragraph: insert "a"

and "stolen"
and delete the "s" in
of first full

paragraph: capitalize the

On page 8, line 3: replace "37" with "39".

March 25, 1993

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIRST CIRCUIT
____________________
No. 92-1358
UNITED STATES,
Appellee,
v.
GEORGE CHAPDELAINE,
Defendant, Appellant.
____________________
APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF RHODE ISLAND
[Hon. Raymond J. Pettine, Senior U.S. District Judge]
__________________________
____________________

Before
Selya, Cyr and Boudin, Circuit Judges.
______________
____________________

Louis F. Robbio with whom Robbio & Nottie, Ltd. was on brief
_______________
_____________________
appellant.
Margaret E. Curran, Assistant United States Attorney, with w
___________________
Lincoln C. Almond, United States Attorney, and James H. Leav
___________________
_______________
Assistant United States Attorney, were on brief for appellee.
____________________
March 25, 1993
____________________

BOUDIN,

Circuit Judge.
______________

George

Chapdelaine

appeals

following his conviction for numerous offenses arising out of

the planned robbery
others

at

the

of a

Emerald

Wells Fargo truck

Square

Mall

in

by himself
North

and

Attleboro,

Massachusetts.
the location

The

plan was frustrated when

earlier than usual.

Chapdelaine was convicted

after trial while his accomplices pled.

I.
Acting on

Anthony Fiore
Whalen in

THE EVENTS

to

a meeting

Fiore, and

with

Mahan

lot.

The

a Wagoneer jeep
Wagoneer

was

Chapdelaine and

Edward Mahan

and

The next day,

drove Mahan's

parking lot in Canton, Massachusetts.

was driving

agents and state

March 3, 1991, followed

Walpole, Massachusetts.1

Chapdelaine,

We affirm.

an informant's tip, federal

and local police on

the truck left

March 4,

vehicle to

to

When they left, Fiore

later reported stolen

taken

George

garage

from the

in

Walpole,

outfitted with a false registration plate, and then driven by

Fiore

(accompanied

parking lot in North

left.

Fiore

by

Chapdelaine

in another

car)

Providence, Rhode Island, where

later lodged

a stolen

Jaguar in

to

it was

a different

parking lot in Warwick, Rhode Island.

On March
vehicles

at

25, Chapdelaine and Fiore

the Emerald

Square

Mall

arrived in separate
in North

Attleboro,

____________________
1Several law enforcement officers who participated in
surveillance of the four men testified at trial to the
group's activities.
-2-2-

Massachusetts.
the two
later,
this

There, Fiore got into

drove around the mall

Chapdelaine's car and

before leaving.

the two men returned to the mall in Fiore's Plymouth,

time accompanied by Mahan and Whalen.

parked

A few hours

near a BayBank branch

The Plymouth was

bank located in

Fiore and Mahan watched a Wells Fargo

the bank and was loaded by a guard.

the mall, and

truck as it arrived at
The following day, March

26, Fiore returned alone to the mall, spent a short period of

time, and then left without having made any purchases.
The next day, March 27, Chapdelaine and Fiore drove to a
department store parking lot in Taunton, Massachusetts, where
they

remained in

which served the

their car

as the

same Wells

Emerald Mall BayBank

department store.

When the

Fargo truck

arrived to serve

truck crossed the

street to

the
a

nearby

bank, Chapdelaine and Fiore moved their car to a spot

closer

to the bank.

men drove back to

home.
in

After the

truck left the bank, the two

the Emerald Mall parking lot

before going

They returned the following day, March 28, to the

Taunton, where they again

waited in their

lot

car until the

Wells Fargo truck arrived and departed.

The next

morning, March 29, Chapdelaine

another brief visit

proceeding to a

to the Emerald

and Fiore made

Mall parking lot

parking lot in Cumberland,

before

Rhode Island, to

drop off the stolen Jaguar.

Wagoneer,

now

in Fiore's

They then picked up

garage

and

the stolen

bearing yet

another

-3-3-

registration
Later

all

plate,
four

Chapdelaine

and drove

men met

opened the

at

it
the

trunk

to

the Cumberland

Cumberland

of his

car,

lot.

lot.

There,

put on

gloves,

handed another pair of gloves to Whalen, and removed from the

trunk

a green

Wagoneer.

The

laundry

bag which

was

then placed

in

the

group

then drove

the

stolen vehicles

and

Fiore's Plymouth to the Emerald Mall parking lot.

entered the mall lot
Wells

at 1:27 p.m., they

As the men

were passed by

the

Fargo truck on its way out; the truck's normal arrival

time at the

mall was 2

p.m. but this

was Good Friday,

several of the truck's usual stops were closed.

pulled
minutes,

into
and

a parking
then

garage,

drove

back

remained
to

the

and

The four men

there for
staging

few

area

in

Cumberland.
In Cumberland,

all four

were arrested.

The Wagoneer,

which Chapdelaine was then driving, had to be turned off with

a screwdriver because the steering column was pulled back and

there was no key in the ignition.
vehicles

turned

Plymouth) which

up the

A subsequent search of the

green laundry

was found

bag (now

to contain firearms

in Fiore's
(including a

.357 Magnum with an obliterated serial number), ammunition, a

make-up kit, a black wig and a washcloth.
from

the

vehicles

clothing, a
radio

included

gloves,

make-up removal kit,

guidebook.

Later

Other items seized

that

several

and a

pieces

police scanner

day,

in

search

of
and
of

-4-4-

Chapdelaine's home in Woonsocket, Rhode

five .357-caliber

Island, agents found

bullets in his bedroom

closet and $22,000

in cash under his bed.

All four men were indicted.
prior to
entered

trial.2
a

guilty

government's case.
under 18

U.S.C.

Fiore and Mahan pled guilty

Whalen, tried together

plea

shortly

before

with Chapdelaine,
the

Chapdelaine was convicted

close of

the

of conspiracy

371 to rob a federally insured bank and to

commit

four

violations,

other,
18

related

U.S.C.

offenses;

1951;

of

of

two

attempting

federally insured

bank, 18

U.S.C.

carrying firearms

during a

crime of

violence, 18

of transporting

a stolen

vehicle in

924(c)(1);
commerce,

18 U.S.C.

2312; and

offenses, 18 U.S.C.

922.

vacated the conviction

Chapdelaine's name
count
counts

in a

2113(a);

of four

to

Act

rob

of using

a
and

U.S.C.
interstate

firearms-related

After trial, the district court

on one of the firearms counts because

had been inadvertently

superseding indictment

but one,

Hobbs

Chapdelaine

sentences, the longest being

was

omitted from that

used at
sentenced

trial.
to

On all

concurrent

78 months' imprisonment; on the

conviction for carrying a firearm during a crime of violence,

the court imposed

the five-year consecutive prison

made mandatory by 18 U.S.C.

924(c).

sentence

This appeal followed.

____________________
2Fiore's appeal from his sentence has been previously
decided. United States v. Fiore, 983 F.2d 1 (1st Cir. 1992).
_____________
_____
-5-5-

-6-

-6-

II.

THE TRIAL

Publicity
and Jury Prejudice.
________________________________
contends

that

informal

motion

the

district

for

court

change

of

Chapdelaine
erred

in

denying

his

venue

on

grounds

of

prejudicial pretrial publicity.

As evidence of

coverage, Chapdelaine

articles in

points to

Journal newspaper and to

_______
says was

inflammatory.

the content

first

prejudicial

the Providence
__________

local television coverage, which he

Since Chapdelaine

of the television

does not describe

reports, nor allege

reports were seen by any of the jurors, we have

that the

no basis for

evaluating his complaint about televised coverage.

As for the newspaper

articles, they are largely factual

accounts of the arrests of the four men and subsequent guilty

pleas

of Fiore

and Mahan.3

district judge questioned each

who

had

been

empaneled

On

the day

two months

about it.

the

of the jurors and alternates,

before,

whether they had discussed the case, been

or heard anything

trial began,

Only four of

to

determine

approached or read
the panel, two of

whom

ultimately

each had
Journal
_______

been

deliberated, answered
exposed to

article indicating

in

the affirmative;

November 20,
that two

pleaded guilty before trial.

1991

of the

Providence
__________

defendants had

All four of the

panel members

____________________
3One of the articles mentions
Chapdelaine's prior
conviction for cocaine trafficking and an informant's claim
that Chapdelaine and Fiore had earlier tried to rob another
armored car. There is no indication that any juror saw this
article or knew these supposed facts.
-7-7-

affirmed that

they could be impartial.

Neither Chapdelaine

nor Whalen challenged any of the four for cause.

There

is no

basis

on this

"widespread, highly inflammatory

v.

Moreno Morales, 815

_______________

F.2d

denied, 484 U.S. 966 (1987).

______
knowledge of guilty pleas

record

for any

publicity."
725,

734 (1st

claim

of

United States
______________
Cir.),

cert.
_____

The only issue is whether juror

by co-defendants is information so

searing that failure to

error, even though
impartial.
"pattern

excuse the juror for cause

the trial

judge found the

of deep and

bitter prejudice," Irwin

_____

726 (1961), compelling

juror's claim of impartiality.

in

the knowledge

Hines v. United States,

_____
_____________
Cf.
__

jurors to

be

The voir dire did not in this instance reflect a

U.S. 717,

inherent

is plain

v. Dowd, 366
____

the court to

override the

We do not think juror bias is

that

co-defendant has

131 F.2d 971, 974 (10th

Murphy v. Florida, 421

______
_______

pled.

Cir. 1942).

U.S. 794 (1975) (juror knowledge

of defendant's prior convictions).

There is
that

some

enforcement

even less

of
or

the

basis

seated

were

for Chapdelaine's

jurors

familiar

had

with

complaint

relatives

some

of

the

in

law
trial

participants or their families.

Chapdelaine was entitled to

challenge jurors for cause or to

argue on appeal that it was

plain error not to excuse a juror.

But here no specifics are

offered in his brief, so there is no error to assess.

the claim that

trial counsel was

-8-8-

As for

ineffective in failing

to

challenge jurors, that issue

appeal

and must

await a

chooses to make one.

is not normally open

collateral attack,

on direct

if Chapdelaine

See United States v. Arango-Echeberry,

___ _____________
________________

927 F.2d 35, 39 ((1st Cir. 1991).

Whalen's Guilty Plea.
____________________

As the government was completing

the presentation of its case, Whalen pled guilty (outside the

presence

of the

prompted a

jury) and

motion for

the trial.

mistrial from Chapdelaine,

district court denied.

now, was that the

withdrew from

Chapdelaine's position

jury would conclude from

This

which the

then, renewed

Whalen's absence

that

he had pled guilty and would draw the further inference

that

Chapdelaine, as

an

alleged

co-conspirator,

must

be

guilty as well.
We addressed this
Ramirez, 823
_______

issue in United States

_____________

F.2d 1 (1st Cir. 1987).

v. Del Carmen
__________

The district court in

that case, faced with the same situation, declined to declare

a mistrial but gave a cautionary instruction to the jury.
approved

this

approach,

"clearly

and carefully

evidence

against

determine guilt or

stating

instruct

that

the

the jury

court

should

to consider

particular individual,

alone,

innocence on that basis."

Id.
__

We

the

and

to

at 3.

In

this case, the district court delivered an instruction almost

identical to the one we approved in Del Carmen Ramirez:

__________________
Members of the Jury, you'll note that
Mr. Whalen is no longer
sitting at
counsel table and he is no longer a party
to this action. You are not, I repeat,
-9-9-

you are not to speculate, surmise in any

way whatsoever why he is not here. It's
none of your concern; it's not part of
your deliberations; you will not even
discuss the matter as we go forward. The
case stands here with Mr. Chapdelaine as
the defendant. Is anyone going to have a
problem with that?
If so, speak up now.
I can't stress to you the importance of
fairness, objectivity, total impartiality
and I stress that again and I stress to
you why he is not here is none of your
concern; it has nothing to do with your
deliberations in this case in any way
whatsoever.
Chapdelaine

now says that

been repeated in the

he made

the instruction should have

closing charge to the jury.

no such request

and the

failure to do

At trial,
so was

not

plain error.
Sufficiency of the Evidence.
____________________________
that

the

evidence

at

trial

was

Chapdelaine
insufficient

next claims
to

prove

conspiracy,

attempted

robbery,

various

firearms-related

offenses, and interstate transportation of a

stolen vehicle.

In

inferences

assessing

these

claims,

credibility judgments
to

the verdict;

could
doubt.

are taken in the

and the

have found

reasonable

issue is

the defendant

United States
_____________

and

light most favorable

whether a

rational jury

guilty beyond

v. Batista-Polanco,
_______________

a reasonable

927 F.2d

14, 17

(1st Cir. 1991).

Beginning with
evidence did

conspiracy,

Chapdelaine says

that

not prove an intent to commit robbery.

not a serious argument.

the

This is

The evidence described at the outset

-10-10-

of this

opinion, a

detail,

could

sketch that omits

easily

persuade

further incriminating
reasonable

jury

that

Chapdelaine and his associates "cased" the BayBank branch and

the armored truck, positioned

stolen vehicles for an escape,

acquired weapons and disguises, arrived at the scene ready to

commit the

crime and were

frustrated only by

an accidental

change in the truck's schedule.

815

United States v. Buffington,

_____________
__________

F.2d 1292 (9th Cir. 1987), where the Ninth Circuit found

the evidence inadequate, involved far less aggravated facts.

This

same

evidence supported

for attempted robbery.

establish both
and

States
______

act

987 (2d.

towards its

than mere

commission,"

1446, 1459

the actual

United
______

(1st Cir.

1992),
than the

commission

of

United States v. Manley, 632 F.2d

_____________
______

Cir. 1980),

Chapdelaine argues

substantive offense

preparation" but "less

before

crime."

than mere

to commit the

976 F.2d

necessary

substantive

more

step

v. Figueroa,
________

comprising "more
last

To prove attempt, the government must

an intent

a "substantial

Chapdelaine's conviction

cert. denied,
____________

that the

449

U.S. 1112

leave their vehicles or make a

the defendants

move toward the bank.

978,

(1981).

group's actions amounted

preparation because

the

to no
did not
In Del
___

Carmen Ramirez we found that a group's conduct in "casing the

______________
bank,

stealing a car, and arriving armed at the bank shortly

before the

Wells Fargo truck

substantial step

was to

toward robbery.

-11-11-

823

arrive" constituted
F.2d at 2.

See also
________

United States v. Johnson,

_____________
_______

962 F.2d 1308, 1310-11,

Cir.) (same

similar facts), cert. denied, 113

_____________

S.Ct.

result under

358 (1992).

1312 (8th

That describes the activity in this case,

and we have no reason to reach a different result.4

Turning

to

the firearms-related

was convicted of using

crime

of violence,

offenses, Chapdelaine

firearms during and in relation

possession

of

firearms and

to a

ammunition

after a felony conviction, and interstate transportation of a

firearm with

an obliterated serial

number.

In

addition to

the guns and ammunition recovered from the green laundry bag,
police

also

seized

Chapdelaine's bedroom

five

rounds

closet.

of

ammunition

from

The ammunition recovered from

the closet formed the basis of a separate count.

Chapdelaine's argument on appeal is two-fold.
says

that the

evidence

did not

show

that he

First, he
"knowingly"

possessed the guns found in the laundry bag because there was
no

proof

Chapdelaine
tire

that

he

looked

testified that

jack and car tools.

from Fiore's

inside

the

he thought
Noting

Plymouth instead

bag.
the bag

At

trial,

contained a

that the bag was recovered

of the

Wagoneer, Chapdelaine

____________________
4In a related argument, Chapdelaine contends that the
jury instruction on what
is "a substantial step" was
inadequate. The objection was not raised at trial and we are
not told what was wrong with the instruction other than that
"a more complex and detailed instruction was required." We
therefore consider the claim waived.
See United States v.
___ _____________
Zannino, 895 F.2d 1, 17 (1st Cir.) (issued raised in a
_______
perfunctory manner are deemed waived), cert. denied, 494 U.S.
____________
1082 (1990).
-12-12-

argues
that,

that the

evidence

did not

exclude the

possibility

unbeknownst to him, guns were substituted for the jack

and tools when the

the Plymouth.

bag was transferred from the

In this case,

Wagoneer to

involving a carefully

armed robbery with abundant weapons,

planned

we think the jury could

reasonably infer that the bag's contents when seized were the
same as when

Chapdelaine handled the

that Chapdelaine knew that the

bag hours before,

bag contained firearms.

and
See
___

United States v. Arango-Echeberry, 927 F.2d at 38.

_____________
________________
Second, Chapdelaine

argues that the

evidence failed to

prove his "possession" of the firearms in the laundry bag and

the ammunition
handling

of

found in
the

possession of the
his

laundry

closet, Chapdelaine

within

bag.

established

As for

emphasizes that

the bullets

the owners

throughout

the home.

in the

and control."

Further,

.357 Magnum recovered

his
in

of the

who testified
However,

from Chapdelaine's closet were

his "dominion

those found

adequately

Chapdelaine's

a room were gun dealers

storing ammunition

bullets retrieved

bag

weapons within.5

house where he rented

to

his bedroom closet.

the

in an area
they matched

from the

laundry

This was enough to prove that Chapdelaine was at least

____________________
5As for the question of the guns' use in relation to the
crime, the jury could readily have concluded that, by
transferring the guns to the Wagoneer before setting off for
the mall with the others, Chapdelaine "intended to have [the
weapons] available for possible use during or immediately
following" a robbery. United States v. Payero, 888 F.2d 928,
_____________
______
929 (1st Cir. 1989).
-13-13-

in "constructive possession" of the ammunition in his closet.

See

United States v. Garcia, Nos. 92-1427, 92-1428, slip op.

___

_____________

______

at 6-11 (1st Cir. Feb. 4,

1993); United States v. Wight, 968

_____________
_____

F.2d 1393, 1397-98 (1st Cir. 1992).

Chapdelaine's
little

comment.

last
He

attack

says that

on
a

the

evidence

requires

rational jury

could not

convict him of knowingly transporting a stolen vehicle across

state lines because,

as he

testified at trial,

realize the Wagoneer was stolen.

entitled to
not

disbelieve his testimony,

otherwise contest

included

(in

evidence that
car thieves

But of

that

and Chapdelaine's own

proof.

summarized

Chapdelaine possessed

not

course the jury was

and Chapdelaine

the government's

addition to

he did

does

That proof

at the

outset)

tools commonly

used by

admission that he

used a

screwdriver to start the Wagoneer.

The Flaw in the Indictment.
__________________________
error is the most serious:
offense for which he

Chapdelaine's next claim of

he was mistakenly convicted of an

was not indicted.

The count at

issue

charged interstate transportation of a stolen firearm, a Colt

.45

caliber

Chapdelaine

pistol

seized

from

the

green

laundry

bag.

was in fact initially named in this count in the

original indictment handed down by the grand jury.

Probably

by accident, Chapdelaine's name was omitted from the count in

a superseding indictment.

-14-14-

The omission escaped

Chapdelaine's defense
whom proceeded
count.

the attention

counsel, and

as if Chapdelaine

At trial,

all of

were still charged

in the

Colt was stolen, and

that he

knowingly transported it

district

court charged the jury

included in

prosecutor,

the trial judge,

Chapdelaine's counsel and

stipulated that the

and it was

of the

the government

there was evidence

across state

lines.

The

on the stolen firearm count

a redacted indictment

given to

jury to reflect only counts naming Chapdelaine.

the

In preparing

the pre-sentence report, the probation officer discovered the

error.

The district court then vacated the conviction on the

stolen firearm charge but denied

a motion by Chapdelaine for

a new trial on all counts.

We are

not cited

this issue.6

The

to any precedent

important

Chapdelaine's possession
"intent"

evidence on

possession was
that

of

fact conveyed
the weapon,

several other

charged as an

to

the

jury,

was admissible

counts, whether

offense.

the gun was stolen may not

other counts, but if

directly addressing

The

as

or not

stipulated fact

have been admissible on the

so the prejudicial force of

this point

was very

faint, as

other evidence showed

multiple weapons,

____________________
6The closest in point is Chow Bing Kew v. United States,
_____________
_____________
248 F.2d 466 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 355 U.S. 889 (1957).
_____ ______
The Ninth Circuit there dismissed a conviction on a count in
which the defendant was not named while leaving intact a
conviction on another charge.
The question of whether the
former conviction invalidated the latter was apparently not
raised.
-15-15-

two

stolen

planning.

cars, an
The

obliterated

serial

number and

jury was instructed to separate

ample

the evidence

as to each count, and its verdict--including the acquittal of

Chapdelaine

on two

counts relating

to the

stolen Jaguar--

suggests that it did just that.

III.
Chapdelaine's

final

SENTENCE
challenge

is

to

sentencing

calculations.7

First, as to the

counts charging interstate

transportation

of

Wagoneer,

the

including the value of

enhancement in his

stolen

he

the stolen Jaguar and to

base offense level for more

objects

to

a two-level
than minimal

planning.
report,

These computations were made

without objection

by Chapdelaine.

these computations were error

of the
was

counts relating to

in the pre-sentence

counts

the district

and set

basis of the

or not

(Chapdelaine was not convicted

the stolen Jaguar),

not affected by these two calculations.

guidelines,

Whether

court

Chapdelaine's

his sentence

Pursuant to the

disregarded the
offense level

grouped robbery counts.

stolen car

solely on

U.S.S.G.

the

3D1.4(c).

It then sentenced Chapdelaine at the low end of the guideline

____________________
7Although the 1991 Sentencing Guidelines were in effect
at the time of Chapdelaine's sentencing, the district court
applied the 1990 guidelines in effect at the time of the
offenses, a result more favorable to Chapdelaine. See United
___ ______
States v. Harotunian, 920 F.2d 1040, 1041-42 (1st Cir. 1990).
______
__________
All references in this opinion are to the 1990 guidelines.
-16-16-

range

due to his age.

Adjustments to the stolen car counts

simply did not figure into Chapdelaine's sentence.

Next, Chapdelaine
robbery
level

counts.
increase

complains of the

computation on

the

The guideline for robbery calls for a fourfor

$1,500,000. U.S.S.G.

losses

ranging

2B3.1(b)(6).

from

$800,000

to

Where as here an attempt

or conspiracy is at issue, "intended" loss is the test.8

At

sentencing, over Chapdelaine's objection, the court imposed a

four-level increase in his base offense level for a "loss" of
$1,000,000--the approximate amount of money contained in
Wells Fargo truck

when it stopped at the BayBank

the

on the day

Chapdelaine and the others were arrested.

Chapdelaine

contends that

the

loss in

this case

speculative because no robbery actually occurred.

"[i]n

an attempted theft, the

defendant attempted to steal

2X1.1,
2X1.1(a)
reasonable

application
of

certainty

can

However,

items that the

would be considered."

note 2.

"reasonable

value of the

The

certainty"
be

U.S.S.G.

requirement in
"goes

determined

was

to
to

section

what

with

be

the

____________________
8U.S.S.G.
2B3.1, application note 3, cross-references
section 2B1.1 for "valuation of loss" in robbery offenses.
Section 2B1.1, application note 2, refers the judge to
section 2X1.1 in cases of "partially completed conduct."
Section 2X1.1 sets the base offense level as that fixed for
the object offense (in this case, robbery), "plus any
adjustments from such guideline for any intended offense
conduct that can be established with reasonable certainty."
U.S.S.G
2X1.1(a).
-17-17-

conspirator's intent."

United States v.
_____________

Medeiros, 897 F.2d

________

13, 18 (1st Cir. 1990).

Finally,

Chapdelaine

invokes

section 2X1.1(b),

which

directs the sentencing court to decrease by three levels

the

offense

unless
______

the

complete"

the

level

defendant

for

or

an

attempt

conspirators

were

underlying offense "but for

by

some

similar

district court in this

because

it found

because the

beyond
U.S.S.G.

the robbery

truck arrived

appeal, Chapdelaine disputes the

while

the

government

"about

to

[the

defendant's

or

2X1.1(b)(1), (2).

The

case declined to grant

that

. . .

conspiracy

the apprehension or interruption

event

conspirators'] control."

or

naturally

the reduction

was frustrated

earlier than

"simply

usual."

On

correctness of this finding

urges

us

to

uphold

the

district court.
We affirm

the district

present facts Chapdelaine was

The evidence

court's conclusion that

not entitled to the reduction.

showed that Chapdelaine and

at the mall prepared

were thwarted only

on the

the others arrived

and equipped to carry out a robbery and

by the unexpected early departure

of the

Wells Fargo truck.

clear

error

Chapdelaine
apprehension
the

Under these circumstances,

in

the

was

"about

district
to

complete" a

or interruption

defendant's

control."

court's

by

conclusion
robbery

some similar

U.S.S.G.

there was no
that

"but

for

event beyond

2X1.1(b)(1).

See
___

-18-18-

United States v.
______________

Johnson,
_______

962 F.2d

at 1313-14

(upholding

denial of the reduction under similar facts).

Chapdelaine
2X1.1(b)

to

excludes

offenses that

like
our

an

argues

that

interruption

"similar"

the guideline

reflects

for sentencing purposes

by

to

in

section

apprehension

fortuitous events

the Wells Fargo

conspiracies and attempts should be

offenses

reference

are prevented

the premature departure of

view,

the

truck.

policy decision

In
that

treated like substantive

if the substantive offense

was nearly

completed, and the defendant

withdraw.

The Sentencing

Commission

did not voluntarily

likely believed

that

near

accomplishment of

enough risk

the criminal

of actual harm, and

object

normally poses

reveals enough culpability,

as to justify the same punishment that would be imposed for a

completed

offense.

achievement--not
interruption--that

It

the

is

nearness

precise

defeats

nature

the

conspiracies and attempts that

of
of

reduction

the
the

crime

to

involuntary

available

for

have not progressed very far.

This one progressed far enough.

The judgment of conviction and sentence are affirmed.
________

-19-19-