United States v. Arnold

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. MIGUEL SCOTT ARNOLD

Crim. No. 1:17-CR-002

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA

February 10, 2020

Judge Sylvia H. Rambo

MEMORANDUM

Before the court is Defendant Miguel Scott Arnold's motion for judgment of acquittal and alternatively a new trial. (Doc. 220.) The government has responded, and the matter is ripe for review. For the reasons set forth below, the court will deny the motion.

I. Background

On January 4, 2017, a grand jury in the Middle District of Pennsylvania returned a six-count indictment against Arnold and his co-defendants Terrance Hawkins, Tevin Bynoe, Emonie Murphy, and Joshua Guity-Nunez. The indictment charged all defendants with (1) Criminal Conspiracy, Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud and Coercion in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1594(c) (Count One); (2) Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud, and Coercion in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1591(a), (b)(1) (Count Two); (3) Criminal Conspiracy, Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin and Marijuana in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 846 (Count Four); (4) Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) (Count Five); and (5) Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) (Count Six).

On June 17, 2019, Arnold alone proceeded to trial. (Doc. 234.) The trial spanned five days, during which the jury heard from multiple of Arnold's co-defendants and victims. On June 21, 2019, after the conclusion of the trial, the jury convicted Arnold on Counts One, Two, Four, and Five, and acquitted him on Count Six. Arnold now moves for judgment of acquittal and alternatively a new trial with respect to his convictions on Counts One, Two, and Four.

a. Trial Testimony

At trial, the jury heard from various of Arnold's co-defendants that are charged in the indictment, including Bynoe, who pled guilty to Count Two and testified pursuant to a proffer agreement. Bynoe testified that he met Arnold in 2014 when Arnold was visiting New York City. (Transcript of Proceedings (hereinafter "Tr."), Docs. 229-231, 234, p. 271.) Around one year later, upon returning to New York City, Arnold contacted Bynoe to ask him whether Bynoe knew of any females that would be interested in commercial sex work. (Id., pp. 274-75.) In the ensuing weeks, Bynoe connected Arnold with multiple females that Arnold brought back to Pennsylvania to engage in commercial sex work. (Id., pp. 282, 284, 286.)

In late 2015, Bynoe moved to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. (Id., p. 287.) There, he made an agreement with Arnold to drive him and his female victims to"prostitution dates" ("dates") in exchange for compensation. (Id., p. 288.) Before long, Bynoe himself began prostituting women at Arnold's direction and with Arnold's assistance. (Id., pp. 290, 295.) Arnold taught Bynoe things such as where to advertise and how to use Bitcoin. (Id. p. 290.) Thereafter, Bynoe and Arnold mostly had separate and distinct victims, though they operated out of the same hotels and townhouses, recruited females together, supervised each other's victims when the other was unavailable, and would sometimes send their victims to the same dates when a john requested two females. (Id., pp. 290, 295, 302-33, 307-11, 314.) They also utilized each other and their other co-defendants as drivers, including Guity-Nunez and Hawkins. (Id., p. 303.). Sometimes, females would switch between working under the two men. (Id., p. 334.)

Bynoe testified that marijuana was among the expenses for the business and that he distributed marijuana to his victims and the other participants in the business, including the drivers. (Id., p. 306.) He also explained that some of the females under him and Arnold were drug addicts, and that he observed Arnold provide heroin to females. (Id., p. 335-36.) Bynoe noted that when Arnold would buy heroin, he "used to go for a ride to get weed as well." (Id., p. 335.)

Bynoe testified that he saw Arnold use violence towards his female victims on three occasions, including one time when Arnold slapped the back of a female's head because she quoted the wrong price to a john. (Id., pp. 307, 317-18.) On anotheroccasion, there was some confusion about whether a particular female was going to work directly under Bynoe or Arnold, and when the female informed Arnold that she wanted to work under Bynoe because Arnold was mean, Arnold slapped her. (Id., p. 328.) Bynoe also testified that in mid-2016, one of his female victims that owed him money switched to working for another pimp, Sonny Banks. After Banks refused to pay Bynoe the money that the female owed, Bynoe, Arnold, Hawkins, and Guity-Nunez beat and robbed Banks. (Id., pp. 340-41.)

The jury also heard testimony from Murphy, who like Bynoe was charged in the indictment as a co-conspirator to Arnold, pled guilty to Count Two, and testified pursuant to a proffer agreement. Murphy testified that in late 2015, she began working as a commercial sex worker directly under Bynoe and would go on three to five dates per day. (Id., pp. 103, 108.) She thereafter became Bynoe's "bottom," a term given to a pimp's lead prostitute that is akin to the pimp's second in command. (Id., p. 163.)

Murphy testified that Bynoe and Arnold had a close relationship and interacted on a regular basis, including speaking about sex trafficking "[a] lot. Maybe 80 percent, 90 percent of the time." (Id., pp. 129-32; 136.) Her testimony made clear that Arnold and Bynoe worked out of the same hotel, recruited together, and sent their victims on the same dates and provided them with the same instructions. (Id., pp. 128-31.) Murphy testified that females were driven to dates byArnold, Bynoe, Guity-Nunez, Hawkins, and herself. (Id., pp. 120-23.) She also testified that when Arnold was unavailable, she herself would look over Arnold's victims. (Id., p. 141.) On one occasion, when Bynoe was in jail, Arnold came and "intimidated" two commercial sex workers that were initially recruited by Hawkins, and then working under Murphy, because Murphy was concerned they wouldn't listen to her:

He was yelling at them saying that, you know, I'm trying to help [Bynoe and Murphy] out, so don't talk to me the way you want to talk to me or like don't talk to me like that, don't be disrespectful to me, I'm trying to help them make money, and if there's any issues, I'll be coming back. And then he said that if I had any problem, to call him and he'll handle it.

(Id. pp. 168-69; see also p. 167.)

Several victims of Arnold and his co-conspirators also testified. For example, Brianna Mercier testified that she met Arnold in Summer 2016 when she was walking to McDonald's and Arnold and another man pulled up in a car. (Id., p. 463.) At the time, Mercier was around 21-years old with a ninth-grade education, and she was suffering from anxiety, depression, and a heroin addiction. (Id., pp. 458-59.) Soon after meeting Arnold, Mercier explained to him that she needed money because she recently lost her job and was evicted, and needed heroin because she was experiencing withdrawal symptoms. (Id., p. 464.) Arnold responded that he could advertise her on the internet as a commercial sex worker, split the proceeds with her down the middle, and provide her with heroin after she went on a date. (Id., pp. 466-70.) Mercier obliged and provided Arnold with half the proceeds, and Arnold provided Mercier with heroin. (Id., pp. 470-71, 475.)

Mercier testified that she witnessed Arnold use violence on two occasions. One time, Arnold became "very angry" that one of his female victims spent extra time with a john without being compensated. (Id., pp. 476-77.) In response, Arnold put his hands around the female's neck. (Id, p. 477.) Mercier testified that she herself "froze" upon witnessing this violence, and that the female victim reacted with fright "like anybody would." (Id., p. 478-79.) Mercier also testified that on another occasion—under "the same circumstances, spending too much time with a client, not getting enough money"—she witnessed Arnold slap the face of another of his female victims. (Id., pp. 479-80.)

Nicole Bailey, another of Arnold's victims, also testified. Bailey said that in Summer 2016, she was approached by Murphy and another man while she was standing outside a store and suffering from heroin withdrawal. After meeting, Murphy set up dates for Bailey. After one week of commercial sex work, she was introduced to Arnold, who told that her that she was expected to make $1000 in one night. (Id., p. 508.)

Arnold also explained to Bailey that she could choose to have a 50/50 or "all in" arrangement with him. (Id.) Under a 50/50 arrangement, Arnold and Bailey would each keep half of the proceeds from each date. (Id.) Under an "all in"arrangement, all the money would go to Arnold in exchange for Arnold taking care of all of Bailey's needs including food, transportation, lodging, and drugs. (Id.) Bailey testified that she decided to be "all in," and that Arnold told her that the arrangement would include him providing her with heroin. (Id., p. 509.) Bailey testified that she did in fact receive heroin from Arnold, Guity-Nunez, and Murphy. (Id., pp. 509-10, 512.) On some occasions, heroin was withheld from her (and other victims) until after she went on dates. (Id., p. 513; see pp. 137, 160.)

Bailey also testified that she was driven to dates by Arnold and Guity-Nunez, and that when johns would come to her for dates, Arnold and Guity-Nunez would instruct her to stay inside her hotel room for fear of getting caught. (Id., pp. 512, 514.) Bailey testified that she once witnessed Arnold raise his hand to another female but "didn't hear it connect." (Id., p. 514.) Bailey also testified that she allowed Arnold to rent various hotel rooms that were used for sex trafficking in her name because she "didn't want to say no, you know, due to what could happen for saying no." (Id., p. 515.)

Shanita Jones was another witness. Jones testified that in late...