11th Circuit Affirms You Need Not Be Present to Be Present

The 11^th Circuit found no reversible error on the part of the US District Court for the Northern District of Georgia in a rather bizarre case that had almost nothing to do with credit card fraud. The defendant, Jean-Daniel Perkins, was indicted on 37 counts regarding a credit card scheme. Rather than plead guilty or attempt a coherent defense to prove his innocence, he instead attempted to stall, disrupt and otherwise hinder his trial, and then tried to claim the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure were violated. He attempted to claim his rights under Rule 43 were violated because he was not present at the trial.

You can find the .pdf of the 11^th’s opinion here. Pages 2 through 12 cover the background of the case and Mr. Perkin’s near limitless antics, including refusing counsel and refusing to leave his holding cell to attend his own trial. It is worth noting that the District Judge went to extraordinary lengths to allow Mr. Perkins to be present. Not only did the judge leave the bench and attempt to speak with him in the holding cell, she also ensured a video feed of the trial and subsequent sentencing was available to him in his cell.

The 11^th said they “will not Review Error that Mr. Perkins Invited.” While he may not have been present in the courtroom, that was a decision he made on multiple occasions, even threatening violence if the marshals attempted to force him from the holding cell. Further, the Circuit stated “A criminal defendant who engages in this kind of obstructive behavior does so at his own peril. The system that Mr. Perkins attempted to disrupt is designed to protect not only his rights but the rights of all defendants to the fair administration of the proceedings against them.” The 360 month sentence stands.

Another important point for citizens, defendants and attorneys alike to note is that his recorded telephone conversations from jail were strong evidence against him. There is no way to know how the 11^th would have ruled without the evidence from the calls, but with the recorded phone calls, his intention to exploit the system was obvious.