Trudeau Criminal Appeal 14 1869 Documents 12 and 13 Re in Forma Pauperis Etc 05 21 and 05-23-14

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1
IN THE
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE SEVENTH CIRCUIT

) No. 14-1869
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, )
) Appeal from the United States
) District Court for the
v. ) Northern District of Illinois,
) Eastern Division
) 10 CR 886
KEVIN TRUDEAU )
) Honorable Ronald A. Guzmn

GOVERNMENTS RESPONSE TO DEFENDANT-APPELLANT
KEVIN TRUDEAUS MOTION TO PROCEED ON APPEAL IN FORMA
PAUPERIS AND FOR APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL
The UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, by its attorney, ZACHARY T.
FARDON, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois,
respectfully submits the following response to defendant-appellant Kevin
Trudeaus motion to proceed on appeal in forma pauperis and for
appointment of counsel.
BACKGROUND
On November 12, 2013, a jury convicted Trudeau of criminal contempt,
in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 401(3), based on
Trudeaus willful violation of an order of the United States District Court for
the Northern District of Illinois. R. 145. The district court (Honorable Ronald
A. Guzmn) ordered Trudeau into custody the same day. R. 144. On March
17, 2014, the court sentenced Trudeau to ten years in prison, after finding
Case: 14-1869 Document: 12 Filed: 05/21/2014 Pages: 7

2
that Trudeaus contempt defrauded consumers of over $37 million. R. 173.
The judgment was filed on April 3, 2014, and on April 17, 2014, Trudeau filed
a notice of appeal and a motion in the district court for leave to appeal in
forma pauperis. R. 173, 175, 177. On April 24, 2014, the district court denied
the motion. Def. Mot. Ex. B. On April 29, 2014, Trudeau filed a motion in this
Court to proceed in forma pauperis on appeal. The motion states that while
Trudeau has previously retained Winston & Strawn to represent him,
Winston & Strawn now intends to represent Trudeau on a pro bono basis, but
the firm seeks waiver of filing and other fees and reimbursement of travel
expenses. Def. Mot. at 3; Def. Mot. Ex. D.
In addition to Trudeaus conviction for criminal contempt, from June
2013 to November 2013, he was held in civil contempt four times. 03 CV
3904, R. 729, 751, 773, 801. In holding Trudeau in contempt, the district
court (Honorable Robert W. Gettleman) found that Trudeau failed to pay a
$37 million civil judgment against him
1
; submitted under oath two false
financial statements
2
; paid over $5 million in legal fees to an asset protection
specialist for the sole purpose of evading the $37 million judgment
3
; created
over two-dozen domestic and offshore entities as part of an elaborate

1
03 CV 3904, R. 729.
2
03 CV 3904, October 16, 2013 Tr. 35; FTC v. Trudeau, 572 F. Supp. 2d 919,
925 (N.D. Ill. 2008).
3
03 CV 3904, July 26, 2013 Tr. at 27.

3
scheme to conceal assets from the government
4
; lived a lavish lifestyle
5
; and
lied to a court-appointed receiver who was tasked with marshaling and
controlling Trudeaus assets.
6

ARGUMENT
Title 28, United States Code, Section 1915(a) provides that any court
of the United States may authorize an appeal without prepayment of fees
. . . by a person who submits an affidavit that includes a statement of all
assets such prisoner possesses that the person is unable to pay such fees. . . .
Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 24(a)(1) provides that a party to a
district-court action who desires to appeal in forma pauperis must file a
motion in the district court. If the district court denies the motion, the party
may file a similar motion in the court of appeals. Fed. R. App. P. 24(a)(5). The
motion in the court of appeals is a subsequent motion for in forma pauperis
status, rather than an appeal from the [district courts] denial. Fed. R. App.
P. 24(a)(5) advisory committees note (1967); Owens v. Keeling, 461 F.3d 763,
774 (6th Cir. 2006).
The district court correctly concluded that Trudeaus application
shows that defendant has sufficient assets to pay the filing fee for this
appeal. Def. Mot. Ex. B. The appellate filing fee is $505. As the district court

4
03 CV 3904, R. 713 at 3-9, 18; July 26, 2013 Tr. at 27-28.
5
03 CV 3904, R. 713, 729; July 26, 2013 Tr. at 29.
6
03 CV 3904, R. 773, 796, 801; January 30, 2014 Tr. at 41, 44.

4
noted, Trudeaus in forma pauperis application states that in the six months
before Trudeau filed the application, his inmate account at the Metropolitan
Correctional Center in Chicago had total deposits of $2,310, withdrawals of
$1,860, and a current balance of $370.84. Def. Mot. Ex. A at 4-6; Def. Mot. Ex.
B. Since January 2014, Trudeau spent $1,111.16 at the Metropolitan
Correction Center commissary. Def. Mot. Ex. A at 6. The application further
states that Trudeau was last employed in the summer of 2013 at a salary of
14,000 swiss francs (about $15,000) a month, and that in the previous twelve
months his wife received wages of approx. $100,000, and he had received
approx. $10,000 in gifts and approx. [$]16,000 from a court-appointed
receiver. Id. at 1-2. According to the application, Trudeau supports no
dependents. Id. at 3.
As a prisoner, Trudeaus necessities are provided by federal
government. See Lumbert v. Ill. Dept. of Corrections, 827 F.2d 257, 260
(1987). Since he was convicted and incarcerated in November 2013, Trudeau
spent over $1,800, including over $1,100 since January 2014 in purchases
from the prison commissary. These expenditures reflect Trudeaus judgment
that his money is better spent on goods at the commissary than on the filing
fee for his appeal. Trudeau should not then expect the federal government to
pay his costs. See Lumbert, 827 F.2d at 260 (If the inmate thinks that a more
worthwhile use of his funds would be to buy peanuts and candy (two of the

5
items that, the record shows, Lumbert has purchased from the prison
commissary) than to file a civil rights suit, he has demonstrated an implied
evaluation of the suit that the district court is entitled to honor.).
In Merritte v. Templeton, 493 Fed. Appx. 782 (7th Cir. 2012)
(unpublished), this Court held that a party was not entitled to in forma
pauperis status when his recent financial history showed that he could have
afforded the filing fee, but he chose to spend his money on other things.
Merritte was the plaintiff in a suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 who had received
over $5,500 in the fifteen months his lawsuit was pending, had no financial
obligations, and spent the vast majority of his funds on prison
commissaries. 493 Fed. Appx. at 784. Merritte, like Trudeau, was able to pay
the filing fee, but he chose to spend his money elsewhere. Id. This Court held
that [u]nder these circumstances, the district court was permitted to
withhold the privilege of proceeding without prepaying a filing fee. Id.
Trudeaus financial record is similar, and the district court was right to
deny his motion.


6
CONCLUSION
This Court should deny Trudeaus motion to proceed in forma pauperis
on appeal.
Respectfully submitted.

ZACHARY T. FARDON
United States Attorney

By: /s/ Marc Krickbaum
MARC KRICKBAUM
Assistant United States Attorney
219 S. Dearborn St.
Chicago, Illinois 60604

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on May 21, 2014, I electronically filed the
foregoing GOVERNMENTS RESPONSE TO DEFENDANT-APPELLANT
KEVIN TRUDEAUS MOTION TO PROCEED ON APPEAL IN FORMA
PAUPERIS AND FOR APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL with the Clerk of the
Court for the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit by using
the CM/ECF system. I certify that all participants in the case are registered
CM/ECF users and that service will be accomplished by the CM/ECF system.
Respectfully submitted.

ZACHARY T. FARDON
United States Attorney

By: /s/ Marc Krickbaum
MARC KRICKBAUM
219 S. Dearborn Street - Fifth Floor
Chicago, Illinois 60604
No. 14-1869
In the United States Court of Appeals
for the Seventh Circuit

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, PLAINTIFF-APPELLEE
v.
KEVIN TRUDEAU, DEFENDANT-APPELLANT
__________

APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS, EASTERN DIVISION, NO. 10-CR-886-1
HON. RONALD A. GUZMAN, PRESIDING
__________

DEFENDANT-APPELLANT KEVIN TRUDEAUS REPLY IN SUPPORT
OF HIS MOTION TO PROCEED ON APPEAL IN FORMA PAUPERIS
AND FOR APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL
__________
Kevin Trudeau respectfully states the following in support of his motion to
proceed on appeal in forma pauperis and for appointment of counsel:
The Government did not refute Mr. Trudeaus showing that he presently
lacks sufficient funds to pay the courts fees. Accordingly, Mr. Trudeau should be
allowed to proceed in forma pauperis. But even if the Court determines that Mr.
Trudeau must pay court fees, because the Government did not contest Mr. Tru-
deaus financial inability to employ counsel, it should appoint Christopher M.
Bruno as counsel of record under the Criminal J ustice Act. 18 U.S.C.
3006(A)(b); Plan Of The United States Court Of Appeals For The Seventh Cir-

2
cuit To Supplement The Plans Of The Several United States District Courts Within
The Seventh Circuit, Part III, 3.
Respectfully submitted,
/s/ Thomas L. Kirsch, II

MAY 23, 2014
THOMAS L. KIRSCH, II
Winston & Strawn LLP
35 West Wacker Drive
Chicago, IL 60601
(312) 558-5600
TKirsch@winston.com
Counsel for Defendant-Appellant
Kevin Trudeau

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I, Thomas L. Kirsch, an attorney, certify that on May 23, 2014, I caused the
foregoing DEFENDANT-APPELLANT KEVIN TRUDEAUS REPLY IN SUP-
PORT OF HIS MOTION TO PROCEED ON APPEAL IN FORMA PAUPERIS
AND FOR APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL to be served via ECF to the follow-
ing:
Marc Krickbaum
110 E. Court Avenue, Suite 286
Des Moines, IA 50309
(515) 473-9305

DATED: MAY 23, 2014 /s/ Thomas L. Kirsch, II
THOMAS L. KIRSCH, II


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