USA v. Addison et al

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA
CHARLOTTE DIVISION
CRIMINAL ACTION NO. 3:17-CR-00134-063-FDW-DSC
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff,
vs.
TYQUAN RAMONT POWELL,
Defendant.
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ORDER
THIS MATTER IS BEFORE THE COURT on the Government’s Motion to Authorize
Payment from Inmate Trust Account” (Doc. No. 3195) (“Motion”). The Defendant has not responded
to the Government’s motion. Therefore, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. §§ 3613(a), 3664(n), and 3664(k), the
Court GRANTS the United States’ Motion.
BACKGROUND
The Defendant, Tyquan Ramont Powell, pleaded guilty to RICO conspiracy. On January 29,
2020, this Court sentenced him to a total of four hundred twenty (420) months’ imprisonment, and
three (3) years of supervised release. This Court also ordered him to pay a $100.00 special
assessment and $6,777.00 in restitution. To date, he has paid the special assessment and a total of
$1,719.71 toward restitution. He remains in federal custody and is currently assigned to the Federal
Correctional Institution in Bennettsville, South Carolina.
The current balance of Defendant’s debt is $5,057.29. The United States Attorney’s Office
recently learned that he currently has $1,451.67 in his inmate trust account maintained by the Bureau
of Prisons (“BOP”). The United States moves for entry of an order authorizing the BOP to turn over
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$1,351.67 of the funds held in Defendant’s inmate trust account to the Clerk of Court as payment
toward the restitution owed to the victims of Defendant’s crime.
DISCUSSION
Title 18, United States Code, section 3613 sets out procedures for the United States to enforce
criminal monetary penalties, including restitution and fines. See 18 U.S.C. §§ 3613(a) and (f).
Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3613(c), upon entry of judgment, a lien arises against all of the defendant’s
property and rights to property, including the defendant’s interest in funds held by the BOP in his
inmate trust account. See 18 U.S.C. § 3613(a) (United States may enforce restitution against all
property and rights to property of the defendant).
The Mandatory Victims Restitution Act (“MVRA”) permits the United States to use “all other
available and reasonable means” to collect restitution. See 18 U.S.C. § 3664(m)(1)(A)(ii). The
MVRA also requires that a defendant’s substantial resources received from any source during his
term of incarceration be applied to his outstanding restitution obligation. See 18 U.S.C. § 3664(n).
The MVRA further authorizes the Court to order payment of a restitution obligation upon notice of
a material change in a defendant’s economic circumstances that affects his ability to pay restitution
“as the interests of justice require.” See 18 U.S.C. § 3664(k).
The funds at issue currently are in the Government's possession and the Government has a
valid lien over this property. Further, because the property at issue is cash, it does not fall within any
applicable categories of the exempt property that a defendant may claim in a criminal case. See 18
U.S.C. § 3613(a)(1) (setting forth the applicable IRS property exemptions for criminal cases). Thus,
the Court concludes that an order authorizing the turnover of the Defendant's property is appropriate
here.
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IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the Government's Motion to Authorize Payment
from Inmate Trust Account (Doc. No. 3195) is GRANTED, and the Bureau of Prisons is hereby
authorized to turn over to the Clerk of Court funds in the amount of $1,351.67 held in the inmate
trust account for the Defendant as payment for the criminal monetary penalties imposed in this
case.
SO ORDERED. Signed: October 12, 2021
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