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United States of America v. Brandon Caparotta

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Before Lynch, Chief Judge, Souter, *fn1 Associate Justice, and Stahl, Circuit Judge.

After pleading guilty to stealing firearms and possessing stolen firearms, defendant Brandon Caparotta received a sentence of fifty-four months’ imprisonment. That sentence was based, in part, on the district court’s finding that Caparotta qualified as a “prohibited person” who, because of his history of substance abuse, was barred from possessing firearms. Caparotta raises two arguments on appeal, both stemming from an interview with the Pretrial Services Office during which he disclosed information about his drug use at the time of the offense. That information, he claims, was obtained upon a promise of confidentiality, and it was therefore a violation of his due process rights and of Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 32 for it to be included in his Presentence Investigation Report (PSR) and used against him at sentencing. He also claims that he was denied the effective assistance of counsel, in violation of the Sixth Amendment, when his trial attorney allowed him to disclose the information. We find that Caparotta’s due process claim is waived, that he has not demonstrated a violation of Rule 32, and that his Sixth Amendment claim fails. We therefore affirm.

During the early morning hours of August 23, 2010, Caparotta participated in a burglary of the Mill Creek Rod and Gun store, a federally-licensed firearms dealer in Orrington, Maine. Caparotta was arrested on August 26, 2010. On August 27, 2010, the Pretrial Services Office conducted an interview with Caparotta (which we will refer to as the “bail interview”) to determine whether he was eligible for release on bond. Caparotta’s attorney was present at that interview, during which Caparotta discussed, among other things, his history of substance abuse.

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