This case raises an issue of first impression for this Court: the scope of the Supreme Court's holding in Scheidler v. National Org. for Women, Inc., 537 U.S. 393, 123 S.Ct. 1057, 154 L.Ed.2d 991 (2003) ("Scheidler II"),1 in which the Supreme Court tightened the requirements for finding that a defendant has committed extortion under the Hobbs Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1951. On appeal, the defendants-appellants—Peter Gotti, Richard G. Gotti, Anthony ("Sonny") Ciccone, and Richard Bondi—argue that Scheidler II invalidates all of the Hobbs Act counts in this case that were premised on the extortion of intangible property rights. We hold, however, that Scheidler II did not invalidate the challenged extortion counts at issue in this case, because Scheidler II—far from holding that a Hobbs Act extortion could not be premised on the extortion of intangible property rights—simply clarified that for Hobbs Act liability to attach, there must be a showing that the defendant did not merely seek to deprive the victim of the property right in question, but also sought to obtain that right for himself. That standard, which can be satisfied regardless of whether the property right at issue is tangible or intangible, has been met by each of the Hobbs Act counts at issue here. We also reject the numerous other challenges brought by the defendants-appellants to their convictions. Finally, with regard to the defendants-appellants' sentences, we remand Ciccone's and Bondi's cases for resentencing pursuant to United States v. Fagans, 406 F.3d 138 (2d Cir.2005), and we remand Peter Gotti's case for consideration of resentencing pursuant to United States v. Crosby, 397 F.3d 103 (2d Cir.2005).2 We also reject the argument advanced in the government's cross-appeal that the district court erred when, in sentencing Peter Gotti under the then-mandatory Sentencing Guidelines, it declined to impose a four-level leadership role enhancement upon him despite its finding that he had served as acting boss of the Gambino Organized Crime Family of La Cosa Nostra (the "Gambino Family").

I. BACKGROUND: THE INDICTMENT, TRIAL, VERDICTS, AND SENTENCES

The 68-count indictment in this case centered on the corrupt influence of the Gambino Family over certain labor unions, businesses, and individuals operating at the piers in Brooklyn and Staten Island. The indictment was brought against seventeen Gambino Family members and associates, including the four defendants-appellants here: (1) Peter Gotti, described in the indictment as the acting boss of the Gambino Family; (2) Ciccone, described as a Gambino Family captain; (3) Richard G. Gotti, described as a "made member" of the Gambino Family; and (4) Bondi, described as a Gambino Family associate.3 The four defendants-appellants all went to trial, along with three other defendants (Primo Cassarino, Richard V. Gotti, and Jerome Brancato, all of whom were described as "made members" of the Gambino Family), while the remaining ten defendants entered guilty pleas.4

The first two counts of the indictment were racketeering and racketeering conspiracy counts brought under 18 U.S.C. §§ 1962(c) and (d). These two counts encompassed, as predicate acts, the substantive allegations that were then also set forth as separate offenses in Counts 3-68.

For purposes of this appeal, the counts of which the defendants-appellants were ultimately convicted can be divided, on the basis of general subject matter, into fourteen categories. Those categories are as follows: (1) the International Longshoremen's Association, AFL-CIO ("ILA") Counts (RICO Predicate Act 1; Counts 3-7); (2) the Management-International Longshoremen's Association Managed Health Care Trust Fund ("MILA") Counts (RICO Predicate Act 2; Counts 8-13); (3) the Local 1 Checkers chapter of the ILA ("Local 1") Counts (RICO Predicate Act 3; Counts 14-18); (4) the Local 1814 chapter of the ILA ("Local 1814") Counts (RICO Predicate Act 4; Counts 19-23); (5) the Howland Hook Container Terminal ("Howland Hook") Counts (RICO Predicate Act 5; Counts 24-25); (6) the Frank Molfetta ("Molfetta") Counts (RICO Predicate Act 6; Counts 26-27); (7) the Money Laundering Counts (RICO Predicate Acts 7-21; Counts 28-46); (8) the Tommy Ragucci ("Ragucci") Counts (RICO Predicate Act 23; Counts 49-50); (9) the Leonardo Zinna ("Zinna") Count (RICO Predicate Act 24; Count 51); (10) the Nicola Marinelli ("Marinelli") Counts (RICO Predicate Act 25; Counts 52-53); (11) the Eduard Alayev ("Alayev") Counts (RICO Predicate Act 26; Counts 54-57); (12) the Steven Seagal ("Seagal") Counts (RICO Predicate Act 27; Counts 58-59); (13) the Gambling Counts (RICO Predicate Acts 31-32; Counts 66-67) and (14) the Witness Tampering Count (RICO Predicate Act 33; Count 68).

Below, we summarize—in the light most favorable to the government, given the defendants-appellants' convictions—the evidence adduced at trial as to each category of counts with respect to the applicable defendants-appellants.

The gravamen of the ILA Counts, Indictment ¶¶ 98-109, was that certain members and associates of the Gambino Family, including defendant-appellant Ciccone, had exercised control over the affairs of the union, first by using force to determine "who filled various International Executive Officer and other ILA positions" in order to "ensure that organized crime associates would be placed in these positions," and then by directing the activities of those office-holders. Id. ¶ 100. These activities gave rise to counts of both extortion and fraud.

With regard to extortion, the indictment alleged that the defendants had wrongfully obtained the following property of ILA union members: "(1) ILA labor union positions, money paid as wages and employee benefits, and other economic benefits that such ILA union members would have obtained but for the defendants' corrupt influence over such union; (2) the right of ILA union members to free speech and democratic participation in the affairs of their labor organization as guaranteed by [Sections 411 and 481 of the Labor-Management Reporting Disclosure Act (`LMRDA'), 29 U.S.C. § 401 et seq.]; and (3) the right of ILA union members to have the officers, agents, delegates, employees and other representatives of their labor organization manage the money, property and financial affairs of the organization in accordance with [Section 501(a) of the LMRDA]." Id. ¶ 99.

As to fraud, the indictment stated that the defendants had defrauded the ILA and its members out of (1) "ILA labor union positions, money paid as wages and employee benefits, and other economic benefits that such ILA union members would have obtained but for the defendants' corrupt influence over such union" and (2) their right to the honest services of their elected officials and other ILA delegates, employees, agents, and representatives. Id. ¶ 104.

At trial, the government adduced substantial evidence in support of the ILA charges. George Barone—a member of the Genovese Organized Crime Family of La Cosa Nostra (the "Genovese Family")—testified that there had been a long-held understanding between the Gambino Family and the Genovese Family concerning the ILA's activities, whereby the Gambino Family "would take care of Staten Island and Brooklyn" and the Genovese Family "would take care of New York and New Jersey." Trial Tr. ("Tr.") 721-22, 727. Barone stated that in the late 1970s, Ciccone became the Gambino representative in charge of the waterfront for Staten Island and Brooklyn, and served as a vice president of the ILA, with the local ILA union officials essentially under his control. Tr. 735-37. Barone himself went to jail from 1983 to 1990, and after being released from jail, again became involved in the Genovese Family's waterfront activities. Tr. 739, 743. At that point, Barone learned that Ciccone was still controlling the waterfront activities in the area, and still possessed influence over the ILA local union officials' activities. Tr. 755.

Additionally, Frank Scollo—former president of Local 1814, an ILA chapter in Brooklyn—testified that "Mr. Ciccone would tell me on many occasions what to do, what not to do." Tr. 1337, 1341-42. Scollo explained that he feared losing his job as president if he contradicted Ciccone's orders. Tr. 1371. He stated his predecessor, Frank Lonardo, had similarly taken instructions from Ciccone. Tr. 1362-63. Scollo further testified that he kept his relationship with Ciccone secret from all of the other union members. Tr. 1411.

Scollo also specifically testified that prior to the July 2000 ILA convention in Lake Tahoe (which Scollo was to attend as a delegate), Ciccone gave him instructions as to which individuals should be elected to various ILA leadership positions. Tr. 1396. Scollo stated that he was only partially able to carry out these instructions, and that he immediately conveyed all of the developments to Ciccone because "Sonny wanted to know whatever we did; he wanted to be firsthand; he wanted to know about it." Tr. 1398-1400. Scollo explained that Ciccone "didn't want to lose any positions from the Brooklyn side, and as a result, we lost one spot that was [a] concern of his and ours." Tr. 1401. The government also introduced wiretap evidence of the reports that Scollo made to Ciccone (through Cassarino as an intermediary). Gov't Exh. TR-63.

Moreover, Scollo testified that after the ILA convention, a particular Local 1814 delegate named Phil Scala was upset that he had not obtained the leadership position that he wanted, and thus essentially refused to do any more work. Tr. 1448. Scollo, as a result, was very unhappy with Scala's performance and wanted to terminate him. Tr. 1449. However, Scollo did not feel that he had the authority to terminate Scala without Ciccone's approval, because "Sonny always told us ... it's the big decisions that we should have to confer with him first." Tr. 1450. In a wiretapped April 18, 2001 conversation between Scollo and Ciccone, Scollo asked, "Can I fire him if I have to?" Gov't Exh. TR-87. Ciccone responded, "Know what you do ... don't pay him for vacation, and tell him, `Let me tell you something, I was told to tell you already that next time you fuck up like this and you leave me hanging like this, I'm gonna fire you'.... And let him go where the fuck he wants to go." Id. Scollo followed these instructions and Scala later resigned. Tr. 1455. Scollo then sought Ciccone's approval to appoint someone else in his place. Tr. 1456.

The MILA Counts related to a scheme of the Gambino and Genovese Families to use their control over MILA (the ILA's national health plan) to ensure that a particular company called GPP/VIP—which was partially owned by Gambino Family associate Vincent Nasso, and which paid substantial kickbacks—was awarded MILA's lucrative pharmaceutical services contract. Indictment ¶¶ 110-113. Ciccone was the only defendant-appellant named in these counts.

At trial, the government adduced evidence of the MILA scheme from several sources. David Tolan—the management co-chairman of MILA since 1997—testified that MILA had been established in early 1997 as a national health plan for all ILA members, and that its Board of Trustees included eighteen management-side trustees and eighteen union-side trustees. Tr. 1079, 1082. In 1997, the MILA trustees decided to include a prescription drug benefit for the members and, to that end, requested proposals from twenty-two pharmaceutical benefit providers. Tr. 1088. All twenty-two companies responded with bids; MILA's outside consultants then produced a list of the top five contenders. Tr. 1088-89. A company called GPP ranked number five in that list, while a company called Express Scripts ranked first. Tr. 1089. Nolan recommended that GPP (which he believed lacked sufficient financial resources) be eliminated from the list, and that MILA engage Express Scripts. Tr. 1092. The union trustees, however, did not agree with that recommendation, and wanted to enter into an arrangement with GPP. Tr. 1093, 1097-98. The trustees eventually reached an agreement whereby everything below the Virginia border would be managed by Express Scripts, and everything above the Virginia border would be managed by GPP, which had since become part of a larger entity called GPP/VIP. Tr. 1099-1101. The principals of GPP/VIP were Joel Grodman and co-defendant Vincent Nasso. Tr. 1101.

Tolan further testified that after Express Scripts refused to allow an audit that the MILA trustees wanted, MILA began using GPP/VIP exclusively, both north and south of the Virginia border. Tr. 1104-05. Tolan stated that he did not consider GPP/ VIP cost-effective, because it was more expensive than other service providers. Tr. 1108. In June of 2001, GPP/VIP requested a half-million dollar annual fee increase, at which point Tolan decided to have the MILA consultants initiate a new round of bidding for the contract. Tr. 1110-13. After the bids came in, GPP/VIP came in second place; in first place was Advance PCS, a pharmaceutical benefit provider whose bid was $4.5 million cheaper than that submitted by GPP/VIP. Tr. 1113-14. Although all the trustees then initially agreed to award the contract to Advance PCS, the union trustees subsequently changed their position and sought to impose two conditions on Advance PCS. Tr. 1114, 1120. Advance PCS agreed to the conditions, but the union trustees still refused to support it, and brought a motion to continue using GPP/VIP. Tr. 1123-25. At that point, the management trustees submitted the matter to binding arbitration, and the arbitrator ultimately ruled in favor of Advance PCS. Tr. 1126-27. Thus, GPP/VIP ultimately held the lucrative pharmaceutical services contract from approximately 1997 to 2001.

The government also adduced evidence that helped to explain why certain ILA trustees had been such strong supporters of GPP/VIP, notwithstanding its higher rates: Ciccone had so ordered. Barone testified that Vincent Nasso was a Gambino Family associate who paid kickbacks to Ciccone out of the contract proceeds. Tr. 760-61. Moreover, Scollo—who, after becoming the President of Local 1814 in August of 2000, became a union-side MILA trustee—specifically testified that he was informed that "Sonny [Ciccone] was interested in [Vincent] Nasso, keeping the GPP in place." Tr. 1412-13. He stated that "Sonny himself told me to keep him abreast of it." Tr. 1413. Scollo further testified that when Advance PCS emerged as a strong challenger in 2001, Cassarino instructed Ciccone, "make sure you do all you can to help [GPP]." Tr. 1419. Scollo responded, "I'll do the best I can, but I think it's too far gone." Tr. 1419-20. Scollo testified that he did not reveal Ciccone's connection with Nasso to any of the other MILA trustees or members. Tr. 1431.

The government also presented wiretap evidence indicating the connection between Nasso and Ciccone, as well as the kickbacks that were being paid from Nasso to Ciccone. For example, in a March 26, 2001 wiretapped conversation among Ciccone, Cassarino, and Nasso, the three men discussed the fact that the MILA March payment had just come in. Gov't Exh. TR-176. Ciccone asked Nasso, "When am I going to see you? I gotta, I'm gonna lay it out." Id. (As discussed in further detail infra, this was apparently a reference to Ciccone's need for the money in order to make his monthly tribute payment to Peter Gotti, the acting boss.) On Wednesday, April 18, 2001, Ciccone and Nasso spoke again about the MILA contract. Nasso noted that "the Jew [Joel Grodman, co-principal of GPP/VIP] wants to raise the rate." Gov't Exh. TR-178N. Ciccone responded, "Tell him to go fuck himself. Tell him you do what I tell you to do." Id. Ciccone added, "I'm calling the shots over here, not you. And tell him, the day you don't like it, I got another guy to replace you. You're only here on account of me. Fuck him." Id. Nasso agreed, stating, "All right. That's what I'm gonna say today." Id. Ciccone also asked about receiving his check, to which Nasso responded, "The Jew's gotta send me the money." Id. Ciccone asked, "But the Jew got the money?" Id. Nasso replied, "No, not yet, not yet.... I gotta know when it comes in." Id. Ciccone said, "So tell me about it, I'm laying the fucking thing out too ... [the] last two months, last two times." Id.

The gravamen of the Local 1 Counts, Indictment ¶¶ 124-137, was that certain defendants, including defendants-appellants Ciccone and Bondi, had conspired and attempted to extort and defraud the Local 1 Chapter of the ILA, particularly by trying to exercise control over two Local 1 officials: Steve Knott (the president) and Louis Saccenti (an elected Local 1 delegate). Specifically, the indictment alleged that the defendants had sought to extort the Local 1 members' property interests in "(1) Local 1 labor union positions, money paid as wages and employee benefits, and other economic benefits that such Local 1 union members would have obtained but for the defendants' corrupt influence over such union; (2) the right of Local 1 union members to free speech and democratic participation in the affairs of their labor organization as guaranteed by [Sections 411 and 481 of the LMRDA, 29 U.S.C. § 401 et seq.]; and (3) the right of Local 1 union members to have the officers, agents, delegates, employees and other representatives of their labor organization manage the money, property and financial affairs of the organization in accordance with [Section 501(a) of the LMRDA]." Id. ¶ 125. The indictment further alleged that the defendants had sought to defraud Local 1 and its members out of (1) "Local 1 labor union positions, money paid as wages and employee benefits, and other economic benefits that such Local 1 union members would have obtained but for the defendants' scheme and artifice to defraud" and (2) their right to the honest services of their elected officials and other Local 1 delegates, employees, agents, and representatives. Id. ¶ 130.

At trial, Scollo testified that while he was President of Local 1814, he had several conflicts with Saccenti, because Saccenti—on behalf of Local 1—would sometimes take actions that "were detrimental to the Brooklyn side of the waterfront, my local [Local 1814]." Tr. 1432. When this occurred, Scollo would "call up Primo [Cassarino] and say `that guy's breaking chops again,' and he would bring it to Sonny [Ciccone]." Id. For example, on one occasion during the summer of 2000, Scollo was upset that Saccenti was going to fill a temporarily vacant shop steward position with someone named Doyle. Tr. 1433. Scollo explained that he wanted someone else to fill that position. Id. Accordingly, he reported the situation to Cassarino, hoping that Cassarino would tell Ciccone and that Ciccone would "reach out for Louie [Saccenti] not to make that change." Tr. 1433-44. Cassarino, in turn, told Scollo to tell "Stevie" [Knott] "not to make any move until [Ciccone] speaks to [Saccenti]." Tr. 1441. Scollo, however, was unable to reach Knott. Id. Scollo testified that the friction between him and Saccenti continued, as Saccenti attempted to make certain changes at the Howland Hook Container Terminal in Staten Island. Tr. 1444-45. Scollo did not like these changes because he believed they would "slow things down" on the Local 1814 side. Tr. 1445. Thus, in a February 26, 2001 wiretapped conversation between Scollo and Cassarino, Scollo said that he had told "Augie [Decrescenzo, the Local 1 stop steward] no changes till we get notified. That's Sonny's [Ciccone's] orders." Gov. Exh. TR-77. In a March 8, 2001 conversation between Scollo and Cassarino, Scollo reported, "Augie called me.... [H]e was all disturbed from Howland Hook.... Louie [Saccenti] told Augie this afternoon that he spoke to you and everything was taken care of." Gov't Exh. TR-78. Scollo stated that Saccenti was a "liar" for having falsely implied that everything was resolved. Id. Cassarino instructed, "[T]ell Louie, `Lou, what are you doin', you're supposed to see me before you do anything.'" Id.

The tension between Scollo and Saccenti continued to worsen, as evidenced by a June 27, 2001 wiretapped conversation between Scollo and Cassarino, in which Scollo reported that Saccenti was telling everyone "all bets are off." Gov't Exh. TR-79. Cassarino responded, "I don't understand this guy.... Who the fuck is givin' this guy authority to do this?" Id. Scollo agreed: "Something's gotta be done with Louie." Id. Cassarino reiterated, "He's outta control.... Who the fuck's he think he is?" Id. Later that day, in another wiretapped conversation, Ciccone instructed Cassarino to take "Richie" [Bondi] with him that night and to "[s]top by" Saccenti's house, "ring his bell," and "[s]ay, you know what? You'd better stop it.... You'd better stop.... Otherwise, you know what's gonna happen here?" Gov't Exh. TR-81. At trial, an investigator for the New York State Attorney General's organized crime task force testified that on that evening, he saw Cassarino and Bondi drive up to Saccenti's home, exit their car, walk toward the entrance, wait there, and then drive away. Tr. 3230-3235.5

At trial, Scollo acknowledged that as a Local 1814 official, he did not have any authority over these Local 1 officials, but testified that he—through the help he received from Cassarino and Ciccone—was nonetheless sometimes successful in influencing Saccenti's activities with respect to Local 1. Tr. 1447-48.

These counts alleged that certain defendants, including Ciccone, had—principally through their control over Scollo, the Local 1814 President—conspired and schemed to defraud members of Local 1814 out of (1) "Local 1814 labor union positions, money paid as wages and employee benefits, and other economic benefits that such Local 1814 union members would have obtained but for the defendants' scheme and artifice to defraud" and (2) their right to the honest services of their elected officials and other Local 1814 delegates, employees, agents, and representatives. Indictment ¶¶ 138-151. The government adduced significant evidence in support of these charges, as described above: namely, the testimony and wiretaps illustrating in detail that Scollo, unbeknownst to the Local 1814 members whom he purportedly represented, had taken orders from Ciccone as to Local 1814 activities, and had not made significant Local 1814 decisions without first obtaining Ciccone's approval.

The gravamen of these counts was that certain defendants, including defendant-appellant Ciccone, had extorted cash payments from Carmine Ragucci, the then-owner of Howland Hook Container Terminal, a shipping terminal in Staten Island. Id. ¶¶ 152-155.

At trial, Scollo testified that in late 1996 (before he became president of Local 1814), Ciccone told him that Ragucci was going to start giving him envelopes for transmission back to Ciccone. Tr. 1379. Scollo said that he did "not really" want to be involved in bringing the envelopes from Ragucci to Ciccone, Id. Nonetheless, about eight or nine months later, Ragucci began periodically giving Scollo envelopes for Ciccone. Tr. 1380-81. Scollo testified that he would give the envelopes either directly to Ciccone, or (at Ciccone's instructions) to someone else who would then pass the envelope on to Ciccone. Tr. 1381-82. Scollo once assisted Ragucci in putting approximately $8,900 in cash in an envelope for transmission to Ciccone. Tr. 1383.

Scollo testified that he was supposed to pick up the envelopes from Ragucci quarterly, but that Ragucci was very often late with the payments. Tr. 1384. When Ragucci was late, Scollo would report to Ciccone that Ragucci did not have the money, at which point Ciccone would tell him to "make sure that guy does the right thing," and "make sure you go back and make sure you get it." Tr. 1384, 1392. Scollo testified that Ciccone would be "a little pissed off" by late payments and that he, in turn, would communicate Ciccone's displeasure to Ragucci. Tr. 1392.

Scollo further stated that he believed that the transmissions were illegal, explaining, "The fact that we were doing it in these crazy places, and it got worse as time went by, I knew it was not the proper thing to do. I just did it." Tr. 1386. He also testified about the surreptitious nature of the transmissions: "We tried to use decoded ways.... By that I mean, we would use various code words—you got `that thing'?" Tr. 1388. He explained that they wanted to ensure that if someone were listening to the conversation, its meaning would not be easily understood. Tr. 1389.

Additionally, both Scollo and Carmine Ragucci's brother, Tommy, indicated that Ciccone had no legitimate reason to collect payments from Ragucci, by testifying that to their knowledge, Ciccone had not loaned Ragucci money, nor was he an investor in Howland Hook. Tr. 1744-45, 1897.

These counts alleged that certain defendants, including defendant-appellant Ciccone, had extorted Frank Molfetta, the owner of a trucking company. Indictment ¶¶ 156-59. The events leading up to this extortion began in 1994, when Molfetta— the owner of a trucking company named Bridgeside Drayadge—entered into a written contract with Carmine Ragucci, pursuant to which he paid Ragucci $150,000 for certain exclusive rights to operate the trucking business at Howland Hook. Tr. 1785. Molfetta was supposed to pay Ragucci an additional $100,000 once he had earned back the initial $150,000. Id. In approximately 1996, however, Ragucci breached the contract by giving some of the Howland Hook trucking work to another company. Tr. 1789. Molfetta, who had not yet even earned back the initial $150,000, concluded that he did not owe Ragucci the additional $100,000, although he still continued providing trucking services at Howland Hook. Tr. 1789-92.

Approximately three years later—in late 1999 or early 2000—Ragucci told Molfetta that Ciccone wanted to see him. Tr. 1792. At a meeting at the Unicorn Diner on Staten Island, Ciccone told Molfetta not to pay Ragucci any more money, and to start paying him instead. Tr. 1794-97. Molfetta testified that Ciccone asked for $2500 per month, but that he told Ciccone that he could only pay $1500, and that he would start making these payments the following month. Tr. 1802. Ciccone responded, "No, you start for last month." Tr. 1803.

Molfetta therefore started making monthly cash payments to Ciccone. When asked at the grand jury proceeding why he made these payments, Molfetta stated, "Why? Fear," adding, "I'm afraid right now.... [Y]ou kind of know people in that position have the power to do things to people if they don't do what they're told to do."

At the trial, however, Molfetta changed his account and stated that he had paid Ciccone not out of fear, but rather because Ciccone got him out of his contract with Ragucci. Tr. 1807. The government therefore introduced Molfetta's grand jury testimony as a prior inconsistent statement that could be admitted for its truth. Tr. 1808. When confronted with that earlier inconsistent testimony, Molfetta testified that he had simply told the government what it wanted to hear during the grand jury proceedings, because he was scared that he would be put in jail. Tr. 1809-1811. He acknowledged, however, that the government had threatened him with jail only if he gave false testimony. Tr. 1814.6

These counts related to the payment of illicit proceeds by lower-ranking members to the highest-ranking members of the Gambino Family as "tributes." Peter Gotti, Ciccone, and Richard G. Gotti were the defendants-appellants named in these counts. Indictment ¶¶ 162-63.

At trial, the government presented evidence about the general structure of organized crime families such as the Gambino Family, and about the practice of making tribute payments. FBI Agent Gregory Hagarty testified as an expert witness on organized crime, and explained that in the typical organized crime family in New York City, the "boss" is at the top of the hierarchy, with the "underboss" and the "consigliere" right below him, collectively making up the "administration." Tr. 232, 236. Agent Hagarty stated that when the boss is imprisoned or otherwise incapacitated, the family has "an acting boss who speaks with the same authority as the boss." Tr. 240. He explained that below the administration, there are typically a "number of captains," each of whom runs "a crew of soldiers." Tr. 236. He stated that "associates" were ranked below soldiers, sitting at the lowest level of the pyramid. Id. Agent Hagarty further explained that the overall purpose of an organized crime family is to generate money from illegal activities for the "administration." Tr. 238. He referred to this practice as "kicking up," explaining that "[y]ou take money from your illegal activities and kick it up to your boss. `Tribute' is another word they use." Tr. 239.

With regard to the Gambino Family, Agent Hagarty testified that Paul Castellano had served as boss of the family until 1985, at which point John J. Gotti became its boss. Tr. 248. Agent Hagarty further stated that John J. Gotti's son, John A. Gotti (also known as "Junior"), took over as acting boss in 1992 and served in that position until 1999. Tr. 446-48. The government further presented evidence that in 1999 (when John A. Gotti was imprisoned), his uncle Peter Gotti—brother of John J. Gotti—became acting boss of the Gambino Family. Specifically, the government introduced wiretaps of conversations between Gene Gotti (the incarcerated brother of John J. Gotti and Peter Gotti) and various visitors to the FCI McKean prison. In one such conversation on May 13, 1999, Gene Gotti stated, "My brother Pete's making the books." Gov't Exh. HTR-5. Agent Hagarty testified that this was a reference to "making new members," which could be done only by someone in the administration. Tr. 2442. In another such conversation, which occurred on January 13, 2000, Gene Gotti stated that Peter Gotti was "just there because there's nobody else to put there." Gov't Exh. HTR-10

In the wiretapped conversations, Gene also referred to tribute payments that were being made to Peter Gotti. For example, when one visitor commented to Gene on November 18, 1999, "Two thousand. A thousand each youse are getting ... every month," Gene responded, "Where am I getting it? My wife ain't getting it.... Who's taking it now?" Gov't Exh. HTR-6. The visitor replied, "Your brother gets it. Your brother has it." Id. Subsequently, Gene commented, "They're all taking money. My brother Pete and all the rest of them." Gov't Exh. HTR-7. The visitor stated, "Gene, you've been getting it for the last three years." Id. Gene said, "I never seen it the last three years.... [I]f you did give it to somebody, please get it back. For three years, that's a hundred and fifty thousand dollars. No, twelve, twenty-four, it's thirty-six thousand. Please get it and send it right to my house." Id. The visitor responded, "I'll tell your brother." Id. Gene said, "And from now on don't give it to my brother.... I don't want that. The situation is he gets it—but I haven't touched it. He was my acting capo." Id. Two months later, Gene instructed another visitor, "As soon as you see Peter just tell him, here. Here's eight for you, here's four for Genie." Gov't Exh. HTR-10.

Moreover, the government presented evidence indicating that the tributes were paid in cash to Peter Gotti on a monthly basis—typically the third or fourth Tuesday of each month, and transmitted from Jerome Brancato to Peter Gotti—and that these payments came from extortion, fraud, and gambling activities. For example, on the third Tuesday of April 2000 (April 18, 2000) Ciccone, Cassarino, and Brancato discussed arrangements for payments to someone they referred to only as "him." Gov't Exh. TR-154. Brancato stated, "I was out there the other day with him, I went over the whole thing with him. I'll bring it to him." Id. Cassarino responded, "Do it the way he told ya.... [J]ust take what ya gotta take ... and give [him] everything else." Id. Similarly, on May 22, 2000 (which was the day before the fourth Tuesday of May 2000, i.e., May 23, 2000), Ciccone told Cassarino, "[t]hat guy tomorrow.... [T]ell that guy, if he, he, he's a little confused and he needs to see me, I'll see him anytime he wants." Gov't Exh. TR-156. "What guy?" Cassarino asked. Id. "You know what I'm talkin' about, the guy that Jerry [Brancato's] gotta see tomorrow," answered Ciccone. Id. Cassarino then said, "Oh, oh, oh, oh, yeah, okay. Alright." Id.

Similarly, on October 15, 2000—which was two days before the third Tuesday of October 2000 (October 17, 2000)—Cassarino told Bondi to go see "Eddie" [Alayev] and to "[d]o everything," stating, "I gotta make that deadline by tomorrow, and I'm not gonna make it." Gov't Exh. TR-162. At trial, Agent Hagarty testified that on October 17, 2000, Brancato met Peter Gotti near 159th Avenue and 96th Street in Howard Beach. Tr. 2356.

Once again, on November 25, 2000— which was three days before the fourth Tuesday in November (November 28, 2000)—Cassarino told Bondi, "[Y]ou're gonna have to get the whole thing from Jerome [Orsino] anyway and drop it off at Jerry [Brancato's] house." Gov Exh. TR-165. On the payment date—November 28, 2000—Bondi told Cassarino that Brancato was waiting for him at the club, "because he had to go over there today ... you know what I'm saying?" Gov't Exh. TR-166. At trial, Agent Hagarty testified that on that same day, Brancato was seen going out to Howard Beach, and subsequently meeting Peter Gotti near 159th Avenue and 96th Street there. Tr. 2357-59.

Surveillance agents also observed Brancato meeting Peter Gotti in the same area on January 23, 2001 (the fourth Tuesday of the month). Special Agent James I. Folsom III of the FBI testified that he was on a surveillance assignment in Howard Beach that day. Tr.2095-96. He stated that he observed Peter Gotti's vehicle come into the area, and that this vehicle then "circled the block several times—different blocks." Tr.2097-98. He testified that Brancato then arrived, carrying a "white plastic shopping bag." Tr.2098. Brancato then got into Peter Gotti's vehicle, which drove away. Tr.2097. Agent Hagarty similarly testified that Brancato was seen meeting Peter Gotti at the same Howard Beach location on February 27, 2000 (the fourth Tuesday of the month). Tr. 2361.

Wiretapped conversations from March and April 2001 indicated that the monthly tribute payments were also being derived, at least in part, from the MILA kickbacks. For example, on March 26, 2001, which was the day before the last Tuesday in March, Cassarino told Ciccone that Brancato was "gonna see him [Peter Gotti] Wednesday, not tomorrow." Gov't Exh. TR-176 Ciccone responded that Brancato was "comin' up short ... so I'll lay out the.... [W]hat[,] I'm gonna send Jerry [Brancato] there with nothin'[?]" Id. Later in the conversation, Nasso—who was also on the phone—stated that the MILA March payment had just come in that day. Ciccone asked, "When am I going to see you? I gotta, I'm gonna lay it out," i.e., provide Brancato with money for the tribute payment to Peter Gotti. Id. At trial, Agent Hagarty testified that on Wednesday, March 28, 2001, he observed Brancato meeting with Peter Gotti at the same Howard Beach location. Tr. 2365.

On Wednesday, April 18, 2001, Ciccone and Nasso spoke again about the money from the MILA contract. In this conversation, Nasso stated that "the Jew [Joel Grodman] gotta send me the money.... I gotta know when it comes in." Ciccone said, "So tell me about it, I'm laying the fucking thing out too ... [the] last two months, last two times." Gov't Exh. TR-178N. At trial, Special Agent Robert Rogers of the FBI stated that on Tuesday, April 24, 2001, he observed Brancato meeting Peter Gotti in the same vicinity in Howard Beach. Tr. 2168.

On April 25, 2001, Brancato was arrested in another case, after which time the payment mechanism changed. Tr. 2411. Whereas previously Brancato had been making the payments directly to Peter Gotti in Howard Beach, now Cassarino began making the payments either to Richard V. Gotti (Peter Gotti's brother) or defendant-appellant Richard G. Gotti (Richard V. Gotti's son and Peter Gotti's nephew) in Brooklyn. On Monday, June 25, 2001, for example, Cassarino noted to Ciccone, "We gotta, got that appointment Thursday ... for the month." Gov't Exh. TR-182. At the trial, Special Agent Rogers testified that on Thursday, June 28, 2001, he followed Cassarino—who was carrying a blue plastic bag—to the Sheepshead Bay neighborhood of Brooklyn, where Cassarino then entered Maria's Restaurant. Tr. 2200-01. Richard G. Gotti's car was seen in the parking lot of the restaurant. Tr. 2202-03.

On Wednesday, September 26, 2001, Cassarino indicated to Ciccone that he had initially thought he had "that number," i.e., the full tribute payment, but that "I don't have it." Gov't Exh. TR-189. The following day, Ciccone indicated that he would advance Cassarino the money: "[H]ere's what I'm gonna. . . . I'm gonna give you [money] that's from this guy. Gonna go see him tomorrow, alright. So this way, if I have to lay it out [in advance], I'm gonna see him tomorrow morning." Gov't Exh. TR-189A. The "him" to whom Ciccone was referring was apparently Frank Molfetta —who, as described above, was being extorted for monthly payments by Ciccone —given that the following morning (September 28, 2001), Captain James McGowan of the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor observed a meeting between Ciccone and Molfetta at a diner on Staten Island, during which Molfetta passed an envelope across the table to Ciccone, stating "it's all there, hundreds." Tr. 1863, 1870.

On November 29, 2001, law enforcement officers executed search warrants on Cassarino and Richard G. Gotti after observing a meeting between them at Maria's Restaurant in Brooklyn. They recovered $12,000 in cash from Richard G. Gotti's pants pockets. Tr. 2315-2316. Cassarino later reported to Ciccone that "[r]emember what happened to Jerry [Brancato] last time [i.e., being apprehended by law enforcement]? . . . Just happened to me." Gov't Exh. TR-202. Ciccone noted, "we should change it," an apparent reference to the existing tribute payment mechanism. Id. Cassarino agreed: "Definitely, without a doubt." Id. Ciccone reiterated, "Yeah. Fuck that. I don't wanna go to jail." Id. Cassarino reflected, "They [the officers] gave me his card, that fucking [Captain] McGowan, that prick." Id.

These counts alleged that certain defendants, including defendant-appellant Ciccone, had conspired and unsuccessfully attempted to extort Tommy Ragucci (referred to in the indictment as "John Doe 1"), an employee at Howland Hook (and the brother of Carmine Ragucci), by ordering him to resign from his position there so that it could be filled by Bobby Anastasia, who was related to a Gambino Family member. Indictment ¶¶ 168-171.

In support of these charges, the government introduced testimony from Scollo, who stated that in the summer of 2001, Ciccone (either directly or through Cassarino) ordered him to tell Tommy Ragucci to leave his position. Tr. 1516. Scollo explained that Ciccone wanted to remove Tommy Ragucci from the position so that Bobby Anastasia could be placed there. Tr. 1518. Scollo further testified that he carried out these orders, but that Tommy Ragucci said that he would not resign. Tr. 1516-17.

Tommy Ragucci, in turn, testified that in approximately August of 2001, Scollo approached him and stated "that his boss wanted me to step down." Tr.1901. He asked Scollo who his boss was; Scollo responded, "Sonny." Id. Tommy understood that this meant "Sonny Ciccone." Tr.1902. He stated that upon receiving this order, "I felt very—I would say I felt intimidated." Tr.1903. He subsequently had a "sit-down" with Scollo, at which point he asked whether he could talk directly to Ciccone. Id. Scollo responded, "No way, can't happen." Tr.1904. Tommy Ragucci then told Scollo that he was not willing to step down. Id. Scollo "was very upset and he left." Id.

The government also presented a July 19, 2001 wiretapped conversation in which Ciccone told Cassarino that he wanted the "Bobby A" [Bobby Anastasia] task to be done "as soon as possible," Gov't Exh. TR-118, as well as a July 26, 2001 wiretapped conversation, in which Scollo reported to Ciccone: "I grabbed Tommy yesterday and I told him, listen to me." Gov Exh. TR-119. Ciccone responded, "Tell him I don't want him there. Tell him I don't want him there. . . . Say you're only there because I gave your brother [Carmine] a fucking chance. That's it. That's it. Now you're out." Scollo replied, "I told him as soon as possible." Id. Ciccone reiterated, "And not the end of the summer. As soon as possible, maybe within the next thirty days."

Scollo subsequently reported, in an August 6, 2001 wiretapped conversation with Cassarino, that "I spoke to Tommy. He said he don't feel like he wants to step down." Gov't Exh. TR-120. When Ciccone later learned that Tommy Ragucci was still in his position, he remarked to Cassarino and Bondi, "We gonna do, we gotta get rid of this fuckin' guy." Gov't Exh. TR-121. Evidently, however, the matter was ultimately dropped, because as of the trial, Tommy Ragucci was still working at the Howland Hook terminal. Tr. 1897.

This count alleged that certain defendants, including defendant-appellant Ciccone, had conspired to extort $5,000 from Leonardo Zinna (referred to in the indictment as "John Doe 2"), after they learned that Zinna had charged two people $3,000 each for waterfront jobs. Indictment ¶ 173.

The evidence supporting this conspiracy charge was straightforward. At trial, the government introduced into evidence a wiretapped conversation in which Ciccone stated to Cassarino and Scollo, in regard to Zinna, "[G]et a hold of this guy. . . . He got to bring us five . . . . `Cause, you know what, you cocksucker?. . . . You took six. You gave back three. Now we want five from you." Ciccone reiterated: "Fuck him. Tell him I want five." Gov't Exh. TR-115.

These counts alleged that certain defendants, including defendant-appellant Ciccone, conspired to extort, and did extort, a certain sum of money from Nicola Marinelli (referred to in the indictment as "John Doe 3"). Indictment ¶¶ 174-177.

At trial, the government adduced evidence that after Marinelli sought (at the suggestion of his attorney, Tr. 2765-66) the help of Ciccone and Cassarino in obtaining his workmen's compensation payments, they extorted him for a portion of these proceeds. Specifically, wiretap evidence demonstrated that after Marinelli was set to receive his payments, Cassarino ordered Marinelli's son, Vito, to bring money to him. In the wiretapped conversation, Cassarino asked Vito whether everything had been "straightened out" with his father. Gov't Exh. TR-222. When Vito responded affirmatively, Cassarino responded, "Alright, `cause you got to come and see me, right?" Id. Vito then expressed nervousness (apparently about how much money to bring), stating, "I wanna know what you think is the right thing. Know what I'm saying?" Id. Cassarino responded, "I don't know. Whatever you think. That's what he [Ciccone] told me and then they'll just take it from there." Id. Vito responded, "I, I, I don't want to do the wrong thing." Id. Cassarino responded, "[I]f it's wrong, I'll tell ya." Vito said, "we're waiting for the, ah, for the check. . . . Then we'll come see ya." Id.

Vito further testified at trial that he was "afraid to do the wrong thing," and that after he paid Cassarino $5,000, Cassarino informed him that this was insufficient and that the payment needed to be around $20,000 to $25,000. Tr. 2781-86. After Vito informed his father that Cassarino and Ciccone were unsatisfied, the family ultimately paid another $5,000. Tr. 2786-90.

These counts alleged that certain defendants —including defendants-appellants Ciccone and Bondi—had conspired to extort, and had extorted, the following property interests from Eduard Alayev (referred to in the indictment as "John Doe 4"), the owner of a café in Brooklyn: (1) money; (2) the right to refuse to keep illegal gambling machines at a business; and (3) the right to sell a business free from outside pressure. Indictment ¶¶ 178-185.

At trial, Alayev testified that he and his business partner (his brother) had purchased the café—called Café Roma—in October of 1999 from someone named Rocco Ritorto. Tr. 2478-79.7 He further testified that about two months after purchasing Café Roma, Cassarino and Bondi (whom Alayev referred to, respectively, as "Primo" and "Richie") came together to tell him that they wanted to install gambling machines at the cafe. Tr. 2488-89. Alayev refused, but Cassarino "responded by saying, `Whether you want it or not, I'm going to install the gambling machines.'" Tr. 2488. Cassarino stated that if Alayev would not let him install the machines, Alayev would have to pay him $1,000 each month, adding that "the neighborhood [was] all his territory." Id. Alayev wanted to call the authorities, but was "very afraid for [his] family," and thus did not do so. Tr. 2492.

Alayev stated that three gambling machines were subsequently installed in the back room of his restaurant while he was out shopping. Tr. 2492-93. Alayev told Cassarino that he was afraid that if the gambling machines were found, Café Roma would lose its liquor license, to which Cassarino responded, "[Y]ou are not going to be responsible for anything, if any tickets [ ] come, we'd pay your ticket." Tr. 2493. Alayev added that Bondi began coming to Café Roma to collect money from the machines, and would typically give him a portion of the proceeds. Tr. 2495-96.

The police subsequently appeared at Café Roma, broke all of the gambling machines, and arrested Alayev. Tr. 2494. Alayev moved the broken machines down to the basement and told Cassarino that the machines "are not going to be here anymore." Tr. 2498. Someone nonetheless subsequently came to Café Roma to install one or two new gambling machines. Tr. 2502. Alayev did not let the person install the machines. Id. Cassarino then called him and said something "to the extent [of] `whether you want it or not, we're going to install the machines.'" Id. People later returned with the machines and stored them in the basement. Tr. 2503. Alayev noted, "[i]t was not really possible to stop them because they were big people and like I'm really like a small person. I couldn't really stop them." Tr 2503. Alayev then closed the kitchen of the restaurant, "[b]ecause the machines were there and I didn't like the police to come again and see the machines again." Id.

In December of 2000, Alayev decided that he wanted to sell Café Roma. Tr. 2498. Cassarino ultimately became closely involved in the details of this sale, telling Alayev that he wanted Café Roma to be sold to someone named Lenny Kogan, and that Alayev "should not sell it to anybody but Lenny." Tr. 2504. He told Alayev that Kogan would pay $40,000 for Café Roma. Id. Cassarino ended up taking a portion of that money for himself. Tr. 2512-14.

In addition to Alayev's trial testimony about these events, the government also introduced wiretapped conversations in which Bondi provided Cassarino with information about Alayev (whom they referred to as "Eddie") and the goings-on at Café Roma. Gov't Exh. TR-300; Gov't Exh. TR-313. For example, in one conversation, Bondi complained to Cassarino about Alayev, stating "this cocksucker Eddie . . . was telling them he don't want nobody walkin' through his kitchen" (where the gambling machines were located). Gov't Exh. TR-300. Cassarino responded, "so grab the guy Eddie, and tell the guy Eddie, `who the fuck are you to tell us that thing?'" Bondi said, "I told `em, I told `em." Id. In other wiretapped conversations, Cassarino reported to Ciccone about the details of the Café Roma sale. Gov't Exh. TR-320; Gov't Exh. TR-324.

These counts alleged that certain defendants, including defendant-appellant Ciccone, conspired and attempted to extort the film actor Steven Seagal (referred to in the indictment as "John Doe 5"), by trying to obtain money from him and attempting to get him to do business with them. Indictment ¶¶ 58-59.

At trial, Steven Seagal testified that he became good friends with Jules Nasso (the brother of Vincent Nasso of GPP/VIP) in the late 1980s. Tr. 2928-29. At Jules Nasso's request, Seagal brought him into the movie business, and the two men formed a production company called Seagal-Nasso. Tr. 2930. In the mid-1990s, however, Seagal grew to believe that Jules Nasso's personality had changed. Tr. 2931-32. He decided that he did not want to work with Jules Nasso any longer and severed the business relationship in the late 1990s. Tr. 2933-34. According to Seagal, Jules Nasso was unhappy about the end of the relationship, and told Seagal that Seagal owed him approximately one million dollars. Tr. 2935. Seagal's accountants and attorneys, however, disagreed, telling Seagal that Jules Nasso owed him money, rather than vice versa. Tr. 2935.

In October of 2000, during the making of the movie "Exit Wounds" in Toronto, Seagal received a visit from Jules Nasso's brother, Vincent Nasso, along with Ciccone and Cassarino. Tr. 2937-39. At that meeting, according to Seagal, Ciccone told him that he thought it would be "really nice if I worked with Jules again and that Jules' mother also wanted us to work together." Tr. 2939. When Seagal indicated that he was not sure whether that would be possible, Ciccone became silent, making Seagal feel uncomfortable. Tr. 2939-2940.

Seagal testified that he later met with Ciccone in New York, after having received many calls from Vincent Nasso telling him that Ciccone "wanted to see me." Tr. 2942. When Seagal arrived at the Nassos' mother's house for the meeting, he was informed that the meeting had been moved somewhere else, which made Seagal feel "increasingly uncomfortable." Tr. 2943. Seagal then got into a car (accompanied by his assistant) and was taken to a restaurant, where Ciccone, Cassarino, Jules Nasso, and Vincent Nasso were sitting at an upstairs table. Tr. 2944. Ciccone began talking to Seagal about "monies that I owed Jules . . . he then went into the fact that he wanted me to work with Jules and that was important to him and I again told him that I'm trying." Tr. 2945-46. At this point, Ciccone ordered him to "look at me when you are talking." Tr. 2946. Ciccone then said: "Look, we're proud people and you work with Jules . . . Jules is going to get a little and the pot will be split up. . . . We'll take a little." Id. The meeting ended with Seagal stating that he "would try to work with Jules." Tr. 2947. Seagal testified that as he walked out of the restaurant, Jules started walking with him and said "something to the effect of `You know, it's a good thing you said this and didn't say that because if you would have said the wrong thing, they were going to kill you.'" Tr. 2948.

Seagal further testified that on the morning of the March 2001 premiere of "Exit Wounds," Ciccone—accompanied by Jules and Vincent Nasso, Cassarino, and another man—showed up at his home, at which point Ciccone claimed that Seagal owed them $3 million, stating "I told you what I want and I don't think you are getting it." Tr. 2956. Ultimately, Seagal paid Jules Nasso between $500,000 and $700,000, which he testified at trial arose from a previous "stock issue where he had put some of his own money up to buy stock with me." Tr. 2957. Seagal also contacted a former acquaintance of his, who was then in prison in New Jersey, and "explained to him this misunderstanding that was going on and I asked him if he could speak with these people on my behalf, be sort of a peacemaker and see if there is a way that this all could be settled in a businesslike manner." Tr. 2960-62. After that, Jules and Vincent Nasso came to Seagal's home and told him to "forget about Sonny, forget about us, forget about everything, good-bye." Tr. 2962. Jules subsequently filed a $60 million civil lawsuit against Seagal. Tr. 2962-63.

The government also introduced a wiretapped conversation in which Ciccone and Jules Nasso discussed their interactions with Steven Seagal, and in which Ciccone stated, "We were gonna tell [Seagal] that every movie he makes . . . we want a hundred and fifty thousand," and told Jules, "I want you to talk to him . . . . Don't treat him with kid gloves." Gov't Exh. TR-257.

These counts alleged that certain defendants, including Ciccone and Bondi, had run an illegal bookmaking business as well as an illegal joker-poker gambling operation. Indictment ¶¶ 202-205. The bookmaking charge rested on the allegation that Ciccone, Bondi, and other Gambino Family co-defendants had run the New York operation of the Costa Rica-based Pelican Sports bookmaking business from approximately September 18, 2000 to December 2001. The joker-poker charge rested on the allegation that several defendants, including Ciccone and Bondi, had operated a large-scale gambling business that employed joker-poker electronic gambling devices, including those placed at Café Roma.

a. The Bookmaking Charges

At trial, with regard to the bookmaking charges, the government adduced evidence that numerous defendants—including defendants-appellants Bondi and Ciccone as well as defendants Cassarino, Brancato, Malara, Orsino, and Lisi—had collectively run the New York operation of the Pelican Sports bookmaking business. This evidence included various wiretapped conversations that indicated the respective roles of Bondi and Ciccone in the operation. As to Bondi, the wiretaps indicated that he participated in paying winning bettors, collecting from losing bettors, and "freezing" bettors who owed money. Indeed, in one conversation between Bondi and Cassarino, Bondi reported that they had to freeze a particular bettor, stating, "He don't have it till Wednesday. . . . So he's froze." Gov't Exh. TR-515. Cassarino responded, "[W]hat is he, what is he up, up or minus? . . . That's the important part before you freeze him. . . . If he's up, you don't want to freeze him." Id. Bondi responded, "Alright, well let me call, I call him right, then I call you back." Id. Approximately six minutes later, Bondi called back to report that the bettor was "minus twenty-two," to which Cassarino replied, "Good. Freeze it." Gov't Exh. TR-516. Similarly, in a conversation between co-defendants Cassarino and Lisi, the men discussed the need to talk to "Richie" [Bondi] about a bettor who wanted to "straighten out now, so he could play tonight." Gov't Exh. TR-508.

The wiretap evidence also indicated that Ciccone acted as the ultimate supervisor of the bookmaking business, with Cassarino reporting directly to him. In several wiretapped conversations between Cassarino and Ciccone, Cassarino provided an update as to the various business developments. On October 1, 2001, Cassarino reported to Ciccone, "[W]e had a decent fuckin' week." Gov't Exh. TR-426. Ciccone asked, "How many guys are bettin' [?]" Id. Cassarino responded: "About ah . . . thirty . . . thirty guys . . . but see one guy we got on commission . . . one guy, in other words, one, one guy is on a forty percent sheet . . . the kid Jerome [Orsino] . . . we get all his players . . . instead of givin' him fifty-fifty sheet we're givin' him forty percent." Id. Ciccone replied, "Now you're gonna give him thirty." Id. Cassarino replied, "Cut him down to thirty, yeah . . . come down thirty . . . he'll do us a favor . . . don't worry about it."8 Id.

The government also introduced wiretapped conversations between a number of co-defendants who had participated in the operation. For example, in one wiretapped conversation between Brancato and Malara, Brancato referred to a particular player, "Soldier," with whom he had experienced "a little problem." Gov't Exh. TR-555. In a subsequent conversation, Malara told Brancato, "Soldier's gettin', well, you know, I, I got him for the week plus twenty-eight-ten. . . . And the other guy. . . . I believe you're collecting like fourteen and change, turning seventy-one-o-seven." Gov't Exh. TR-563. Brancato then stated, "What I'm gonna do, I'll straighten the whole thing out with you." Id.

In addition, the government introduced Detective Martin's testimony that documents with betting figures had been seized from the residences of Cassarino and Lisi. Tr. 3452-56. Detective Martin explained that the documents from Cassarino's residence listed the "weekly figures of each person" in the stable of bettors that was managed by the co-defendants, and that the figures were broken down by "the account number, the name, each day of the week, how much they're up or down and their [betting] cap at the end." Tr. 3453. He stated that the documents seized from Lisi's residence included figures for three particular bettors managed by Lisi. Tr. 3454-55. One bettor appears to have been up by $5800 for the week; another was listed as being up by $3380. Tr. 3456. Detective Martin also testified that documents removed from Bondi's residence included gambling records. Tr. 3456-57.

b. The Joker-Poker Charges

On the joker-poker charges, the government presented evidence at trial that Ciccone, Bondi, and other co-defendants had run a gambling operation using "joker-poker" electronic gambling machines at a number of locations, including Café Roma. In addition to Alayev's testimony about the defendants' having forced him to install gambling machines at Café Roma, the government also introduced the testimony of various law enforcement officials. For example, Detective Paul Grzegorski of the New York City Police Department testified that on August 23, 2000, he observed Bondi entering Frank & Sal's Hair Stylists in Brooklyn, going over to a gambling device located therein, opening the device with a key, and removing the currency from the device. Tr. 3236-39. When asked to describe the device, Detective Grzegorski stated, "You put money into it and you bet credits and you play the credits and you get basically what is called extended play. If you win, you get additional credits and you can get paid off on those credits." Tr. 3238. Detective Grzegorski further stated that after observing this, he stopped Bondi as he was exiting the shop and placed him under arrest. Tr. 3239. He then searched Bondi and found on his person a list of locations with gambling devices. Tr. 3240-3253. Detective Martin provided additional testimony as to how the gambling devices in question worked: "You insert a sum of U.S. currency into the machine, you receive credits for your currency, and you play those credits, and during that course of the game you play the credits until you win a game, if it is cherries, bells, plums, whatever it may be." Tr. 3508.

This count alleged that certain defendants, including defendant-appellant Ciccone, had tampered with a witness in this case before it went to trial. Indictment ¶ 206. That witness was Bondi's stepson, Anthony Frazetta, whom the government had served with a grand jury subpoena.

At trial, the government adduced wiretap evidence indicating that in a February 11, 2002 conversation between Ciccone, Bondi, and co-defendant Primo Cassarino, Ciccone said the following about Frazetta: "This fucking Joe, I don't know where the fuck his mentality is. If, if, if you start to answer and they can ask you everything and anything . . . Every fucking thing has got nine fucking questions. You know what I'm saying? . . . He goes, so how'd you get this job? It was my father, my father. Who is your father's friend? Sonny Ciccone. . . . He's taking the [F]ifth. I don't want to hear it." Gov't Exh. TR-461. When Cassarino indicated that Frazetta had apparently provided some information already, Ciccone responded, "yeah, but why, but he opened up a Pandora's Box. `Cause they ask you one question, they ask you another." Id. On February 18, 2002, Frazetta's lawyer advised the government by letter that Frazetta would assert his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination. On February 20, 2002, when Frazetta was scheduled to appear before the grand jury, Cassarino commented to Ciccone, "[T]hat kid is going there today." Gov't Exh. TR-462. The next day, Ciccone asked Cassarino, "how'd Richie's kid do?" Gov't Exh. TR-463. Cassarino reported that there had been some uncertainty as to whether the court would accept Frazetta's letter asserting the privilege, and that apparently Frazetta would have to return in person. Id. Cassarino noted that he had told Bondi that Frazetta "shoulda went there with the lawyer and fucking hand in the letter. If they accept it, they accept it; they don't accept it, you're there." Id. Ciccone replied, "That was stupid, what the lawyer did. He shoulda made him go there anyway." Id. Cassarino reiterated: "Just go in there, do what you gotta do, and get the fuck out . . . . That's all, you take the [F]ifth and that's it. Goodbye." Id. Ciccone agreed: "That's the end of it." Id.

Peter Gotti was convicted of Racketeering (Count 1), Racketeering Conspiracy (Count 2), Money Laundering Conspiracy (Count 28), and on the Money Laundering Counts as to 10/17/00 (Count 31), 11/28/00 (Count 32), 1/23/01 (Count 35), 2/27/00 (Count 37), 3/28/01 (Count 38), and 4/24/01 (Count 40).

He was acquitted of Money Laundering as to 9/19/00 (Counts 30) and 12/26/00 (Count 34).

Richard G. Gotti was convicted of Racketeering (Count 1), Racketeering Conspiracy (Count 2), Money Laundering Conspiracy (Count 28), and on the Money Laundering Counts as to 6/27/01 (Count 42), 8/31/01 (Count 43), 10/25/01 (Count 45), and 11/29/01 (Count 46).

Ciccone was convicted of Racketeering (Count 1), Racketeering Conspiracy (Count 2), Conspiracy to Extort ILA (Count 3), Extortion of the ILA (Count 4), Scheme to Defraud the Membership of the ILA (Counts 6 and 7), Conspiracy to Extort MILA (Count 8), Extortion of MILA (Count 9), Scheme to Defraud MILA as to 9/11/00 (Count 11), Scheme to Defraud MILA as to 9/16/01 (Count 13), Conspiracy to Extort Local 1 (Count 14), Attempted Extortion of Local 1 (Count 15), Scheme to Defraud Local 1 as to 6/30/00 and 6/27/01 (Counts 17 and 18), Scheme to Defraud Local 1814 as to 11/3/00, 2/7/01, 6/17/01, and 8/22/01 (Counts 20-23), Conspiracy to Extort Howland Hook Container Terminal (Count 24), Extortion of Howland Hook Container Terminal (Count 25), Conspiracy to Extort Owner of a Trucking Company (Count 26), Extortion of Owner of a Trucking Company (Count 27), Money Laundering Conspiracy (Count 28), Money Laundering as to multiple dates (Counts 29-35, 37-46), Conspiracy to Extort John Doe 1 (Count 49), Attempt to Extort John Doe 1 (Count 50), Conspiracy to Extort John Doe 2 (Count 51), Conspiracy to Extort John Doe 3 (Count 52), Extortion of John Doe 3 (Count 53), Conspiracy to Extort John Doe 4 (Count 54), Extortion of John Doe 4—Money (Count 55), Extortion of John Doe 4—Right to Refuse to Keep Gambling Machines at a Business (Count 56), Extortion of John Doe 4—Right to Sell a Business (Count 57), Conspiracy to Extort John Doe 5 (Count 58), Attempted Extortion of John Doe 5 (Count 59), Illegal Gambling Business—Joker/Poker (Count 66), Illegal Gambling Business—Sports Betting Operation (Count 67), and Witness Tampering (Count 68).

He was acquitted as to Scheme to Extort MILA as to 11/14/01 (Count 12), Conspiracy to Extort Relatives of a Prospective Employee (Count 47), Extortion of Relatives of a Prospective Employee (Count 48), Conspiracy to Use Extortionate Means to Collect an Extension of Credit from John Doe 8 (Count 64), and Use of Extortionate Means to Collect an Extension of Credit from John Doe 8 (Count 65).

Bondi was convicted of Racketeering (Count 1), Racketeering Conspiracy (Count 2), Conspiracy to Extort Local 1 (Count 14), Attempted Extortion of Local 1 (Count 15), Scheme to Defraud Local 1 (Counts 17-18), Conspiracy to Extort John Doe 4 (Count 54), Extortion of John Doe 4—Money (Count 55), Extortion of John Doe 4—Right to Refuse to Keep Gambling Machines at a Business (Count 56), Extortion of John Doe 4—Right to Sell a Business (Count 57), Illegal Gambling Business-Joker/Poker (Count 66), and Illegal Gambling Business—Sports Betting Operation (Count 67).

He was acquitted as to Conspiracy to Use Extortionate Means to Collect an Extension of Credit from John Doe 7 (Count 62) and Use of Extortionate Means to Collect an Extension of Credit from John Doe 7 (Count 63).

Peter Gotti was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 115 months, less 85 days that he had served in administrative confinement. The district court also imposed an order of forfeiture against Peter Gotti in the amount of $3,749,250.

Richard G. Gotti was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 33 months. As noted above, his sentence has already been remanded to the district court pursuant to Crosby; upon reconsideration, the district court declined to resentence him.

Ciccone was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 180 months. He also received an order of restitution of $1,601,499 and an order of forfeiture of $1,636,499.

Bondi was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 57 months and an order of restitution of $311,894.

II. CHALLENGES BY THE DEFENDANTS TO THEIR CONVICTIONS

A. The Defendants' Challenge under Scheidler v. National Organization for Women, Inc., 537 U.S. 393, 123 S.Ct. 1057, 154 L.Ed.2d 991 (2003) ("Scheidler II")

The defendants-appellants first argue that numerous extortion counts in the indictment became invalid upon the issuance of Scheidler II, which was decided by the Supreme Court on February 26, 2003, just as the trial in this case was concluding. For Ciccone and Bondi, who were charged with and convicted of multiple Hobbs Act extortion counts (both as separate offenses and as RICO predicates, as set forth in detail above), this argument goes to their actual convictions. For Peter Gotti and Richard G. Gotti, this is a sentencing issue: they were not charged with extortion, but the extortion counts included in the indictment were considered by the district judge as relevant uncharged conduct under the Sentencing Guidelines when imposing their sentences.

It is undisputed that we evaluate the legal issues of whether the indictment properly charged Hobbs Act extortion and whether the district court correctly charged the jury on these counts under a de novo standard. In assessing these issues, we begin by discussing Scheidler I and analyzing its scope. We then apply our interpretation of Scheidler II to each of the challenged extortion counts in this case, and ultimately conclude that each of them can stand.

Scheidler II, as set forth below, tightened the requirements for finding that a defendant has committed extortion under the Hobbs Act. To appreciate the significance of Scheidler II, it is therefore necessary to begin with the text of the Hobbs Act, upon which the challenged extortion counts here rested. It provides:

Whoever in any way or degree obstructs, delays, or affects commerce or the movement of any article or commodity in commerce, by robbery or extortion or attempts or conspires so to do, or commits or threatens physical violence to any person or property in furtherance of a plan or purpose to do anything in violation of this section shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than twenty years, or both.

18 U.S.C. § 1951(a) (emphasis added). The Hobbs Act further defines "extortion" as

the obtaining of property from another, with his consent, induced by wrongful use of actual or threatened force, violence, or fear, or under color of official right.

18 U.S.C. § 1951(b)(2) (emphasis added).

Before Scheidler II, this Circuit (and others) had interpreted the phrase "the obtaining of property from another" quite broadly, in two key respects: (1) "property" had been held to encompass intangible as well as tangible property rights; and (2) "obtaining" had been held to encompass cases where the defendant caused a loss of or interference to the victim's property rights, even though the defendant had not actually sought to exercise those property rights for himself or herself. Clear examples of these two propositions can be found in our precedents.

As to the first proposition—namely, the expansive interpretation of "property"— our Circuit's decision in United States v. Tropiano, 418 F.2d 1069 (2d Cir.1969), stands as an early landmark case. The Tropiano defendants were partners in a garbage collection company who were displeased when a new competitor, Caron Refuse Removal, Inc. ("Caron"), started soliciting business in their vicinity and taking away some of their customers. Id. at 1072. They then used threats of violence to force Caron to stop recruiting their customers and to agree not to solicit any business in the area. Id. On appeal, this Court upheld the Tropiano defendants' Hobbs Act extortion convictions, rejecting their argument that "nothing more than `the right to do business' in the Milford area was surrendered by Caron and that such a right was not `property' `obtained' by the appellants." Id. at 1075. We explained:

The concept of property under the Hobbs Act, as devolved from its legislative history and numerous decisions, is not limited to physical or tangible property or things but includes, in a broad sense, any valuable right considered as a source or element of wealth and does not depend upon a direct benefit being conferred on the person who obtains the property.

Obviously, Caron had a right to solicit business from anyone in any area without any territorial restrictions by the appellants and only by the exercise of such a right could Caron obtain customers whose accounts were admittedly valuable. Some indication of the value of the right to solicit customers appears from the fact that when the [Tropiano defendants' company's] accounts were sold for $53,135, [the] agreement [obtained from Caron] not to solicit those customers was valued at an additional $15,000. . . . Caron's right to solicit accounts in Milford, Connecticut constituted property within the Hobbs Act definition.

Id. at 1075-76 (internal citations omitted). More recently, this Circuit similarly held that "[t]he right of the members of a union to democratic participation in a union election is property; that the right is intangible does not divest it of protection under the Hobbs Act," and on that basis, crime families who sought to replace control of the union could be found guilty of conspiracy to commit extortion. United States v. Bellomo, 176 F.3d 580, 592-93 (2d Cir. 1999).

As for the second proposition (the expansive interpretation of "obtaining"), in United States v. Arena, 180 F.3d 380 (2d Cir.1999), this Court held—in a case involving anti-abortion protestors who tried to shut down a clinic—that the "obtaining" prong of the Hobbs Act's definition of "extortion" was satisfied in cases where an extortionist used violence to force his victim to abandon the property rights in question, even though the extortionist was not seeking to exercise those property rights for himself. The Arena Court explained that "where the property in question is the victim's right to conduct a business free from threats of violence and physical harm, a person who has committed or threatened violence or physical harm in order to induce abandonment of that right has obtained, or attempted to obtain, property within the meaning of the Hobbs Act." Id. at 394.

This second proposition was evaluated by the Supreme Court in Scheidler II, which implicated facts similar to those in Arena. In Scheidler II, the defendants were anti-abortion protestors who had attempted to shut down abortion clinics. 537 U.S. at 398, 123 S.Ct. 1057. The plaintiffs argued that these defendants—"by using or threatening to use force, violence, or fear to cause respondents `to give up' property rights, namely, `a woman's right to seek medical service from a clinic, the right of the doctors, nurses, or other clinic staff to perform their jobs, and the right of the clinics to provide medical services free from wrongful threats, violence, coercion, and fear'" —had committed extortion under the Hobbs Act. Id. at 400-401, 123 S.Ct. 1057. The Seventh Circuit agreed, stating that "the defendants assert that, even if `property' was involved, the defendants did not `obtain' that property; they merely forced the plaintiffs to part with it . . . [but] this argument is contrary to a long line of precedent in this circuit." Nat'l Org. for Women, Inc. v. Scheidler, 267 F.3d 687, 709 (7th Cir.2001).

The Supreme Court reversed. Initially, the Court noted that on appeal, the respondents "had shifted the thrust of their theory" with regard to precisely which property rights had been extorted from them. Scheidler II, 537 U.S. at 401, 123 S.Ct. 1057. It stated that although the respondents had argued below that the extorted property rights were those of the women and the clinics to receive and perform medical services, they

now assert that petitioners violated the Hobbs Act by "seeking to get control of the use and disposition of respondents' property." They argue that because the right to control the use and disposition of an asset is property, petitioners, who interfered with, and in some instances completely disrupted, the ability of the clinics to function, obtained or attempted to obtain respondents' property.

The United States offers a view similar to that of respondents, asserting that "where the property at issue is a business's intangible right to exercise exclusive control over the use of its assets, [a] defendant obtained that property by obtaining control over the use of those assets."

Id. (internal citations omitted; alteration and emphasis in original).

The Court then concluded that even this revised construction was inconsistent with the Hobbs Act's explicit reference to "obtaining of property from another," 18 U.S.C. § 1951(b)(2). See id. at 402, 123 S.Ct. 1057. It stated that

[w]e need not now trace what are the boundaries of extortion liability under the Hobbs Act, so that liability might be based on obtaining something as intangible as another's right to exercise exclusive control over the use of a party's business assets. . . . Whatever the outer boundaries may be, the effort to characterize petitioners' actions here as an `obtaining of property from' respondents is well beyond them.

Id. The Court went on to state that the anti-abortion protesters had neither

pursued nor received something of value from respondents that they could exercise, transfer, or sell. To conclude that such actions constituted extortion would effectively discard the statutory requirement that property must be obtained from another, replacing it instead with the notion that merely interfering with or depriving someone of property is sufficient to constitute extortion.

Id. at 405, 123 S.Ct. 1057 (internal citation and quotation marks omitted).

The Court also explained that such a construction would eliminate the distinction between "extortion and the separate crime of coercion. . . . The crime of coercion, which more accurately describes the nature of petitioners' actions, involves the use of force or threat of force to restrict another's freedom of action." Id. The Court found it telling that in drafting the Hobbs Act, Congress had specifically included extortion as a Hobbs Act violation, while not including coercion. Id. at 406-07, 123 S.Ct. 1057. The Court concluded that "[b]ecause . . . [the anti-abortion protestors] did not obtain or attempt to obtain property from respondents, . . . there was no basis upon which to find that they committed extortion under the Hobbs Act." Id. at 409, 123 S.Ct. 1057.

Justice Stevens, the lone dissenter, protested that the Scheidler II majority's "murky opinion seems to hold that this phrase [`the obtaining of property from another'] covers nothing more than the acquisition of tangible property," and that "[n]o other federal court has ever construed this statute so narrowly." Id. at 412, 123 S.Ct. 1057 (Stevens, J., dissenting). In other words, Justice Stevens argued that Scheidler II had struck down not only the second proposition (the expansive definition of "obtaining") but also the first proposition (the expansive definition of "property"). Id. at 412-16, 123 S.Ct. 1057.

The majority opinion, however, expressly disclaimed the notion that it swept so broadly. Indeed, in addition to stating that it "need not now trace what are the outer boundaries of extortion liability under the Hobbs Act," such as whether "liability might be based on obtaining something as intangible as another's right to exercise exclusive control over the use of a party's business assets," the majority explicitly stated that "the dissent is mistaken to suggest that our decision reaches, much less rejects, lower court decisions such as . . . Tropiano . . ., in which the Second Circuit concluded that the intangible right to solicit refuse collection accounts constituted property within the Hobbs Act definition." Id. at 402 & n. 6, 123 S.Ct. 1057 (internal quotation marks omitted).

In construing the scope of the Scheidler II holding, we are guided by the majority's explicit statement that Scheidler II did not even reach, much less reject, our holding in Tropiano. Indeed, we believe that the appropriate interpretation of Scheidler II must be one that co-exists with Tropiano, both as to the "property" and "obtaining" prongs. Thus, as an initial matter, we easily conclude that Scheidler II did not overturn Tropiano's broad interpretation of the Hobbs Act's reference to "property," nor otherwise suggest that only tangible property rights can be extorted under the Hobbs Act. The Scheidler II majority, in going out of its way to emphasize that it was not reaching Tropiano, essentially said as much. Indeed, Scheidler II consistently emphasized that it was only tightening the "obtaining" requirement of the Hobbs Act, and that in this regard, an important inquiry was whether the defendants had "pursued [or] received something of value from [victims] that they could exercise, transfer, or sell." Id. at 405, 123 S.Ct. 1057 (internal quotation marks omitted). In the case of the anti-abortion protestors who sought only to shut down abortion clinics, they had not. Generally speaking, however, intangible property rights—such as, for instance, non-competition or exclusivity agreements —are certainly things of value that are capable of being exercised, transferred, or sold. We therefore read Scheidler II as leaving intact this Circuit's precedent that intangible property rights can qualify as extortable property under the Hobbs Act and as simply clarifying that before liability can attach, the defendant must truly have obtained (or, in the case of attempted extortion, sought to obtain) the property right in question.

The more complex question is precisely what, pursuant to Scheidler II, it means to "obtain" a property right. The Scheidler II Court framed this question as a two-part inquiry that requires both a deprivation and an acquisition of property, explaining that while the anti-abortion protestors in that case "may have deprived or sought to deprive respondents of their alleged property right of exclusive control of their business assets, . . . they did not acquire any such property." Id. at 404-05, 123 S.Ct. 1057. In further explaining why the anti-abortion protestors could not be viewed as having acquired such property, the Court stated that they had "neither pursued nor received something of value from respondents that they could exercise, transfer, or sell." Id. at 405, 123 S.Ct. 1057 (emphasis added) (internal quotation marks omitted).

This explanation, in our view, provides the key to understanding what it means, pursuant to Scheidler II, to acquire property and thus to obtain it. We read the Court's emphasis on the possibility of exercising, transferring, or selling the property as a concern with the extortionist's intent with respect to the property at issue. The "ultimate goal" of the anti-abortion protestors in Scheidler II was merely "`shutting down' a clinic that performed abortions." Id. at 405, 123 S.Ct. 1057. This did not constitute acquisition in the eyes of the Scheidler II Court, we believe, because there was no further intended activity on the part of the protestors, and mere interference with the clinics' right to conduct their business, even to the point of getting them to cease conducting their business altogether, was closer to coercion than extortion. But had the protestors sought to take further action after having deprived the clinics of their right to conduct their business as they wished—by, for example, forcing the clinic staff to provide different types of services, forcing the clinic to turn its operations over to the protestors, or selling the clinic or its property to a third party9—we believe that they would have satisfied the Scheidler II Court's definition of "obtaining."

Against this backdrop, it becomes clear why the Supreme Court indicated that Tropiano remains good law notwithstanding Scheidler II. The Scheidler II Court characterized the right at issue in Tropiano as "the intangible right to solicit refuse collection accounts." Id. at 402 n. 6, 123 S.Ct. 1057. Had the Tropiano defendants sought merely to get Caron to stop soliciting collection accounts because they believed that the Milford area should be entirely free from any solicitation, Tropiano could not stand; like the anti-abortion protestors, the Tropiano defendants would have been seeking simply to deprive someone of a right without doing anything affirmative with that right themselves. But unlike the anti-abortion protestors, the Tropiano defendants did seek to take action with respect to Caron's solicitation rights; they sought to transfer those rights to themselves so that they could continue their own solicitation unimpeded by competition, and thus, in a sense, broaden their own solicitation rights. In other words, the Tropiano defendants essentially forced Caron to give them—at no cost—a non-competition agreement, which, according to the Tropiano Court, was valued at about $15,000, and they used that non-competition agreement to further their own business activities. Tropiano, 418 F.2d at 1076. Their goal was ultimately to enrich themselves, something that could not be accomplished without appropriating to themselves the economic value of Caron's property rights. These actions, unlike those in Scheidler II, constituted extortion under the Hobbs Act.

Thus, we hold that in evaluating an extortion count's conformity with Scheidler II—i.e., whether it adequately alleges the "obtaining of property" for purposes of the Hobbs Act's definition of extortion—the key inquiry is whether the defendant is (1) alleged to have carried out (or, in the case of attempted extortion, attempted to carry out) the deprivation of a property right from another, with (2) the intent to exercise, sell, transfer, or take some other analogous action with respect to that right. A motive ultimately to profit by cashing out the value of the property right will generally serve as powerful evidence that the defendant's goal was to obtain the right for himself, rather than merely to deprive the victim of that right.

We thus proceed to apply this test to each of the challenged extortion counts.

On appeal, the defendants-appellants cite the following counts in the indictment as being invalidated by Scheidler II: the ILA-related extortion counts; the Local 1-related extortion counts; the MILA-related extortion counts; the Tommy Ragucci Counts; the Alayev Counts; and the Seagal Counts. They argue that in each of these counts, the allegations support only a charge of coercion, not extortion. Relatedly, they argue that the district court's charge as to each of these counts was inconsistent with Scheidler II. We therefore assess each count to determine whether it is consistent with our construction of Scheidler II, first looking at how each count was framed in the indictment, and then considering how the district court ultimately described each count to the jury when issuing its charge.

a. The Indictment

On both the ILA-related and Local 1-related extortion counts, the indictment alleged that the defendants sought to obtain, and did obtain, the union members' LMRDA rights to free speech and democratic participation in union affairs as well as their LMRDA rights to loyal representation by their officers, agents, and other representatives. It further stated that the defendants sought to exercise those rights themselves, by telling various delegates whom to vote for in certain leadership positions, and by controlling various elected officials' performance of their union duties. We believe that these allegations satisfy our interpretation of Scheidler II, because the government charges not only that the defendants caused the relinquishment of the union members' LMRDA rights, but also that the defendants did so in order to exercise those rights for themselves —indeed, in a way that would profit them financially.

We note that the defendants-appellants have also argued that these counts must fail because they could not legally exercise the union members' LMRDA rights, and therefore cannot be said to have obtained them. This argument builds upon a recent split that has emerged, post-Scheidler II, among various district courts in this Circuit. Three of the four district courts considering this issue— the district court in this case, see March 26, 2004 Sentencing Tr. 10-14, along with two other district courts—have concluded that LMRDA rights can constitute extortable property under the Hobbs Act, notwithstanding the fact that LMRDA rights cannot be legally exercised by third parties. See United States v. Muscarella, 2004 WL 2186561, at * 6 (S.D.N.Y. Sept.28, 2004); United States v. Cacace, 2004 WL 1646760 at * 2-*3 (E.D.N.Y. July 14, 2004). One district court, however, has reached a different view, concluding in a pair of cases that intangible property rights can qualify as extortable property under the Hobbs Act, but only if they can be lawfully exercised, transferred, or sold, and that LMRDA rights therefore do not qualify. See United States v. Bellomo, 263 F.Supp.2d 561, 575-576 (E.D.N.Y.2003); United States v. Coffey, 361 F.Supp.2d 102, 108-109 (E.D.N.Y.2005).

We agree with the majority of district courts that have concluded that intangible property can qualify as extortable property under the Hobbs Act regardless of whether its exercise, transfer, or sale would be legal. The Supreme Court did not include a "legality" limitation in Scheidler II. Moreover, as the government points out, the Bellomo/Coffey approach adopted by one district court gives rise to the untenable implication that one can never "extort," under the Hobbs Act, illegal property (such as narcotics) because such property cannot be legally used, sold, or transferred. In Bellomo, the district court tried to distinguish this argument by stating that "[t]he victim's grievance in that hypothetical would surely not be the loss of his right to distribute drugs, but what the extortionist has obtained from him, the drugs." Bellomo, 263 F.Supp.2d at 576. It is, however, as illegal to possess tangible drugs as it is to exercise the intangible "right to distribute drugs." The Bellomo court thus seems to suggest that its "legality" gloss on Scheidler II only applies to intangible property. We see no basis in principle, policy, or the text of Scheidler II, however, for holding that tangible property is "obtainable" regardless of whether its use, transfer, or sale is legal, but that intangible property is "obtainable" only if its exercise, transfer, or sale is legal. Nor do we see any basis for imposing a "legality" requirement on the extortion of both tangible and intangible property. Accordingly, we hold that the ILA-related and Local 1-related Hobbs Act extortion counts all survived Scheidler II.