Fifth Amendment Rights

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7^th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: United States of America v. Angelita Newton

Case No.: 21-3270

Officials: Easterbrook, Kirsch, and Jackson-Akiwumi, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Fifth Amendment Rights

Between 2011 and 2017, Care Specialists, owned by husband-and-wife team Ferdinand and Ma Luisa Echavia. was responsible for providing care to homebound Medicare beneficiaries, although a portion of its activities were marred by fraudulent practices. The company engaged in submitting Medicare claims for healthcare services, which encompassed skilled nursing services, that were purportedly rendered to numerous patients ineligible for Medicare reimbursement. Newton, who fulfilled the role of a quality assurance specialist and also served as the owner’s secretary, played a role in executing this fraudulent scheme. A former employee of Care Specialists, Bolender, took the initiative to submit a whistleblower letter outlining the fraudulent activities and subsequently met with federal investigators, directly implicating Newton as a pivotal figure in the conspiracy. As a consequence, the owners of the company pleaded guilty to their involvement. In the legal proceedings that followed, Newton faced conviction on charges of conspiring to commit health care fraud and wire fraud. This conviction was reinforced by testimonies from multiple Care Specialists employees. Bolender, however, managed to evade testifying by invoking her Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination. Newton’s defense argued, albeit unsuccessfully, that the court erroneously accepted Bolender’s invocation of her rights and that the government’s refusal to provide Bolender with immunity infringed upon Newton’s due process rights.

The Seventh Circuit upholds Newton’s conviction, determining that the government’s actions did not compromise the integrity of the fact-finding process. Bolender’s potential testimony was equally, if not more likely, to incriminate Newton as opposed to exonerating her. Bolender’s decision to invoke her Fifth Amendment rights was deemed appropriate, given the possibility of self-incrimination and subsequent prosecution. However, 7^th Circuit takes the step of vacating Newton’s sentence due to a flaw in the district court’s calculation of Medicare’s loss attributed to Newton, deeming it unreasonable.

Affirmed, vacated and remanded

Decided 08/07/23

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