Here, There, (Almost) Anywhere
The Second Circuit in United States v. Lange held that in
securities-fraud prosecutions, "[v]enue is proper not only in
the district where telephonic or electronic materially fraudulent
communications were initiated, but also in the district where such
communications were received." Lange involved a
scheme in which people were solicited to invest under false
pretenses in a precious-metals mining company. The company was run
outside the Eastern District of New York (EDNY), but about 2
percent of the people on cold-call lists used by the schemers were
residents of the EDNY. The defendants were ultimately indicted in
the EDNY and convicted of securities fraud. They made motions for
judgments of acquittal based on improper venue, and the district
court granted their motions as to some counts. The government
appealed. On appeal, the Second Circuit held that venue is proper
in the district in which telephone calls are received, which
included
