Brief filed: 04/11/2025
Documents
United States v. Rishi Shah and Shradha Agarwal
7th Circuit Court of Appeals; Case No. 24-2230 & 24-2236
Prior Decision
Decision below No. 1:19-cr-864 (N.D. Ill.)
Argument(s)
Amici argue that the government violated Defendants-Appellants’ Sixth Amendment rights by restraining millions in untainted assets needed to hire counsel of choice, constituting structural error requiring automatic reversal. The brief also challenges the government’s use of grand jury hearsay statements from key cooperating witnesses at trial, contending it undermined the confrontation right by allowing scripted testimony to override live witness examination. Finally, amici assert that the fraud convictions rested on legally defective theories inconsistent with recent Supreme Court precedent—namely, Ciminelli, Kelly, and McNally—because the government failed to show a specific intent to deprive victims of money or traditional property, instead criminalizing contractual disputes.
Author(s)
Jonathan M. Brayman (NACDL Seventh Circuit Amicus Vice Chair) and Todd S. Pugh, Breen & Pugh, Chicago, IL; Joshua G. Herman, Law Office of Joshua G. Herman, Chicago, IL. Brayman is NACDL Seventh Circuit Amicus Vice Chair
