United States of America v. Roderick V. Burton

United States Court of Appeals
For the Seventh Circuit
Chicago, Illinois 60604
Submitted August 15, 2018*
Decided August 16, 2018
Before
MICHAEL S. KANNE, Circuit Judge
AMY C. BARRETT, Circuit Judge
MICHAEL B. BRENNAN, Circuit Judge
No. 18-1590
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
RODERICK V. BURTON,
Defendant-Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District
Court for the Northern District of Illinois,
Eastern Division.
No. 15 CR 312-1
Sharon Johnson Coleman,
Judge.
O R D E R
In a three-month spree in 2014, Roderick Burton robbed five banks in Cook
County, Illinois. He eventually was arrested and charged by a grand jury with five
counts of bank robbery in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2113(a). Before trial, Burton filed a pro
se motion contesting the district court’s subject-matter jurisdiction on grounds that his
criminal prosecution did not arise under “the Laws of the United States.” U.S. C ONST.
* We have agreed to decide the case without oral argument because the briefs and
record adequately present the facts and legal arguments, and oral argument would not
significantly aid the court. F ED. R. APP . P. 34(a)(2)(C).
NONPRECEDENTIAL DISPOSITION
To be cited only in accordance with Fed. R. App. P. 32.1

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No. 18-1590 Page 2
art. III, § 2. The district court denied the motion, explaining that its “subject matter
jurisdiction is derived from 18 U.S.C. § 3231, which confers this Court with original
jurisdiction over ‘all offenses against the laws of the United States.’” The case proceeded
to trial, and a jury found Burton guilty on all five counts. He then moved for judgment
of acquittal, renewing his challenge to the court’s subject-matter jurisdiction over this
case. The court denied this motion and reiterated that § 3231 confers subject-matter
jurisdiction in all federal criminal prosecutions. The court later sentenced him to ten
years’ imprisonment.
On appeal, Burton continues to press his argument that the district court lacked
subject-matter jurisdiction over his prosecution for the bank robberies. But “[s]ubject-
matter jurisdiction in every federal criminal prosecution comes from 18 U.S.C. § 3231,
and there can be no doubt that Article III permits Congress to assign federal criminal
prosecutions to federal courts.” Hugi v. United States, 164 F.3d 378, 380 (7th Cir. 1999);
see also United States v. Marks, 530 F.3d 799, 810–11 (9th Cir. 2008).
We have considered Burton’s other arguments, and none has merit.
AFFIRMED

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