Criminal Law—First Circuit Allows Guilty Plea for Misprision to Stand Under Plain Error Review—United States v. Caraballo-Rodriguez, 480 F.3d 62 (1st Cir. 2007), cert. denied, 128 S. Ct. 489 (2007)

First Circuit Review 2008

The federal misprision statute requires that a person with knowledge of a felony report such knowledge to the authorities.  Generally, the prosecution must prove that the defendant took some affirmative step to conceal the crime from authorities.  In United States v. Caraballo-Rodriguez, the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit considered whether the defendant’s conviction for misprision could be sustained under plain error review absent proof of an affirmative act of concealment.  The court held that there was no act requirement and thus, no plain error at trial. . . .