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People v. Koo3/24/2003
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS
California Rules of Court, rule 977(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 977(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 977.
I. INTRODUCTION
Defendant, Jae Kyung Koo, appeals from his convictions following his guilty plea for: conspiracy to commit a crime (Pen. Code, § 182, subd. (a)(1)); sales tax fraud (Rev. & Tax Code, § 7153.5); and filing a false tax return. (Rev. & Tax Code, § 19705, subd. (a).) Defendant argues he was denied effective assistance of counsel due to a conflict of interest and he should be permitted to withdraw his guilty pleas to the three felony counts. We conclude there was one instance of improper joint representation but that an insufficient showing of prejudice has been made to permit reversal.
II. BACKGROUND
A. The Facts Relating to Defendant's Criminal Conduct
We view the evidence in a light most favorable to the judgment. (Jackson v. Virginia (1979) 443 U.S. 307, 319; People v. Osband (1996) 13 Cal.4th 622, 690; Taylor v. Stainer (9th Cir. 1994) 31 F.3d 907, 908-909.) Defendant pled guilty to conspiracy to commit tax fraud, sales tax fraud, and filing false tax returns. These offenses were related to the operation of nightclubs owned by defendant and his sister, Susie Young Byun and the 1999 seizure of $5.7 million in cash from her condominium.
Defendant was an owner of a nightclub located at 625 South Serrano Avenue in Los Angeles. An audit conducted by various law enforcement agencies found that defendant's company had unreported sales of approximately $8,300,631 for the period between April 1, 1996, and December 31, 1996. This resulted in an underreported tax liability of $687,524.63. On February 10, 1999, a search warrant was served on an address where the co-defendant and defendant's sister, Susie Byun, was present and investigators seized $5.7 million in cash. When interviewed by the police, defendant threatened to kill a detective . The probation officer synthesized the views of law enforcement officials as follows: "Investigators formed the opinion that both defendants were involved in the skimming of profits from the sale of alcohol and food at their nightclub and restaurants and avoided paying taxes on those profits. In the process, they engaged in a conspiracy to launder money, structure transactions to evade reporting requirements, filed false and misleading tax returns, participated in fraud and profiteered from tax evasion. The role of their criminal profiteering was to convert money to acquisitions of real estate and other holdings and investments. In this scheme, the illegal proceeds were banked, converted to $100 bills through the assistance of other conspirators, smuggled back to Korea, smuggled into the United States and wired overseas. It also allowed Korean organized crime clans to establish themselves as respected business leaders on a foreign soil."
The guilty pleas to the three felony counts involve defendant's fourth criminal conviction. On June 5, 1995, after a driving under the influence of alcohol arrest, defendant was convicted of speed exhibition and placed on three years probation. (Veh. Code, § 23109, subd. (c).) While on probation, defendant was arrested on a firearms charge but, according to the probation report, convicted of reckless driving. (Veh. Code, § 23103.) Defendant admitted that he did in fact have a firearm in his car when arrested by the police. On December 17, 1997, while still on probation, defendant was arrested on mul
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