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PUBLICATION","paragraph_id":"para_1"},{"text":"UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS","paragraph_id":"para_2"},{"text":"FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT","paragraph_id":"para_3"},{"text":"LIONEL CANNON, AKA Cannon,","paragraph_id":"para_4"},{"text":"Plaintiff - Appellant,","paragraph_id":"para_5"},{"text":"v.","paragraph_id":"para_6"},{"text":"UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,","paragraph_id":"para_7"},{"text":"Defendant - Appellee.","paragraph_id":"para_8"},{"text":"No. 24-1317","paragraph_id":"para_9"},{"text":"D.C. No.","paragraph_id":"para_10"},{"text":"5:19-cv-02337-","paragraph_id":"para_11"},{"text":"FLA-SP","paragraph_id":"para_12"},{"text":"ORDER AND","paragraph_id":"para_13"},{"text":"AMENDED","paragraph_id":"para_14"},{"text":"OPINION","paragraph_id":"para_15"},{"text":"Appeal from the United States District Court","paragraph_id":"para_16"},{"text":"for the Central District of California","paragraph_id":"para_17"},{"text":"Fernando L. Aenlle-Rocha, District Judge, Presiding","paragraph_id":"para_18"},{"text":"Argued and Submitted September 16, 2025","paragraph_id":"para_19"},{"text":"Pasadena, California","paragraph_id":"para_20"},{"text":"Filed June 29, 2026","paragraph_id":"para_21"},{"text":"Amended September 23, 2026","paragraph_id":"para_22"},{"text":"Before: Jay S. Bybee, Kenneth K. Lee, and Danielle J.","paragraph_id":"para_23"},{"text":"Forrest, Circuit Judges. *","paragraph_id":"para_24"},{"text":"* Judge Sandra S. Ikuta was originally a member of this panel. Following","paragraph_id":"para_25"},{"text":"her death on December 7, 2025, Judge Forrest was drawn to replace her.","paragraph_id":"para_26"},{"text":"See Ninth Cir. Gen. Order 3.2.h. Judge Forrest has read the briefs,","paragraph_id":"para_27"},{"text":"reviewed the record, and listened to oral argument.","paragraph_id":"para_28"},{"text":"2 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_29"},{"text":"Order;","paragraph_id":"para_30"},{"text":"Opinion by Judge Bybee;","paragraph_id":"para_31"},{"text":"Dissent by Judge Lee","paragraph_id":"para_32"},{"text":"SUMMARY**","paragraph_id":"para_33"},{"text":"Fed. R. Crim. P. 41(g) / Motion for Return of Property","paragraph_id":"para_34"},{"text":"The panel reversed the district court’s grant of summary","paragraph_id":"para_35"},{"text":"judgment for the federal government in Lionel Cannon’s","paragraph_id":"para_36"},{"text":"motion under Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 41(g)","paragraph_id":"para_37"},{"text":"seeking the return of his cash seized by the government.","paragraph_id":"para_38"},{"text":"The FBI was investigating Cannon on federal drug","paragraph_id":"para_39"},{"text":"trafficking charges. During a lawful search, agents seized","paragraph_id":"para_40"},{"text":"$585,000 in cash. FBI Special Agent Scott Bowmann","paragraph_id":"para_41"},{"text":"pocketed $218,200. Cannon moved under Rule 41(g) for the","paragraph_id":"para_42"},{"text":"return of the $218,000 that Agent Bowman stole and that had","paragraph_id":"para_43"},{"text":"never been forfeited.","paragraph_id":"para_44"},{"text":"The panel held that sovereign immunity did not bar","paragraph_id":"para_45"},{"text":"Cannon’s Rule 41(g) claim. In Ordonez v. United States,","paragraph_id":"para_46"},{"text":"680 F.3d 1135 (9th Cir. 2012), the court held that when","paragraph_id":"para_47"},{"text":"property seized by the government has been lost or","paragraph_id":"para_48"},{"text":"destroyed, “an award of money damages against the","paragraph_id":"para_49"},{"text":"government under Rule 41(g) is barred by sovereign","paragraph_id":"para_50"},{"text":"immunity.” Id. at 1140. The panel held that this same rule","paragraph_id":"para_51"},{"text":"does not apply to cash that the government seized, lost, but","paragraph_id":"para_52"},{"text":"then recovered in forfeiture proceedings.","paragraph_id":"para_53"},{"text":"** This summary constitutes no part of the opinion of the court. It has","paragraph_id":"para_54"},{"text":"been prepared by court staff for the convenience of the reader.","paragraph_id":"para_55"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 3","paragraph_id":"para_56"},{"text":"The panel held that when the government has recovered","paragraph_id":"para_57"},{"text":"money traceable to the funds it lost, the person from whom","paragraph_id":"para_58"},{"text":"it was seized may seek its return under Rule 41(g). When its","paragraph_id":"para_59"},{"text":"return is sought, the government bears the burden of","paragraph_id":"para_60"},{"text":"demonstrating that it has a legitimate reason to retain the","paragraph_id":"para_61"},{"text":"money. Cannon provided evidence supporting his claim that","paragraph_id":"para_62"},{"text":"lawful funds were intermingled with the drug proceeds","paragraph_id":"para_63"},{"text":"subject to forfeiture. The government had the opportunity to","paragraph_id":"para_64"},{"text":"dispute this evidence. On this record, the government has","paragraph_id":"para_65"},{"text":"not done so. Accordingly, the panel held that summary","paragraph_id":"para_66"},{"text":"judgment was in error, and returned the case to the district","paragraph_id":"para_67"},{"text":"court for further proceedings.","paragraph_id":"para_68"},{"text":"Judge Lee dissented. He would hold that the government","paragraph_id":"para_69"},{"text":"has not waived sovereign immunity for claims for money no","paragraph_id":"para_70"},{"text":"longer in the government’s possession. There is no evidence","paragraph_id":"para_71"},{"text":"in the record that the government has possession of the","paragraph_id":"para_72"},{"text":"$218,000 found in Cannon’s safe and stolen by Agent","paragraph_id":"para_73"},{"text":"Bowman. Because Cannon sought property not in the","paragraph_id":"para_74"},{"text":"government’s possession, the government cannot return it to","paragraph_id":"para_75"},{"text":"Cannon. and Rule 41(g)’s waiver of sovereign immunity","paragraph_id":"para_76"},{"text":"does not apply.","paragraph_id":"para_77"},{"text":"COUNSEL","paragraph_id":"para_78"},{"text":"Alexander Botoman (argued), Deputy Federal Public","paragraph_id":"para_79"},{"text":"Defender; Cuauhtémoc Ortega, Federal Public Defender;","paragraph_id":"para_80"},{"text":"Office of the Federal Public Defender, Los Angeles,","paragraph_id":"para_81"},{"text":"California; for Plaintiff-Appellant.","paragraph_id":"para_82"},{"text":"Ryan Waters (argued) and Suria M. Bahadue, Assistant","paragraph_id":"para_83"},{"text":"United States Attorneys; Jonathan Galatzan, Assistant","paragraph_id":"para_84"},{"text":"United States Attorney, Chief, Asset Forfeiture & Recovery","paragraph_id":"para_85"},{"text":"4 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_86"},{"text":"Section; Lindsey G. Dotson and Jennifer L. Waier, Assistant","paragraph_id":"para_87"},{"text":"United States Attorneys, Chiefs, Criminal Division; Bilal A.","paragraph_id":"para_88"},{"text":"Essayli, First Assistant United States Attorney; Joseph T.","paragraph_id":"para_89"},{"text":"McNally, Acting United States Attorney; Office of the","paragraph_id":"para_90"},{"text":"United States Attorney, United States Department of Justice,","paragraph_id":"para_91"},{"text":"Los Angeles, California; Todd Blanche, Attorney General,","paragraph_id":"para_92"},{"text":"United States Department of Justice, Washington, D.C.; for","paragraph_id":"para_93"},{"text":"Defendant-Appellee.","paragraph_id":"para_94"},{"text":"ORDER","paragraph_id":"para_95"},{"text":"The opinion filed June 29, 2026, and published at 179","paragraph_id":"para_96"},{"text":"F.4th 1202, is amended as follows:","paragraph_id":"para_97"},{"text":"On slip opinion page 4, line 13, replace <but then","paragraph_id":"para_98"},{"text":"recovered in restitution proceedings.> with <but then","paragraph_id":"para_99"},{"text":"recovered in forfeiture proceedings.>.","paragraph_id":"para_100"},{"text":"On slip opinion page 16, lines 22–23, replace <it is clear","paragraph_id":"para_101"},{"text":"that the government has recovered or will recover some of","paragraph_id":"para_102"},{"text":"the money it lost to Bowman.> with <it is clear that the","paragraph_id":"para_103"},{"text":"government has recovered some of the money it lost to","paragraph_id":"para_104"},{"text":"Bowman.>.","paragraph_id":"para_105"},{"text":"The amended opinion will be filed concurrently with this","paragraph_id":"para_106"},{"text":"order.","paragraph_id":"para_107"},{"text":"With these amendments, the panel unanimously votes to","paragraph_id":"para_108"},{"text":"deny the petition for panel rehearing as moot. See Dkt. No.","paragraph_id":"para_109"},{"text":"53. The petition for panel rehearing is DENIED, and no","paragraph_id":"para_110"},{"text":"further petitions for rehearing will be entertained.","paragraph_id":"para_111"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 5","paragraph_id":"para_112"},{"text":"OPINION","paragraph_id":"para_113"},{"text":"BYBEE, Circuit Judge:","paragraph_id":"para_114"},{"text":"Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 41(g) provides that","paragraph_id":"para_115"},{"text":"a person who has been deprived of his property by the","paragraph_id":"para_116"},{"text":"government may move for the property’s return. In Ordonez","paragraph_id":"para_117"},{"text":"v. United States, 680 F.3d 1135 (9th Cir. 2012), we held that","paragraph_id":"para_118"},{"text":"when property seized by the government has been lost or","paragraph_id":"para_119"},{"text":"destroyed, “an award of money damages against the","paragraph_id":"para_120"},{"text":"government under Rule 41(g) is barred by sovereign","paragraph_id":"para_121"},{"text":"immunity.” Id. at 1140. The issue in this case is whether the","paragraph_id":"para_122"},{"text":"same rule applies to cash that the government seized, lost,","paragraph_id":"para_123"},{"text":"but then recovered in forfeiture proceedings. We hold that","paragraph_id":"para_124"},{"text":"when the government has recovered money traceable to the","paragraph_id":"para_125"},{"text":"funds it lost, the person from whom it was seized may seek","paragraph_id":"para_126"},{"text":"its return under Rule 41(g). When its return is sought, the","paragraph_id":"para_127"},{"text":"government bears the burden of demonstrating that it has a","paragraph_id":"para_128"},{"text":"legitimate reason to retain the money. The government did","paragraph_id":"para_129"},{"text":"not meet its burden here. We thus reverse the district court’s","paragraph_id":"para_130"},{"text":"grant of summary judgment for the government.","paragraph_id":"para_131"},{"text":"I. BACKGROUND","paragraph_id":"para_132"},{"text":"In August 2014, the FBI was investigating Lionel","paragraph_id":"para_133"},{"text":"Cannon on federal drug trafficking charges. During a lawful","paragraph_id":"para_134"},{"text":"search of his mother’s home, agents seized $585,000 in cash","paragraph_id":"para_135"},{"text":"from a safe in Cannon’s bedroom. The next day, after the","paragraph_id":"para_136"},{"text":"cash was in government custody but before it was placed in","paragraph_id":"para_137"},{"text":"an official cash-counting facility, FBI Special Agent Scott","paragraph_id":"para_138"},{"text":"Bowman pocketed $218,200. As a result, the official","paragraph_id":"para_139"},{"text":"inventory listed only $366,800 as seized.","paragraph_id":"para_140"},{"text":"Shortly after the cash was seized from Cannon’s safe, the","paragraph_id":"para_141"},{"text":"FBI caught wind of Bowman’s theft. In April 2015, FBI","paragraph_id":"para_142"},{"text":"6 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_143"},{"text":"agents interviewed Cannon while he was in pretrial custody,","paragraph_id":"para_144"},{"text":"and Cannon informed them of the total amount in the safe.","paragraph_id":"para_145"},{"text":"With Cannon’s help, Bowman was indicted, and in","paragraph_id":"para_146"},{"text":"September 2016, Bowman pleaded guilty to conversion of","paragraph_id":"para_147"},{"text":"property by an employee or officer of the United States, 18","paragraph_id":"para_148"},{"text":"U.S.C. § 654, and related crimes. Bowman’s plea included","paragraph_id":"para_149"},{"text":"a money judgment of forfeiture requiring him to pay","paragraph_id":"para_150"},{"text":"$136,462 under 18 U.S.C. § 981(a)(1)(C), representing the","paragraph_id":"para_151"},{"text":"“proceeds of the offenses to which he has entered a guilty","paragraph_id":"para_152"},{"text":"plea.” Besides the cash from Cannon’s safe, Bowman had","paragraph_id":"para_153"},{"text":"converted $10,982 and $4,600 from unrelated searches.","paragraph_id":"para_154"},{"text":"Thus, conservatively, $120,880 of the $136,462 judgment","paragraph_id":"para_155"},{"text":"represents proceeds from Cannon’s safe.1 It is undisputed","paragraph_id":"para_156"},{"text":"1 It is unclear from the record what methodology was used to calculate","paragraph_id":"para_157"},{"text":"the $136,462 judgment. In his deal, Bowman plead guilty to three","paragraph_id":"para_158"},{"text":"separate thefts and agreed with the government “that the total loss","paragraph_id":"para_159"},{"text":"amount for purposes of this plea agreement is $136,462.00.” The","paragraph_id":"para_160"},{"text":"amounts that Bowman stole from the two unrelated thefts—$10,982 and","paragraph_id":"para_161"},{"text":"$4,600—were ascertained and verified in his plea, while the amount he","paragraph_id":"para_162"},{"text":"converted from Cannon’s safe was unverifiable at the time. The plea","paragraph_id":"para_163"},{"text":"deal describes the amount stolen from Cannon’s safe as a “substantial","paragraph_id":"para_164"},{"text":"portion of the currency seized” and notes that “substantially more than","paragraph_id":"para_165"},{"text":"$366,800 in cash was removed from the safe.” It then describes the","paragraph_id":"para_166"},{"text":"various cash expenditures Bowman engaged in in the weeks after that","paragraph_id":"para_167"},{"text":"crime, which include purchasing a Toyota Scion FR-S coupe for","paragraph_id":"para_168"},{"text":"$27,500, a Dodge Challenger coupe for $43,850, $9,612 in luxury","paragraph_id":"para_169"},{"text":"upgrades for the Toyota, $17,000 in luxury upgrades for the Dodge,","paragraph_id":"para_170"},{"text":"$2,353 in upgrades for another car, $700 on a trip to Las Vegas, and","paragraph_id":"para_171"},{"text":"$15,000 on cosmetic surgery for his spouse, as well as depositing","paragraph_id":"para_172"},{"text":"$10,665 into bank accounts. The total of these verified cash expenditures","paragraph_id":"para_173"},{"text":"is $126,680. Thus, although the government has now acknowledged that","paragraph_id":"para_174"},{"text":"Bowman stole $218,000 from Cannon’s safe, the $120,880 figure may","paragraph_id":"para_175"},{"text":"have represented how much cash Bowman spent lavishly in the weeks","paragraph_id":"para_176"},{"text":"after that crime, less a $7,000 to $8,000 cash gift from his father.","paragraph_id":"para_177"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 7","paragraph_id":"para_178"},{"text":"that the government has recovered some of this money and","paragraph_id":"para_179"},{"text":"expects to recover more funds through criminal forfeiture.2","paragraph_id":"para_180"},{"text":"In April 2017, more than six months after Bowman’s","paragraph_id":"para_181"},{"text":"guilty plea and forfeiture order, Cannon pleaded guilty to","paragraph_id":"para_182"},{"text":"drug-trafficking charges. In his plea deal, he agreed to","paragraph_id":"para_183"},{"text":"forfeit “$366,800.00” from the safe, which represented the","paragraph_id":"para_184"},{"text":"$585,000 actually seized by the FBI, less the $218,000","paragraph_id":"para_185"},{"text":"purloined by Bowman. In March 2018, the court issued a","paragraph_id":"para_186"},{"text":"forfeiture order reflecting that amount. Despite knowing for","paragraph_id":"para_187"},{"text":"two years that far more money had been seized from","paragraph_id":"para_188"},{"text":"Cannon’s safe, the government never initiated forfeiture","paragraph_id":"para_189"},{"text":"proceedings for that additional money. The charging","paragraph_id":"para_190"},{"text":"documents, including the three amended indictments and the","paragraph_id":"para_191"},{"text":"final forfeiture order, listed $366,800 as the amount from the","paragraph_id":"para_192"},{"text":"safe subject to forfeiture. When negotiating Cannon’s plea,","paragraph_id":"para_193"},{"text":"both parties understood that an additional $218,800 had been","paragraph_id":"para_194"},{"text":"taken—the government even stated as much on the record at","paragraph_id":"para_195"},{"text":"Cannon’s sentencing—yet Cannon agreed to forfeit only","paragraph_id":"para_196"},{"text":"$366,800.","paragraph_id":"para_197"},{"text":"Shortly after his guilty plea and forfeiture, Cannon","paragraph_id":"para_198"},{"text":"moved under Rule 41(g) for the return of the $218,800 that","paragraph_id":"para_199"},{"text":"Agent Bowman stole and that had never been forfeited.","paragraph_id":"para_200"},{"text":"Because no criminal proceedings were pending, the district","paragraph_id":"para_201"},{"text":"court treated the Rule 41(g) motion as a civil complaint and","paragraph_id":"para_202"},{"text":"the government’s opposition as a motion for summary","paragraph_id":"para_203"},{"text":"judgment. The court found that Cannon had agreed to forfeit","paragraph_id":"para_204"},{"text":"“property ‘including but not limited to . . . $366,800.00 in","paragraph_id":"para_205"},{"text":"U.S. currency,’” and that his “admissions support an","paragraph_id":"para_206"},{"text":"2 At oral argument, counsel for the government confirmed that it is","paragraph_id":"para_207"},{"text":"recouping the money. During criminal forfeiture proceedings against","paragraph_id":"para_208"},{"text":"Bowman, the government credited him $15,767.40 toward his money","paragraph_id":"para_209"},{"text":"judgment “for proceeds of the offenses that have already been forfeited.”","paragraph_id":"para_210"},{"text":"8 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_211"},{"text":"inference that he agreed to forfeit all property seized from","paragraph_id":"para_212"},{"text":"the safe in his mother’s house, which the government","paragraph_id":"para_213"},{"text":"incorrectly assumed to be $366,800.00 when the indictment","paragraph_id":"para_214"},{"text":"was returned, and wrongly stated in the plea agreement.”","paragraph_id":"para_215"},{"text":"The court found that Cannon’s evidence explaining why he","paragraph_id":"para_216"},{"text":"was lawfully in possession of some of the cash—wages,","paragraph_id":"para_217"},{"text":"sales of vehicles, and gifts—was “self-serving” and","paragraph_id":"para_218"},{"text":"insufficient to create a genuine issue of material fact. The","paragraph_id":"para_219"},{"text":"court concluded that no jury “could conclude the portion of","paragraph_id":"para_220"},{"text":"the money taken by [Agent] Bowman had been earned","paragraph_id":"para_221"},{"text":"through lawful means and was ‘clean’ as a result, while the","paragraph_id":"para_222"},{"text":"remaining $366,800 was tainted.” The court granted","paragraph_id":"para_223"},{"text":"judgment for the government. Cannon filed a timely appeal.","paragraph_id":"para_224"},{"text":"II. JURISDICTION AND STANDARD OF REVIEW","paragraph_id":"para_225"},{"text":"We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291. We","paragraph_id":"para_226"},{"text":"review de novo whether the government has waived its","paragraph_id":"para_227"},{"text":"sovereign immunity. Halverson v. Burgum, 148 F.4th 1089,","paragraph_id":"para_228"},{"text":"1093 (9th Cir. 2025). If no criminal proceedings are pending","paragraph_id":"para_229"},{"text":"when the movant files a Rule 41(g) motion and the district","paragraph_id":"para_230"},{"text":"court treats the motion as a civil complaint subject to the","paragraph_id":"para_231"},{"text":"Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, we review de novo a grant","paragraph_id":"para_232"},{"text":"of summary judgment on a Rule 41(g) motion. See United","paragraph_id":"para_233"},{"text":"States v. Ibrahim, 522 F.3d 1003, 1007–08 (9th Cir. 2008);","paragraph_id":"para_234"},{"text":"United States v. Ritchie, 342 F.3d 903, 906–07 (9th Cir.","paragraph_id":"para_235"},{"text":"2003).","paragraph_id":"para_236"},{"text":"III. ANALYSIS","paragraph_id":"para_237"},{"text":"There are two issues before us. First, we must address","paragraph_id":"para_238"},{"text":"the government’s argument that sovereign immunity bars","paragraph_id":"para_239"},{"text":"Cannon’s Rule 41(g) claim. Although this issue was not","paragraph_id":"para_240"},{"text":"presented to the district court, “[w]e will consider the issue","paragraph_id":"para_241"},{"text":"of sovereign immunity on the merits because it can be raised","paragraph_id":"para_242"},{"text":"at any time by the government, as it goes to a court’s","paragraph_id":"para_243"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 9","paragraph_id":"para_244"},{"text":"jurisdiction.” Tobar v. United States, 639 F.3d 1191, 1195","paragraph_id":"para_245"},{"text":"(9th Cir. 2011) (quoting IRS v. Fed. Lab. Rels. Auth., 521","paragraph_id":"para_246"},{"text":"F.3d 1148, 1152 (9th Cir. 2008)). Concluding that sovereign","paragraph_id":"para_247"},{"text":"immunity does not bar Cannon’s claim, we then turn to","paragraph_id":"para_248"},{"text":"whether the district court properly granted summary","paragraph_id":"para_249"},{"text":"judgment on the government’s claim that Cannon was not","paragraph_id":"para_250"},{"text":"entitled to recover any cash seized by the government.","paragraph_id":"para_251"},{"text":"A. Rule 41(g) and Sovereign Immunity","paragraph_id":"para_252"},{"text":"Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 41(g) provides that","paragraph_id":"para_253"},{"text":"“[a] person aggrieved . . . by the deprivation of property may","paragraph_id":"para_254"},{"text":"move for the property’s return.” Fed. R. Crim. P. 41(g). If","paragraph_id":"para_255"},{"text":"the district court grants the motion, “the court must return","paragraph_id":"para_256"},{"text":"the property to the movant.” Id.","paragraph_id":"para_257"},{"text":"In United States v. Martinson, 809 F.2d 1364 (9th Cir.","paragraph_id":"para_258"},{"text":"1987), we suggested that when the government has lost or","paragraph_id":"para_259"},{"text":"destroyed the property in question, a person could seek","paragraph_id":"para_260"},{"text":"monetary damages in compensation under Rule 41(g). Id. at","paragraph_id":"para_261"},{"text":"1370. We reexamined that suggestion in Ordonez v. United","paragraph_id":"para_262"},{"text":"States, 680 F.3d 1135 (9th Cir. 2012).3 Ordonez sought the","paragraph_id":"para_263"},{"text":"return of personal items that the government had misplaced","paragraph_id":"para_264"},{"text":"due to poor recordkeeping and storage. Id. at 1137. Years","paragraph_id":"para_265"},{"text":"later, once it was clear that the government “was unable to","paragraph_id":"para_266"},{"text":"locate” the missing items, we held that Ordonez could not","paragraph_id":"para_267"},{"text":"recover monetary damages under Rule 41(g) in","paragraph_id":"para_268"},{"text":"compensation for the property the government lost. Id. We","paragraph_id":"para_269"},{"text":"framed the holding as applying “where the property cannot","paragraph_id":"para_270"},{"text":"3 We observed that “Martinson did not address directly the issue of","paragraph_id":"para_271"},{"text":"sovereign immunity” and was not binding on that point. Ordonez, 680","paragraph_id":"para_272"},{"text":"F.3d at 1139 (citing Pennhurst St. Sch. & Hosp. v. Halderman, 465 U.S.","paragraph_id":"para_273"},{"text":"89, 119 (1984)); see id. at n.4 (“To the extent Martinson has been read","paragraph_id":"para_274"},{"text":"as holding that sovereign immunity does not bar a claim for money","paragraph_id":"para_275"},{"text":"damages under Rule 41(g), we now clarify that reading is incorrect.”).","paragraph_id":"para_276"},{"text":"10 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_277"},{"text":"be returned” or “where . . . the subject property has been lost","paragraph_id":"para_278"},{"text":"or destroyed.” See id. at 1137–38. This conclusion followed","paragraph_id":"para_279"},{"text":"from Rule 41(g)’s language, which we noted “provides only","paragraph_id":"para_280"},{"text":"for the ‘return [of] the property to the movant.’” Id. at 1139","paragraph_id":"para_281"},{"text":"(quoting Fed. R. Crim. P. 41(g)). Because the “clear and","paragraph_id":"para_282"},{"text":"unambiguous” text contains “no alternative provision for","paragraph_id":"para_283"},{"text":"money damages, . . . such a provision cannot be implied.”","paragraph_id":"para_284"},{"text":"Ordonez, 680 F.3d at 1139 (citation omitted). “[E]ven when","paragraph_id":"para_285"},{"text":"it results in a wrong without a remedy,” an award of money","paragraph_id":"para_286"},{"text":"damages against the government under Rule 41(g) is barred","paragraph_id":"para_287"},{"text":"by sovereign immunity. Id. at 1140; see United States v.","paragraph_id":"para_288"},{"text":"Wright, 49 F.4th 1221, 1226 n.3 (9th Cir. 2022) (“Rule 41(g)","paragraph_id":"para_289"},{"text":"is not a general waiver of sovereign immunity; it only allows","paragraph_id":"para_290"},{"text":"for the recovery of property currently in the government’s","paragraph_id":"para_291"},{"text":"control.”).","paragraph_id":"para_292"},{"text":"We must now determine how that rule applies to money","paragraph_id":"para_293"},{"text":"that the government seizes, loses, but then recovers.","paragraph_id":"para_294"},{"text":"Because Ordonez dealt with a case of lost belongings, there","paragraph_id":"para_295"},{"text":"was no serious question that the money the movant sought","paragraph_id":"para_296"},{"text":"was not “the property” that was seized, but rather","paragraph_id":"para_297"},{"text":"compensation in its place—namely, money damages. The","paragraph_id":"para_298"},{"text":"distinction we drew in Ordonez between the right to property","paragraph_id":"para_299"},{"text":"and the right to compensation for lost property is not as clear","paragraph_id":"para_300"},{"text":"when cash is the property at issue. Ordonez did not provide","paragraph_id":"para_301"},{"text":"a framework for, or even discuss, how to differentiate","paragraph_id":"para_302"},{"text":"between “the property” and “money damages” when the","paragraph_id":"para_303"},{"text":"property in question is cash. Fortunately, longstanding","paragraph_id":"para_304"},{"text":"precedent and common sense provide guidance on this","paragraph_id":"para_305"},{"text":"thorny issue.","paragraph_id":"para_306"},{"text":"The law has long distinguished between the recovery of","paragraph_id":"para_307"},{"text":"money damages as compensation for lost property or money","paragraph_id":"para_308"},{"text":"and “the recovery of specific property or monies”","paragraph_id":"para_309"},{"text":"themselves. See Larson v. Domestic & Foreign Com. Corp.,","paragraph_id":"para_310"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 11","paragraph_id":"para_311"},{"text":"337 U.S. 682, 687–88 (1949). The difference hinges on","paragraph_id":"para_312"},{"text":"whether the remedy seeks return of the thing itself or a","paragraph_id":"para_313"},{"text":"substitute for the thing: “Damages are given to the plaintiff","paragraph_id":"para_314"},{"text":"to substitute for a suffered loss, whereas specific remedies","paragraph_id":"para_315"},{"text":"are not substitute remedies at all, but attempt to give the","paragraph_id":"para_316"},{"text":"plaintiff the very thing to which he was entitled.” Bowen v.","paragraph_id":"para_317"},{"text":"Massachusetts, 487 U.S. 879, 895 (1988) (quoting Maryland","paragraph_id":"para_318"},{"text":"Dep’t of Hum. Res. v. Dep’t of Health & Hum. Servs., 763","paragraph_id":"para_319"},{"text":"F.2d 1441, 1446 (D.C. Cir. 1985)) (internal quotation marks","paragraph_id":"para_320"},{"text":"omitted). Thus, “[t]he fact that a judicial remedy may","paragraph_id":"para_321"},{"text":"require one party to pay money to another is not a sufficient","paragraph_id":"para_322"},{"text":"reason to characterize the relief as ‘money damages.’”","paragraph_id":"para_323"},{"text":"Bowen, 487 U.S. at 893; see United States v. Park Place","paragraph_id":"para_324"},{"text":"Assocs., 563 F.3d 907, 930 (9th Cir. 2009) (contrasting","paragraph_id":"para_325"},{"text":"“specific relief . . . that the plaintiff would be owed even if","paragraph_id":"para_326"},{"text":"the defendant had never engaged in wrongful conduct” with","paragraph_id":"para_327"},{"text":"“compensatory relief, or relief that substitutes for that which","paragraph_id":"para_328"},{"text":"ought to have been done”); see also United States v. Minor,","paragraph_id":"para_329"},{"text":"228 F.3d 352, 355 (4th Cir. 2000) (“Even though [defendant]","paragraph_id":"para_330"},{"text":"seeks return of currency, we can see no persuasive reason to","paragraph_id":"para_331"},{"text":"treat his motion differently than an action in equity for the","paragraph_id":"para_332"},{"text":"return of a tangible item of personal property. In suing for","paragraph_id":"para_333"},{"text":"return of the currency, [defendant] seeks restitution of ‘the","paragraph_id":"para_334"},{"text":"very thing’ to which he claims an entitlement, not damages","paragraph_id":"para_335"},{"text":"in substitution for a loss.” (quoting Bowen, 487 U.S. at 895)).","paragraph_id":"para_336"},{"text":"Cannon seeks the return of the very thing to which he is","paragraph_id":"para_337"},{"text":"entitled, namely “the property” under Rule 41(g). In this","paragraph_id":"para_338"},{"text":"case, that is the cash the government seized but did not","paragraph_id":"para_339"},{"text":"pursue in forfeiture proceedings. As in Bowen, Cannon’s","paragraph_id":"para_340"},{"text":"claim is not for money damages; rather, it is “a suit seeking","paragraph_id":"para_341"},{"text":"to enforce the statutory mandate itself, which happens to be","paragraph_id":"para_342"},{"text":"one for the payment of money.” 487 U.S. at 900. The fact","paragraph_id":"para_343"},{"text":"that Cannon seeks the return of cash does not make his claim","paragraph_id":"para_344"},{"text":"12 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_345"},{"text":"one for money damages. We have long treated Rule 41(g)","paragraph_id":"para_346"},{"text":"motions—even those for return of cash seizures—as motions","paragraph_id":"para_347"},{"text":"in equity, not law, and equity is directed to ownership of the","paragraph_id":"para_348"},{"text":"property itself, not to compensation, which is a legal remedy.","paragraph_id":"para_349"},{"text":"See United States v. Marolf, 173 F.3d 1213, 1216 (9th Cir.","paragraph_id":"para_350"},{"text":"1999) (“Rule 41(e) motions are treated as proceedings in","paragraph_id":"para_351"},{"text":"equity when there are no criminal proceedings pending","paragraph_id":"para_352"},{"text":"against the movant.”);4 Martinson, 809 F.2d at 1367.","paragraph_id":"para_353"},{"text":"Despite Cannon’s affirmance that he is seeking equitable","paragraph_id":"para_354"},{"text":"return of the cash that was seized and not money damages in","paragraph_id":"para_355"},{"text":"its place, the government claims he must be seeking money","paragraph_id":"para_356"},{"text":"damages because he cannot be seeking the same currency","paragraph_id":"para_357"},{"text":"stolen by Agent Bowman. But that the money the United","paragraph_id":"para_358"},{"text":"States is recouping from Agent Bowman is not the same","paragraph_id":"para_359"},{"text":"“physical currency”—that is, the exact same bills that were","paragraph_id":"para_360"},{"text":"taken from Cannon’s safe—does not alter the result. Such a","paragraph_id":"para_361"},{"text":"hyperformalistic approach misconstrues the nature of","paragraph_id":"para_362"},{"text":"money. Money differs from other property in that its","paragraph_id":"para_363"},{"text":"principal value lies in the unit of account; its exchange value,","paragraph_id":"para_364"},{"text":"not its intrinsic value. Cf. Wisconsin Ctr. Ltd. v. United","paragraph_id":"para_365"},{"text":"States, 585 U.S. 274, 277–78 (2018); Juilliard v. Greenman","paragraph_id":"para_366"},{"text":"(The Legal Tender Cases), 110 U.S. 421, 449 (1884). Put","paragraph_id":"para_367"},{"text":"another way, money has no use outside its socially","paragraph_id":"para_368"},{"text":"constructed exchange value; its value derives from its ability","paragraph_id":"para_369"},{"text":"to be exchanged for property that does have inherent use","paragraph_id":"para_370"},{"text":"value. This lack of inherent value is money’s sine qua non.","paragraph_id":"para_371"},{"text":"After all, on a deserted island, a $100 bill might as well be","paragraph_id":"para_372"},{"text":"Monopoly money.","paragraph_id":"para_373"},{"text":"This characteristic of money is reflected in 31 U.S.C.","paragraph_id":"para_374"},{"text":"§ 5103, which makes “coins and currency . . . including","paragraph_id":"para_375"},{"text":"4 Rule 41(e) was renumbered to Rule 41(g) in 2002. See Fed. R. Crim.","paragraph_id":"para_376"},{"text":"P. 41, Adv. Comm. Notes, 2002 Amendments.","paragraph_id":"para_377"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 13","paragraph_id":"para_378"},{"text":"Federal reserve notes . . . legal tender for all debts, public","paragraph_id":"para_379"},{"text":"charges, taxes and dues.” Paper money is “fiat money”—it","paragraph_id":"para_380"},{"text":"has fixed value because the government says that it has","paragraph_id":"para_381"},{"text":"value. See U.S. Const. art. I, § 8, cl. 5 (granting Congress","paragraph_id":"para_382"},{"text":"the power to “coin Money, [and] regulate the Value","paragraph_id":"para_383"},{"text":"thereof”). Federal reserve notes have little intrinsic value","paragraph_id":"para_384"},{"text":"outside of Congress’s declaration that they are legal tender","paragraph_id":"para_385"},{"text":"and whatever value the Bureau of Engraving and Printing","paragraph_id":"para_386"},{"text":"prints on them.5 When FBI agents seized the money in","paragraph_id":"para_387"},{"text":"Cannon’s safe, they knew exactly what its value was. No","paragraph_id":"para_388"},{"text":"appraisals or negotiations necessary.","paragraph_id":"para_389"},{"text":"This peculiar quality of money is why our law has long","paragraph_id":"para_390"},{"text":"assessed and identified money by its amount, not by the","paragraph_id":"para_391"},{"text":"physicality of bills. Tax refunds are never the exact same","paragraph_id":"para_392"},{"text":"bills that were withheld; bankruptcy never obligates the","paragraph_id":"para_393"},{"text":"debtor to return the same bills she borrowed; cash bail is not","paragraph_id":"para_394"},{"text":"refunded with the same currency posted. A person entitled","paragraph_id":"para_395"},{"text":"to return of cash seized cannot object on the basis that the","paragraph_id":"para_396"},{"text":"cash was in $100 bills and he was given back $20 bills. As","paragraph_id":"para_397"},{"text":"the Supreme Court explained, “if the ‘property’ that was","paragraph_id":"para_398"},{"text":"‘damage[d],’ ‘los[t],’ or ‘destr[oyed]’ was the money, then","paragraph_id":"para_399"},{"text":"‘the property . . . returned’ must also be the money. Money","paragraph_id":"para_400"},{"text":"being fungible, however, ‘the property . . . returned’ need","paragraph_id":"para_401"},{"text":"not be the very same bills or checks.” Robers v. United","paragraph_id":"para_402"},{"text":"5 The exception that proves the rule is the numismatic value of certain","paragraph_id":"para_403"},{"text":"collectible coins and bills. That certain coins have value beyond their","paragraph_id":"para_404"},{"text":"face is a product of their historical significance, rarity, or metal content.","paragraph_id":"para_405"},{"text":"They thus lack money’s fungibility.","paragraph_id":"para_406"},{"text":"14 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_407"},{"text":"States, 572 U.S. 639, 643 (2014) (emphasis added; citation","paragraph_id":"para_408"},{"text":"modified).6","paragraph_id":"para_409"},{"text":"Adopting the government’s theory in this case would","paragraph_id":"para_410"},{"text":"also be inconsistent with the on-the-ground realities of the","paragraph_id":"para_411"},{"text":"way the government itself handles cash proceeds. The","paragraph_id":"para_412"},{"text":"United States Marshals Service (USMS) is responsible for","paragraph_id":"para_413"},{"text":"managing and safeguarding seized assets. When federal law","paragraph_id":"para_414"},{"text":"enforcement seizes cash during a criminal investigation,","paragraph_id":"para_415"},{"text":"federal regulations require that the cash be inventoried and","paragraph_id":"para_416"},{"text":"then “deposited promptly in the Seized Asset Deposit Fund.”","paragraph_id":"para_417"},{"text":"28 C.F.R. §§ 8.4–8.5. The Department of Justice instructs","paragraph_id":"para_418"},{"text":"its agents to take the cash to one of the “Treasury’s","paragraph_id":"para_419"},{"text":"contracted Seized Cash Currency Network (SCCN) vault","paragraph_id":"para_420"},{"text":"locations for cash counting services.” U.S. Dep’t of Just.,","paragraph_id":"para_421"},{"text":"Asset Forfeiture Policy Manual 4-18 n.22 (2025). After the","paragraph_id":"para_422"},{"text":"cash is counted at the vault, “the value is remitted","paragraph_id":"para_423"},{"text":"6 As one commentor has observed:","paragraph_id":"para_424"},{"text":"The key here is that money, aside from rare coins and","paragraph_id":"para_425"},{"text":"bills, is fungible. Allowing the plaintiff to recover","paragraph_id":"para_426"},{"text":"money for cash taken by the government is","paragraph_id":"para_427"},{"text":"functionally indistinguishable from allowing the","paragraph_id":"para_428"},{"text":"plaintiff to recover account funds in a bank account","paragraph_id":"para_429"},{"text":"that the government seized. A bank account does not","paragraph_id":"para_430"},{"text":"have specific coins and cash in it, but a plaintiff would","paragraph_id":"para_431"},{"text":"be able to recover the funds in the account as property","paragraph_id":"para_432"},{"text":"under Rule 41(g). In other words, even though the","paragraph_id":"para_433"},{"text":"government no longer has the actual coins and bills","paragraph_id":"para_434"},{"text":"that were seized, it should be treated nonetheless as","paragraph_id":"para_435"},{"text":"having the plaintiff’s property—that is, the plaintiff’s","paragraph_id":"para_436"},{"text":"specific money.","paragraph_id":"para_437"},{"text":"Colleen P. Murphy, Money as a “Specific” Remedy, 58 Ala. L. Rev. 119,","paragraph_id":"para_438"},{"text":"149 (2006).","paragraph_id":"para_439"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 15","paragraph_id":"para_440"},{"text":"electronically to the USMS.” Id.7 This regulation means","paragraph_id":"para_441"},{"text":"that the exact bills are never kept by the government. In fact,","paragraph_id":"para_442"},{"text":"“[t]he USMS does not accept cash.” Id. Yet because the","paragraph_id":"para_443"},{"text":"money is in the government’s bank account, by any measure,","paragraph_id":"para_444"},{"text":"the United States possesses the seized funds. If the money","paragraph_id":"para_445"},{"text":"is forfeited, it is then transferred to the Asset Forfeiture Fund","paragraph_id":"para_446"},{"text":"(AFF), where it is distributed to law enforcement agencies,","paragraph_id":"para_447"},{"text":"victims, and other relevant parties. See generally id. at 12-","paragraph_id":"para_448"},{"text":"2, 14-1–15-3. If the money is not forfeited and is returned","paragraph_id":"para_449"},{"text":"to the owner, the ordinary method for reimbursing the owner","paragraph_id":"para_450"},{"text":"is via EFT. 31 C.F.R. § 208.3. Nothing in the regulations","paragraph_id":"para_451"},{"text":"suggests that the USMS should store the cash in locked","paragraph_id":"para_452"},{"text":"boxes until it is clear the money does not have to be returned","paragraph_id":"para_453"},{"text":"to its owner.8","paragraph_id":"para_454"},{"text":"The USMS’s process for managing other types of seized","paragraph_id":"para_455"},{"text":"property is entirely different: It contracts with property","paragraph_id":"para_456"},{"text":"custodians to oversee and dispose of seized assets. See","paragraph_id":"para_457"},{"text":"7 There is an exception to the requirement that the value of the seized","paragraph_id":"para_458"},{"text":"funds is transmitted electronically. If a supervisory official determines","paragraph_id":"para_459"},{"text":"in writing that the currency is “reasonably likely to serve a significant,","paragraph_id":"para_460"},{"text":"independent, tangible evidentiary purpose,” such as by having","paragraph_id":"para_461"},{"text":"fingerprints or drug residue, the cash may be kept. 28 C.F.R. § 8.5(b)","paragraph_id":"para_462"},{"text":"(emphasis added). The cash at issue here did not hold this special","paragraph_id":"para_463"},{"text":"evidentiary value.","paragraph_id":"para_464"},{"text":"8 The magnitude of having to store “the same money” would overwhelm","paragraph_id":"para_465"},{"text":"federal law enforcement and increase the risk of lost or stolen property.","paragraph_id":"para_466"},{"text":"In the 2023 fiscal year, $2.96 billion of AFF’s $3.18 billion in forfeiture","paragraph_id":"para_467"},{"text":"revenue came from cash or cash equivalents. See U.S. Dep’t of Just.,","paragraph_id":"para_468"},{"text":"Off. of the Inspector Gen., Audit of the Assets Forfeiture Fund and Seized","paragraph_id":"para_469"},{"text":"Asset Deposit Fund Annual Financial Statements Fiscal Year 2023, 6","paragraph_id":"para_470"},{"text":"tbl.1, 8 (Jan. 2024). Annually, the USMS processes more than 30,000","paragraph_id":"para_471"},{"text":"payments, typically exceeding $500 million, to asset forfeiture payees.","paragraph_id":"para_472"},{"text":"See Asset Forfeiture, U.S. Marshals Serv. (last visited Apr. 23, 2026),","paragraph_id":"para_473"},{"text":"https://perma.cc/YJV3-KNQT.","paragraph_id":"para_474"},{"text":"16 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_475"},{"text":"Forfeiture Manual, supra, at 2-10. After all, while it is easy","paragraph_id":"para_476"},{"text":"to deposit seized cash into an account, you cannot put a boat","paragraph_id":"para_477"},{"text":"into a bank. When the government seizes a boat, the owner","paragraph_id":"para_478"},{"text":"is entitled to return of the same boat; but if the government","paragraph_id":"para_479"},{"text":"seizes money, the owner is not entitled to, and probably","paragraph_id":"para_480"},{"text":"would never ask for, the return of the same bills. Instead,","paragraph_id":"para_481"},{"text":"the owner is entitled to the return of money of equal value,","paragraph_id":"para_482"},{"text":"which represents the seized funds even if it is not composed","paragraph_id":"para_483"},{"text":"of the same bills. This aligns with common sense: If I lend","paragraph_id":"para_484"},{"text":"you $20, when you pay me back, I do not expect the same","paragraph_id":"para_485"},{"text":"$20 bill. As long as you give me $20, the debt is settled. But","paragraph_id":"para_486"},{"text":"if I lend you my car, I expect you to return the exact same","paragraph_id":"para_487"},{"text":"car, not some car of equal value.","paragraph_id":"para_488"},{"text":"The relevant question then is not whether the bills Agent","paragraph_id":"para_489"},{"text":"Bowman is remitting to the government have the same serial","paragraph_id":"para_490"},{"text":"numbers as the ones from Cannon’s safe, but whether he is","paragraph_id":"para_491"},{"text":"remitting the value or amount traceable to the money taken","paragraph_id":"para_492"},{"text":"from Cannon’s safe.9 We think it clear that he is. In the","paragraph_id":"para_493"},{"text":"government’s own words, Bowman’s $136,462 money","paragraph_id":"para_494"},{"text":"9 The dissent acknowledges that the government has waived sovereign","paragraph_id":"para_495"},{"text":"immunity as to “the actual money in its possession,” and that seized","paragraph_id":"para_496"},{"text":"money is returnable when the government possesses the “same money.”","paragraph_id":"para_497"},{"text":"Dissent Op. at 26. We agree with that premise. But the dissent then errs","paragraph_id":"para_498"},{"text":"in thereby concluding that Cannon’s property cannot be returned because","paragraph_id":"para_499"},{"text":"the money the government is recouping from Agent Bowman may not","paragraph_id":"para_500"},{"text":"be the “same physical currency” stolen from Cannon’s safe. Dissent Op.","paragraph_id":"para_501"},{"text":"at 27–28. As discussed above, requiring that money be the same physical","paragraph_id":"para_502"},{"text":"currency to be the “same money” ignores the essential fungibility of","paragraph_id":"para_503"},{"text":"money. Money remains the same money even if it changes form, such","paragraph_id":"para_504"},{"text":"as when it is deposited into a bank, transferred electronically, or","paragraph_id":"para_505"},{"text":"recovered after being lost or stolen. Under the dissent’s approach, the","paragraph_id":"para_506"},{"text":"government could hide behind sovereign immunity to avoid its Rule","paragraph_id":"para_507"},{"text":"41(g) obligation to return seized currency by claiming it no longer has","paragraph_id":"para_508"},{"text":"the money—“the same bills”—that is, once it is deposited into a bank","paragraph_id":"para_509"},{"text":"account or transferred electronically.","paragraph_id":"para_510"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 17","paragraph_id":"para_511"},{"text":"judgment represented the “proceeds of the offenses to which","paragraph_id":"para_512"},{"text":"he has entered a guilty plea.” The federal forfeiture statute","paragraph_id":"para_513"},{"text":"provides that the property subject to forfeiture is that “which","paragraph_id":"para_514"},{"text":"constitutes or is derived from proceeds traceable to a","paragraph_id":"para_515"},{"text":"violation [of certain predicate offenses].” 18 U.S.C.","paragraph_id":"para_516"},{"text":"§ 981(a)(1)(C). Thus, even if not the exact bills Bowman","paragraph_id":"para_517"},{"text":"stole, the money judgment represents precisely the property","paragraph_id":"para_518"},{"text":"Bowman stole.","paragraph_id":"para_519"},{"text":"What Bowman is remitting to the United States is","paragraph_id":"para_520"},{"text":"traceable to the proceeds from Cannon’s safe. The day after","paragraph_id":"para_521"},{"text":"Bowman stole the money from the safe, he bought a 2013","paragraph_id":"para_522"},{"text":"Toyota Scion FR-S coupe for $27,500 in cash. In the","paragraph_id":"para_523"},{"text":"ensuing days, he also made cash deposits of over $10,000","paragraph_id":"para_524"},{"text":"into a bank account. In his plea, Bowman agreed to hand","paragraph_id":"para_525"},{"text":"over the 2013 Toyota Scion and a bank account with","paragraph_id":"para_526"},{"text":"$4,438.79 for liquidation, acknowledging a “nexus” between","paragraph_id":"para_527"},{"text":"this property and the crimes and that it “constitutes proceeds","paragraph_id":"para_528"},{"text":"of his crimes.” The court credited him $15,767.40 toward","paragraph_id":"para_529"},{"text":"his money judgment based on the sale of the Toyota “for","paragraph_id":"para_530"},{"text":"these proceeds of the offenses.” Although the record is silent","paragraph_id":"para_531"},{"text":"on how much additional money Bowman has paid back to","paragraph_id":"para_532"},{"text":"date, it is clear that the government has recovered some of","paragraph_id":"para_533"},{"text":"the money it lost to Bowman. Because the government","paragraph_id":"para_534"},{"text":"currently possesses money that it seized but did not declare","paragraph_id":"para_535"},{"text":"forfeit from Cannon, sovereign immunity does not bar","paragraph_id":"para_536"},{"text":"Cannon’s Rule 41(g) claim for its return.10 On remand, the","paragraph_id":"para_537"},{"text":"10 As for any money that Bowman stole and that was not reflected in the","paragraph_id":"para_538"},{"text":"criminal forfeiture order, or that is not traceable to Bowman’s theft,","paragraph_id":"para_539"},{"text":"Cannon cannot seek money damages in its place. This comports with","paragraph_id":"para_540"},{"text":"our holding in Ordonez that the government cannot be asked to return","paragraph_id":"para_541"},{"text":"property that it does not possess on a Rule 41(g) motion. 680 F.3d at","paragraph_id":"para_542"},{"text":"1137–38. It also comports with caselaw from other circuits holding that","paragraph_id":"para_543"},{"text":"if the government never actually seized the cash, or if the cash has","paragraph_id":"para_544"},{"text":"18 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_545"},{"text":"government bears the burden to prove how much it has","paragraph_id":"para_546"},{"text":"obtained from Bowman. See Wright, 49 F.4th at 1225;","paragraph_id":"para_547"},{"text":"Bailey v. United States, 508 F.3d 736, 739 (5th Cir. 2007).","paragraph_id":"para_548"},{"text":"Because sovereign immunity does not bar Cannon’s","paragraph_id":"para_549"},{"text":"claim for the money the United States has or will recoup","paragraph_id":"para_550"},{"text":"from Agent Bowman, we now proceed to the merits of the","paragraph_id":"para_551"},{"text":"district court’s grant of summary judgment.","paragraph_id":"para_552"},{"text":"B. Cannon’s Claim to the Remaining Funds","paragraph_id":"para_553"},{"text":"Once criminal proceedings end and the seized property","paragraph_id":"para_554"},{"text":"is no longer needed as evidence, “[t]he person from whom","paragraph_id":"para_555"},{"text":"the property is seized is presumed to have a right to its return,","paragraph_id":"para_556"},{"text":"and the government has the burden of demonstrating that it","paragraph_id":"para_557"},{"text":"has a legitimate reason to retain the property.” Martinson,","paragraph_id":"para_558"},{"text":"809 F.2d at 1369 (footnote omitted). We have recognized","paragraph_id":"para_559"},{"text":"three ways the government can rebut a defendant’s","paragraph_id":"para_560"},{"text":"presumptive entitlement to return of the property and","paragraph_id":"para_561"},{"text":"demonstrate a legitimate reason to retain the property.","paragraph_id":"para_562"},{"text":"Wright, 49 F.4th at 1226. First, it may establish that the","paragraph_id":"para_563"},{"text":"property is contraband. Id. Second, it may establish that","paragraph_id":"para_564"},{"text":"the property is subject to forfeiture. Id. Finally, it can show","paragraph_id":"para_565"},{"text":"that the defendant is not entitled to lawful possession of the","paragraph_id":"para_566"},{"text":"property. Id. To that end, district courts “must receive","paragraph_id":"para_567"},{"text":"already been dispersed and is not recoverable, sovereign immunity","paragraph_id":"para_568"},{"text":"prevents a claim for its monetary equivalent. See Diaz v. United States,","paragraph_id":"para_569"},{"text":"517 F.3d 608 (2d Cir. 2008); Bailey v. United States, 508 F.3d 736 (5th","paragraph_id":"para_570"},{"text":"Cir. 2007); Clymore v. United States, 415 F.3d 1113 (10th Cir. 2005);","paragraph_id":"para_571"},{"text":"Okoro v. Callaghan, 324 F.3d 488 (7th Cir. 2003) (opinion of Posner,","paragraph_id":"para_572"},{"text":"J.). We disagree with the dissent that our holding is incompatible with","paragraph_id":"para_573"},{"text":"these cases. Dissent Op. at 27. We are unaware of any circuit that has","paragraph_id":"para_574"},{"text":"held that sovereign immunity bars Rule 41(g) claims when the","paragraph_id":"para_575"},{"text":"government loses but later recovers the property, or when the","paragraph_id":"para_576"},{"text":"government cannot return the exact bills seized because the money has","paragraph_id":"para_577"},{"text":"changed forms, such as by being deposited into a bank account.","paragraph_id":"para_578"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 19","paragraph_id":"para_579"},{"text":"evidence on any factual issue necessary to decide the","paragraph_id":"para_580"},{"text":"motion.” Fed. R. Crim. P. 41(g).","paragraph_id":"para_581"},{"text":"First, the district court erred in finding that the money","paragraph_id":"para_582"},{"text":"was contraband. The court relied on United States v.","paragraph_id":"para_583"},{"text":"Kaczynski, 551 F.3d 1120 (9th Cir. 2009), which described","paragraph_id":"para_584"},{"text":"derivative contraband as “items that may be lawfully","paragraph_id":"para_585"},{"text":"possessed but became unlawful due to their use or intended","paragraph_id":"para_586"},{"text":"use.” Id. at 1129. But in our later decision in Wright, we","paragraph_id":"para_587"},{"text":"considered the definition of contraband in Kaczynski and","paragraph_id":"para_588"},{"text":"clarified that currency is not contraband of any kind: “Heroin","paragraph_id":"para_589"},{"text":"and bomb-making materials are contraband; currency is","paragraph_id":"para_590"},{"text":"not.” Wright, 49 F.4th at 1226 n.2 (emphasis added) (citing","paragraph_id":"para_591"},{"text":"Bennis v. Michigan, 516 U.S. 442, 459–62 (1996) (Stevens,","paragraph_id":"para_592"},{"text":"J., dissenting)). The district court did not discuss Wright or","paragraph_id":"para_593"},{"text":"explain why it reached a different conclusion. The","paragraph_id":"para_594"},{"text":"government has not rebutted Cannon’s presumptive right to","paragraph_id":"para_595"},{"text":"have the seized property returned by showing it is","paragraph_id":"para_596"},{"text":"contraband.","paragraph_id":"para_597"},{"text":"Second, the additional $218,000 seized from the safe is","paragraph_id":"para_598"},{"text":"not subject to forfeiture. At oral argument, the government","paragraph_id":"para_599"},{"text":"conceded that it had not brought timely forfeiture","paragraph_id":"para_600"},{"text":"proceedings for the missing cash and that no forfeiture","paragraph_id":"para_601"},{"text":"proceedings could be brought because of the statute of","paragraph_id":"para_602"},{"text":"limitations. See 19 U.S.C. § 1621. The government cannot","paragraph_id":"para_603"},{"text":"use Rule 41(g) to circumvent the statutory protections of","paragraph_id":"para_604"},{"text":"forfeiture proceedings. “Congress has enacted a detailed","paragraph_id":"para_605"},{"text":"statutory forfeiture scheme through which the government","paragraph_id":"para_606"},{"text":"may establish title in seized property.” Wright, 49 F.4th at","paragraph_id":"para_607"},{"text":"1224. “Allowing the government to circumvent this","paragraph_id":"para_608"},{"text":"congressional scheme through a Rule 41(g) proceeding","paragraph_id":"para_609"},{"text":"would necessarily allow the government to side-step many","paragraph_id":"para_610"},{"text":"of these protections.” Id.; see also Marolf, 173 F.3d at 1216–","paragraph_id":"para_611"},{"text":"17 (holding that the government may not use a Rule 41(g)","paragraph_id":"para_612"},{"text":"20 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_613"},{"text":"proceeding to elude the statute of limitations governing","paragraph_id":"para_614"},{"text":"forfeiture actions); United States v. One 1985 Mercedes-","paragraph_id":"para_615"},{"text":"Benz, 300 SD, VIN WDBCB20C6FA177831, 14 F.3d 465,","paragraph_id":"para_616"},{"text":"468 (9th Cir. 1994) (“Forfeitures are not favored; they","paragraph_id":"para_617"},{"text":"should be enforced only when within both letter and spirit of","paragraph_id":"para_618"},{"text":"the law.”) (quoting United States v. One 1936 Model Ford","paragraph_id":"para_619"},{"text":"V–8 De Luxe Coach, 307 U.S. 219, 226 (1939)). Property","paragraph_id":"para_620"},{"text":"used to facilitate a crime may be returned to a Rule 41(g)","paragraph_id":"para_621"},{"text":"claimant if the forfeiture statute of limitations has expired.","paragraph_id":"para_622"},{"text":"Marolf, 173 F.3d at 1215.","paragraph_id":"para_623"},{"text":"Third, even if the government has failed to establish its","paragraph_id":"para_624"},{"text":"title in the property through forfeiture, the government may","paragraph_id":"para_625"},{"text":"show that Cannon is not entitled to lawful possession of the","paragraph_id":"para_626"},{"text":"property. But we must begin with a presumption that","paragraph_id":"para_627"},{"text":"Cannon is in lawful possession of the property taken from","paragraph_id":"para_628"},{"text":"him; it is the government’s burden to show that he did not","paragraph_id":"para_629"},{"text":"lawfully possess it. See United States v. Gladding, 775 F.3d","paragraph_id":"para_630"},{"text":"1149, 1152 (9th Cir. 2014); United States v. Van","paragraph_id":"para_631"},{"text":"Cauwenberghe, 827 F.2d 424, 433–34 (9th Cir. 1987)","paragraph_id":"para_632"},{"text":"(finding defendant’s Rule 41(g) (then 41(e)) motion failed","paragraph_id":"para_633"},{"text":"because defendant could “no longer demonstrate that he is","paragraph_id":"para_634"},{"text":"entitled to lawful possession of the property” because he","paragraph_id":"para_635"},{"text":"admitted “that he irrevocably transferred full title to the","paragraph_id":"para_636"},{"text":"property to” third parties); United States v. Palmer, 565 F.2d","paragraph_id":"para_637"},{"text":"1063, 1065 (9th Cir. 1977) (finding that the government can","paragraph_id":"para_638"},{"text":"overcome the presumption by demonstrating a “cognizable","paragraph_id":"para_639"},{"text":"claim of ownership or right to possession adverse to that of”","paragraph_id":"para_640"},{"text":"the defendant).","paragraph_id":"para_641"},{"text":"The government has not satisfied its burden. In","paragraph_id":"para_642"},{"text":"November 2020, the district court ordered the parties to","paragraph_id":"para_643"},{"text":"provide evidence and briefing on whether the cash stolen","paragraph_id":"para_644"},{"text":"from Cannon was “contraband or subject to forfeiture.” In","paragraph_id":"para_645"},{"text":"discovery responses and a sworn declaration, Cannon listed","paragraph_id":"para_646"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 21","paragraph_id":"para_647"},{"text":"specific, lawful sources of the cash, including money from","paragraph_id":"para_648"},{"text":"car sales, monetary gifts, tax returns, and two years of","paragraph_id":"para_649"},{"text":"employment income as a personal trainer. The government","paragraph_id":"para_650"},{"text":"could have disputed this provenance by verifying Cannon’s","paragraph_id":"para_651"},{"text":"employment, producing his tax returns, or obtaining","paragraph_id":"para_652"},{"text":"information on the car sales.11 Instead, the government","paragraph_id":"para_653"},{"text":"relied on Cannon’s 2015 FBI interview, in which he told","paragraph_id":"para_654"},{"text":"officers investigating Bowman that the safe held $585,000","paragraph_id":"para_655"},{"text":"in cash when it was seized. Cannon recalled that he used a","paragraph_id":"para_656"},{"text":"money counter to place $200,000 and $400,000 in the safe","paragraph_id":"para_657"},{"text":"and later withdrew $15,000. Nowhere in the interview","paragraph_id":"para_658"},{"text":"memorandum does Cannon admit that the money was drug","paragraph_id":"para_659"},{"text":"proceeds or that he was otherwise not entitled to the money.","paragraph_id":"para_660"},{"text":"The government’s claim to the contrary is simply an","paragraph_id":"para_661"},{"text":"inference from silence. The bare fact that Cannon had","paragraph_id":"para_662"},{"text":"money in a safe—admittedly, a lot of money—is not proof","paragraph_id":"para_663"},{"text":"that the money was obtained from entirely illegitimate and","paragraph_id":"para_664"},{"text":"unlawful sources, and Cannon’s admission in his plea deal","paragraph_id":"para_665"},{"text":"that some of the money was drug proceeds is not an","paragraph_id":"para_666"},{"text":"admission that all of it was.12","paragraph_id":"para_667"},{"text":"Wright is illustrative of the kind of proof the government","paragraph_id":"para_668"},{"text":"must produce. 49 F.4th 1221. There, the government","paragraph_id":"para_669"},{"text":"successfully rebutted the presumption that the defendant was","paragraph_id":"para_670"},{"text":"11 Some evidence in the FBI’s own records confirmed that Cannon was","paragraph_id":"para_671"},{"text":"employed as he claimed.","paragraph_id":"para_672"},{"text":"12 The district court thought that Cannon agreed to forfeit all of the cash","paragraph_id":"para_673"},{"text":"seized from the safe and that the government “incorrectly assumed” the","paragraph_id":"para_674"},{"text":"amount was $366,800 and “wrongly stated” so in the plea agreement.","paragraph_id":"para_675"},{"text":"The $366,800 was not a scrivener’s error, but a negotiated term. Both","paragraph_id":"para_676"},{"text":"sides understood that that amount Cannon agreed to forfeit was not the","paragraph_id":"para_677"},{"text":"total amount seized from the safe. If the government thinks it made a","paragraph_id":"para_678"},{"text":"mistake in the plea agreement, it is up to the government to seek its","paragraph_id":"para_679"},{"text":"correction. It is not our place to renegotiate the plea agreement.","paragraph_id":"para_680"},{"text":"22 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_681"},{"text":"entitled to lawful possession of the seized cash by","paragraph_id":"para_682"},{"text":"“considerable evidence demonstrating that the money was","paragraph_id":"para_683"},{"text":"stolen.” Id. at 1224. The government’s evidence included","paragraph_id":"para_684"},{"text":"proof that defendant was unemployed during the relevant","paragraph_id":"para_685"},{"text":"period; that the cash seized bore “distinctive gold money","paragraph_id":"para_686"},{"text":"bands used by the Silverton Casino” wrapped around the","paragraph_id":"para_687"},{"text":"cash; that the defendant was in the area of the robberies when","paragraph_id":"para_688"},{"text":"they were committed; and that defendant had taken “efforts","paragraph_id":"para_689"},{"text":"to conceal” the cash, provided “vague testimony regarding","paragraph_id":"para_690"},{"text":"[its] origins,” and offered no explanation how defendant","paragraph_id":"para_691"},{"text":"“magically came into possession” of it. Id. at 1226–27.","paragraph_id":"para_692"},{"text":"Here, the government has not attempted to offer comparable","paragraph_id":"para_693"},{"text":"proof that Cannon lacked lawful possession of the cash. Cf.","paragraph_id":"para_694"},{"text":"United States v. Dean, 100 F.3d 19, 20–21 (5th Cir. 1996)","paragraph_id":"para_695"},{"text":"(per curiam) (government successfully rebutted presumption","paragraph_id":"para_696"},{"text":"of entitlement by showing the proceeds had the name of the","paragraph_id":"para_697"},{"text":"bank the defendant robbed on them, and the defendant","paragraph_id":"para_698"},{"text":"offered nothing to demonstrate the cash was from something","paragraph_id":"para_699"},{"text":"other than the robbery).","paragraph_id":"para_700"},{"text":"The district court stated that Cannon’s plea deal to forfeit","paragraph_id":"para_701"},{"text":"$366,800.00 from the safe “support[s] an inference that he","paragraph_id":"para_702"},{"text":"agreed to forfeit all property seized from the safe in his","paragraph_id":"para_703"},{"text":"mother’s house.” But this inference impermissibly shifts the","paragraph_id":"para_704"},{"text":"burden of proof and misstates the parties’ bargaining","paragraph_id":"para_705"},{"text":"position. During the plea negotiations, both Cannon and the","paragraph_id":"para_706"},{"text":"United States understood that the government had seized far","paragraph_id":"para_707"},{"text":"more than $366,800 from his safe that day. The $366,800","paragraph_id":"para_708"},{"text":"figure on the forfeiture order was no clerical error—it was","paragraph_id":"para_709"},{"text":"the amount the parties had negotiated.","paragraph_id":"para_710"},{"text":"The district court’s inference also mischaracterizes the","paragraph_id":"para_711"},{"text":"record: At no time did Cannon admit that the entire sum of","paragraph_id":"para_712"},{"text":"cash in his safe constituted drug proceeds. The plea","paragraph_id":"para_713"},{"text":"agreement stated that “the above-described property","paragraph_id":"para_714"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 23","paragraph_id":"para_715"},{"text":"constitutes proceeds of the offense of drug trafficking and/or","paragraph_id":"para_716"},{"text":"was property used or intended to be used to facilitate the","paragraph_id":"para_717"},{"text":"commission of that offense.” What was described above was","paragraph_id":"para_718"},{"text":"only—and exactly—“$366,800.00 in U.S. currency” from","paragraph_id":"para_719"},{"text":"the safe. The government has no right to keep any lawfully","paragraph_id":"para_720"},{"text":"earned money from Cannon’s safe, even if it was stored with","paragraph_id":"para_721"},{"text":"tainted money. See Gladding, 775 F.3d at 1153 (holding that","paragraph_id":"para_722"},{"text":"the government had no right to keep noncontraband files","paragraph_id":"para_723"},{"text":"intermingled with contraband files on seized devices, and","paragraph_id":"para_724"},{"text":"because “[t]he government failed to submit any evidence,”","paragraph_id":"para_725"},{"text":"it “could not have carried its burden of proof”). We are","paragraph_id":"para_726"},{"text":"unwilling to assume that because some of the cash was ill-","paragraph_id":"para_727"},{"text":"gotten, all of it was.","paragraph_id":"para_728"},{"text":"The government—not Cannon—bears the burden of","paragraph_id":"para_729"},{"text":"demonstrating a legitimate basis for refusing to return the","paragraph_id":"para_730"},{"text":"money; if it cannot, it must return Cannon’s property.","paragraph_id":"para_731"},{"text":"Wright, 49 F.4th at 1225. Thus, the government bore the","paragraph_id":"para_732"},{"text":"burden of showing that the entire amount seized was","paragraph_id":"para_733"},{"text":"unlawful proceeds. Cannon provided evidence supporting","paragraph_id":"para_734"},{"text":"his claim that lawful funds were intermingled with the drug","paragraph_id":"para_735"},{"text":"proceeds subject to forfeiture. The government had the","paragraph_id":"para_736"},{"text":"opportunity to dispute this. On this record, it has not done","paragraph_id":"para_737"},{"text":"so, and summary judgment was in error. We return the case","paragraph_id":"para_738"},{"text":"to the district court for additional proceedings.","paragraph_id":"para_739"},{"text":"IV. CONCLUSION","paragraph_id":"para_740"},{"text":"We reverse the judgment and remand for further","paragraph_id":"para_741"},{"text":"proceedings consistent with this opinion.","paragraph_id":"para_742"},{"text":"REVERSED and REMANDED.","paragraph_id":"para_743"},{"text":"24 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_744"},{"text":"LEE, Circuit Judge, dissenting:","paragraph_id":"para_745"},{"text":"Lionel Cannon—a drug dealer who lived with his","paragraph_id":"para_746"},{"text":"mother—kept $585,000 in cash in a safe in his bedroom.","paragraph_id":"para_747"},{"text":"Federal agents discovered that cache of money during a","paragraph_id":"para_748"},{"text":"lawful search of his mother’s house, but FBI agent Scott","paragraph_id":"para_749"},{"text":"Bowman secretly took $218,200 and reported finding only","paragraph_id":"para_750"},{"text":"$366,800. Agent Bowman spent most of the stolen money","paragraph_id":"para_751"},{"text":"on cars, a Vegas trip, and plastic surgery for his wife. He","paragraph_id":"para_752"},{"text":"later pleaded guilty. Meanwhile, Cannon also pleaded guilty","paragraph_id":"para_753"},{"text":"to drug trafficking and agreed to forfeit “all property subject","paragraph_id":"para_754"},{"text":"to forfeiture . . . including but not limited to . . . $366,8000.”","paragraph_id":"para_755"},{"text":"Cannon later sued the United States to demand the","paragraph_id":"para_756"},{"text":"“return” of the $218,200 stolen by Agent Bowman, invoking","paragraph_id":"para_757"},{"text":"Rule 41(g) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. But","paragraph_id":"para_758"},{"text":"sovereign immunity generally shields the federal","paragraph_id":"para_759"},{"text":"government from lawsuits unless it agrees to waive it. Rule","paragraph_id":"para_760"},{"text":"41(g) waives immunity only to allow the “return” of","paragraph_id":"para_761"},{"text":"unlawfully seized “property.” The property here, however,","paragraph_id":"para_762"},{"text":"cannot be returned because the money has already been","paragraph_id":"para_763"},{"text":"spent. So Cannon is essentially seeking money damages","paragraph_id":"para_764"},{"text":"from the United States—even though Rule 41(g) does not","paragraph_id":"para_765"},{"text":"waive immunity to allow it.","paragraph_id":"para_766"},{"text":"The majority assumes that because money is fungible,","paragraph_id":"para_767"},{"text":"Cannon is seeking a “return” of his “property” when he","paragraph_id":"para_768"},{"text":"demands the government give him $218,200. But the fact","paragraph_id":"para_769"},{"text":"that money may be fungible does not mean it is the same","paragraph_id":"para_770"},{"text":"property. His “property” of $218,200 in his safe is gone: The","paragraph_id":"para_771"},{"text":"government no longer has it and cannot return it under Rule","paragraph_id":"para_772"},{"text":"41(g). I respectfully dissent.","paragraph_id":"para_773"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 25","paragraph_id":"para_774"},{"text":"* * * *","paragraph_id":"para_775"},{"text":"Rule 41(g) of the Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure","paragraph_id":"para_776"},{"text":"provides that “[a] person aggrieved by an unlawful search","paragraph_id":"para_777"},{"text":"and seizure of property or by the deprivation of property may","paragraph_id":"para_778"},{"text":"move for the property’s return.” Fed. R. Crim. P. 41(g). If","paragraph_id":"para_779"},{"text":"the district court grants the motion, “the court must return","paragraph_id":"para_780"},{"text":"the property to the movant.” Id.","paragraph_id":"para_781"},{"text":"Because a Rule 41(g) motion “is necessarily directed","paragraph_id":"para_782"},{"text":"against the United States,” we lack jurisdiction unless the","paragraph_id":"para_783"},{"text":"government has waived its sovereign immunity. Ordonez v.","paragraph_id":"para_784"},{"text":"United States, 680 F.3d 1135, 1138 (9th Cir. 2012). “It is","paragraph_id":"para_785"},{"text":"axiomatic that the United States may not be sued without its","paragraph_id":"para_786"},{"text":"consent and that the existence of consent is a prerequisite for","paragraph_id":"para_787"},{"text":"jurisdiction.” Id. (quoting United States v. Mitchell, 463","paragraph_id":"para_788"},{"text":"U.S. 206, 212 (1983).","paragraph_id":"para_789"},{"text":"The government has waived its sovereign immunity only","paragraph_id":"para_790"},{"text":"if the waiver is “unequivocally expressed in statutory text”","paragraph_id":"para_791"},{"text":"and “extend[s] unambiguously” to the monetary claim at","paragraph_id":"para_792"},{"text":"issue. Id. (quoting Lane v. Pena, 518 U.S. 187, 192 (1996)).","paragraph_id":"para_793"},{"text":"“We apply traditional tools of statutory construction to","paragraph_id":"para_794"},{"text":"determine whether the scope of Congress’ waiver is ‘clearly","paragraph_id":"para_795"},{"text":"discernable from the statutory text.’” Id. (quoting FAA v.","paragraph_id":"para_796"},{"text":"Cooper, 566 U.S. 284, 291 (2012)). If the scope of a waiver","paragraph_id":"para_797"},{"text":"is ambiguous, we interpret the ambiguity “in favor of the","paragraph_id":"para_798"},{"text":"sovereign.” Id. (quoting Cooper, 566 U.S. at 291).","paragraph_id":"para_799"},{"text":"We have interpreted Rule 41(g) as barring a claim for","paragraph_id":"para_800"},{"text":"money damages against the government “where the property","paragraph_id":"para_801"},{"text":"cannot be returned.” Id. In Ordonez, the government seized","paragraph_id":"para_802"},{"text":"the defendant’s various personal property during an arrest.","paragraph_id":"para_803"},{"text":"Id. at 1137. Some items were returned, but the government","paragraph_id":"para_804"},{"text":"could not locate other items. Id. The defendant sued,","paragraph_id":"para_805"},{"text":"seeking money damages for the lost items. Id. We affirmed","paragraph_id":"para_806"},{"text":"26 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_807"},{"text":"the district court’s dismissal because we could not “find an","paragraph_id":"para_808"},{"text":"unequivocally expressed waiver of the government’s","paragraph_id":"para_809"},{"text":"sovereign immunity that extends unambiguously to money","paragraph_id":"para_810"},{"text":"damages in the text of Rule 41(g).” Id. at 1139. Although","paragraph_id":"para_811"},{"text":"we recognized that this interpretation could “work an","paragraph_id":"para_812"},{"text":"injustice to someone losing valuable goods . . . these","paragraph_id":"para_813"},{"text":"equitable considerations—standing alone—cannot waive","paragraph_id":"para_814"},{"text":"the government's immunity from suit.” Id. at 1140.","paragraph_id":"para_815"},{"text":"“[B]ecause Rule 41(g) contains no express and unequivocal","paragraph_id":"para_816"},{"text":"waiver of the government’s sovereign immunity, money","paragraph_id":"para_817"},{"text":"damages are not a permitted form of relief.” Id.","paragraph_id":"para_818"},{"text":"Seized money no longer in the government’s possession","paragraph_id":"para_819"},{"text":"should not be treated differently than the lost items of","paragraph_id":"para_820"},{"text":"property discussed in Ordonez. Rule 41(g) provides an","paragraph_id":"para_821"},{"text":"express waiver of sovereign immunity only for the “return”","paragraph_id":"para_822"},{"text":"of property. See Fed. R. Crim. P. 41(g). Like any other item","paragraph_id":"para_823"},{"text":"of physical property, money can be seized by the","paragraph_id":"para_824"},{"text":"government, and that same money can be returned if still in","paragraph_id":"para_825"},{"text":"the government’s possession. By the same token, if that","paragraph_id":"para_826"},{"text":"money has been lost, stolen or disbursed, the government","paragraph_id":"para_827"},{"text":"cannot return it. As the Second Circuit has explained, while","paragraph_id":"para_828"},{"text":"money is fungible, “that says nothing about whether","paragraph_id":"para_829"},{"text":"sovereign immunity has been waived to allow payment from","paragraph_id":"para_830"},{"text":"the Treasury to compensate for any wrongful seizure of this","paragraph_id":"para_831"},{"text":"one form of property.” Diaz v. United States, 517 F.3d 608,","paragraph_id":"para_832"},{"text":"612 (2d Cir. 2008). In short, money is like other physical","paragraph_id":"para_833"},{"text":"property, and Rule 41(g) waives the government’s sovereign","paragraph_id":"para_834"},{"text":"immunity only as to the actual money in its possession.","paragraph_id":"para_835"},{"text":"Indeed, “[o]nce seized currency has been disbursed and","paragraph_id":"para_836"},{"text":"is no longer available, a claim for its return is analogous to","paragraph_id":"para_837"},{"text":"any Rule 41(g) claim for the return of tangible property that","paragraph_id":"para_838"},{"text":"is no longer at hand: such claims are jurisdictionally barred","paragraph_id":"para_839"},{"text":"by the principle of sovereign immunity.” Id. at 613. Rule","paragraph_id":"para_840"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 27","paragraph_id":"para_841"},{"text":"41(g) does not unequivocally express the government’s","paragraph_id":"para_842"},{"text":"willingness to be sued for replacement funds. So if no clear","paragraph_id":"para_843"},{"text":"waiver of sovereign immunity exists under Rule 41(g) for","paragraph_id":"para_844"},{"text":"property generally, then no waiver exists for currency either.","paragraph_id":"para_845"},{"text":"Id. at 612 (“[S]eized currency should be treated like any","paragraph_id":"para_846"},{"text":"other seized property: if the property is no longer available,","paragraph_id":"para_847"},{"text":"sovereign immunity bars the claimant from seeking","paragraph_id":"para_848"},{"text":"compensation.”).","paragraph_id":"para_849"},{"text":"Contrary to the majority, I would join the Second, Fifth,","paragraph_id":"para_850"},{"text":"Seventh, and Tenth Circuits, which have held that the","paragraph_id":"para_851"},{"text":"government has not waived sovereign immunity for claims","paragraph_id":"para_852"},{"text":"for money no longer in the government’s possession. See id.","paragraph_id":"para_853"},{"text":"at 609; Bailey v. United States, 508 F.3d 736, 740 (5th Cir.","paragraph_id":"para_854"},{"text":"2007); Clymore v. United States, 415 F.3d 1113, 1120 (10th","paragraph_id":"para_855"},{"text":"Cir. 2005); Okoro v. Callaghan, 324 F.3d 488, 491 (7th Cir.","paragraph_id":"para_856"},{"text":"2003).1","paragraph_id":"para_857"},{"text":"To support its claim that the government can effectively","paragraph_id":"para_858"},{"text":"“return” Cannon’s money, the majority argues that the","paragraph_id":"para_859"},{"text":"money Agent Bowman is repaying to the United States can","paragraph_id":"para_860"},{"text":"be traced to the proceeds from Cannon’s safe. But there is","paragraph_id":"para_861"},{"text":"no genuine issue of material fact—indeed there is no","paragraph_id":"para_862"},{"text":"evidence in the record—that the government has possession","paragraph_id":"para_863"},{"text":"1 The majority cites the Fourth Circuit’s decision in United States v.","paragraph_id":"para_864"},{"text":"Minor, 228 F.3d 352 (4th Cir. 2000) in contending that Cannon is not","paragraph_id":"para_865"},{"text":"seeking monetary damages. But Minor considered whether the court was","paragraph_id":"para_866"},{"text":"deprived of jurisdiction under the Tucker Act, not whether the","paragraph_id":"para_867"},{"text":"government had waived sovereign immunity under Rule 41(g). See id.","paragraph_id":"para_868"},{"text":"at 355. In concluding that the Tucker Act did not deprive the court of","paragraph_id":"para_869"},{"text":"jurisdiction, Minor held that a claimant’s challenge to the administrative","paragraph_id":"para_870"},{"text":"forfeiture was an action in equity, not law, because the claimant was","paragraph_id":"para_871"},{"text":"seeking restitution, not money damages. See id. This conclusion does","paragraph_id":"para_872"},{"text":"not provide guidance on whether the government waives sovereign","paragraph_id":"para_873"},{"text":"immunity under Rule 41(g) when the property seized is currency and","paragraph_id":"para_874"},{"text":"cannot be returned.","paragraph_id":"para_875"},{"text":"28 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_876"},{"text":"of the $218,200 found in Cannon’s safe and stolen by Agent","paragraph_id":"para_877"},{"text":"Bowman. Rather, the record indicates that Agent Bowman","paragraph_id":"para_878"},{"text":"disbursed the funds he stole through purchases and deposits.","paragraph_id":"para_879"},{"text":"And although Agent Bowman agreed to forfeit $136,462 to","paragraph_id":"para_880"},{"text":"the government under his plea agreement, there is no","paragraph_id":"para_881"},{"text":"evidence that this forfeiture included the same physical","paragraph_id":"para_882"},{"text":"currency he stole from Cannon’s safe.","paragraph_id":"para_883"},{"text":"The majority also argues that an exception to Rule 41(g)","paragraph_id":"para_884"},{"text":"should exist when the government somehow recoups the","paragraph_id":"para_885"},{"text":"“value” of the lost currency, here via Agent Bowman’s plea","paragraph_id":"para_886"},{"text":"agreement. I disagree. To start, no such exception exists in","paragraph_id":"para_887"},{"text":"Rule 41(g)’s text or precedent, and we cannot create one","paragraph_id":"para_888"},{"text":"when Congress has not. As the Supreme Court has long","paragraph_id":"para_889"},{"text":"held, “limitations and conditions upon which the","paragraph_id":"para_890"},{"text":"Government consents to be sued must be strictly observed","paragraph_id":"para_891"},{"text":"and exceptions thereto are not to be implied.” Lehman v.","paragraph_id":"para_892"},{"text":"Nakshian, 453 U.S. 156, 161 (1981) (citation modified).2 A","paragraph_id":"para_893"},{"text":"contrary rule would expose the government to countless","paragraph_id":"para_894"},{"text":"other suits claiming that the government obtained some","paragraph_id":"para_895"},{"text":"“value” purportedly traceable to the seizure of property—","paragraph_id":"para_896"},{"text":"even though the government has not consented to suit for","paragraph_id":"para_897"},{"text":"claims seeking the “value” of seized property, but has only","paragraph_id":"para_898"},{"text":"consented to suit for claims seeking return of the property","paragraph_id":"para_899"},{"text":"itself. See Okoro v. Callaghan, 324 F.3d 488, 490–491 (7th","paragraph_id":"para_900"},{"text":"Cir. 2003) (while usually a “plaintiff is entitled to [] proceeds","paragraph_id":"para_901"},{"text":"in an action for restitution,” such a suit under Rule 41(g) “is","paragraph_id":"para_902"},{"text":"subject to the defense of sovereign immunity when relief","paragraph_id":"para_903"},{"text":"would require disbursement of money from the treasury”).","paragraph_id":"para_904"},{"text":"2 The majority’s reliance on the discussion of the fungibility of money","paragraph_id":"para_905"},{"text":"in Robers v. United States, 572 U.S. 639, 640 (2014), is inapposite","paragraph_id":"para_906"},{"text":"because that case involved an action against a private individual, not the","paragraph_id":"para_907"},{"text":"government.","paragraph_id":"para_908"},{"text":"CANNON V. USA 29","paragraph_id":"para_909"},{"text":"This case demonstrates how problematic it would be to","paragraph_id":"para_910"},{"text":"subject the government to suit under the majority’s theory.","paragraph_id":"para_911"},{"text":"As the majority acknowledges, “[i]t is unclear from the","paragraph_id":"para_912"},{"text":"record what methodology was used to calculate” the","paragraph_id":"para_913"},{"text":"$136,462 money judgment against Agent Bowman. While","paragraph_id":"para_914"},{"text":"the money judgment represents the “proceeds of the offenses","paragraph_id":"para_915"},{"text":"to which [Agent Bowman] entered a guilty plea,” the theft","paragraph_id":"para_916"},{"text":"from Cannon’s safe is not the only offense to which Agent","paragraph_id":"para_917"},{"text":"Bowman pleaded guilty. Indeed, the plea agreement","paragraph_id":"para_918"},{"text":"resolved all the government’s charges against Agent","paragraph_id":"para_919"},{"text":"Bowman, not just those related to Cannon’s safe. The","paragraph_id":"para_920"},{"text":"majority assumes that “$120,880 of the $136,462 judgment","paragraph_id":"para_921"},{"text":"represents the proceeds from Cannon’s safe,” but that","paragraph_id":"para_922"},{"text":"division appears nowhere in the record. Thus, far from","paragraph_id":"para_923"},{"text":"simply ordering the government to facilitate the return of","paragraph_id":"para_924"},{"text":"property, Fed. R. Crim. P. 41(g), the majority would subject","paragraph_id":"para_925"},{"text":"the government to complicated actions that involve fact-","paragraph_id":"para_926"},{"text":"intensive remedial disputes. Rule 41(g) contains no waiver","paragraph_id":"para_927"},{"text":"of sovereign immunity for such involved claims.3","paragraph_id":"para_928"},{"text":"3 And even if we addressed the merits of Cannon’s claim, his lawsuit","paragraph_id":"para_929"},{"text":"would fail because the government has shown that the $218,200 found","paragraph_id":"para_930"},{"text":"in Cannon’s safe was likely the fruit of unlawful drug-dealing. See","paragraph_id":"para_931"},{"text":"United States v. Wright, 49 F.4th 1221, 1226 (9th Cir. 2022) (“[T]he","paragraph_id":"para_932"},{"text":"government may rebut the presumption that the defendant is entitled to","paragraph_id":"para_933"},{"text":"lawful possession of the property.”). The government’s evidence shows","paragraph_id":"para_934"},{"text":"that Cannon was actively engaged in a drug dealing venture that involved","paragraph_id":"para_935"},{"text":"trafficking cocaine and heroin in the summer of 2014, the same period","paragraph_id":"para_936"},{"text":"in which the money was seized. Cannon did not present enough evidence","paragraph_id":"para_937"},{"text":"to establish a genuine issue of material fact as to his lawful possession","paragraph_id":"para_938"},{"text":"of the $218,200. For example, Cannon claimed that he earned $158,600","paragraph_id":"para_939"},{"text":"(presumably post-tax) through his work as a personal trainer during this","paragraph_id":"para_940"},{"text":"time period, even though that job paid him only $16 per hour at","paragraph_id":"para_941"},{"text":"FITWORKS.","paragraph_id":"para_942"},{"text":"30 CANNON V. USA","paragraph_id":"para_943"},{"text":"* * * *","paragraph_id":"para_944"},{"text":"Rule 41(g) provides a limited waiver of sovereign","paragraph_id":"para_945"},{"text":"immunity: While it may waive sovereign immunity for","paragraph_id":"para_946"},{"text":"actions seeking property that the government holds and can","paragraph_id":"para_947"},{"text":"return, it does not waive sovereign immunity for actions","paragraph_id":"para_948"},{"text":"seeking property that the government does not hold and","paragraph_id":"para_949"},{"text":"cannot return. Because Cannon seeks property not in the","paragraph_id":"para_950"},{"text":"government’s possession, the government cannot return it to","paragraph_id":"para_951"},{"text":"Cannon and Rule 41(g)’s waiver of sovereign immunity does","paragraph_id":"para_952"},{"text":"not apply. 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