United States v. Martin

United States v. Martin

Opinion

 [*6]  TORRUELLA, Chief Judge. On September 16, 1998, a grand jury returned a indictment charging Dr. Stephen R. Martin and Caryn L. Camp with ten counts of wire fraud, two counts of mail fraud, one count of conspiracy to steal trade secrets, one count of conspiracy to transport stolen goods, and one count of interstate transportation of stolen goods. Camp agreed to testify against Martin as part of a plea agreement. Martin proceeded to trial, where a jury found him not guilty on six counts of wire fraud (counts 1-6) and of interstate transportation of stolen goods (count 15). The jury found Martin guilty on [**2]  the remaining counts of wire fraud (counts 7-10), mail fraud (counts 11-12), conspiracy to steal trade secrets (count 13), and conspiracy to transport stolen property in interstate commerce (count 14). This appeal, challenging the sufficiency of the evidence for conviction, followed.

For the reasons stated below, we affirm.

BACKGROUND

This case arises out of an electronic mail "pen-pal" relationship between a dissatisfied Maine chemist, Caryn Camp, and a California scientist, Dr. Stephen Martin.

I. Events Prior to May 1, 1998

A. Camp's Employment at IDEXX

Camp first began work at IDEXX, Inc. ("IDEXX"), a manufacturer of veterinary products headquartered in Portland, Maine, in May of 1995. Camp's responsibilities as an IDEXX chemist included mixing chemicals for diagnostic test kits for both pets and livestock. At the time of her employment, she signed non-disclosure and non-competition agreements, promising in part not to "disclose to others, or use for [her] own benefit or the benefit of others, any of the Developments or any confidential, proprietary or secret information owned, possessed or used by [IDEXX] or its customers or contractors." The proprietary [**3]  information included, but was not limited to, "trade secrets, processes, data, know-how, marketing plans, forecasts, unpublished financial statements, budgets, licenses, prices, costs, and employee, customer and supplier lists." Camp also signed the IDEXX policy on ethics and business conduct, which prohibited employees from revealing "proprietary knowledge or data" without prior authorization.

B. Martin's Communication with IDEXX

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