United States v. Bowser
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
532 F.2d 1318 (1976)
Curtis Bowser (defendant) drove the getaway car while co-conspirator Farrelly entered a bank and handed teller Held (also a co-conspirator) a note demanding money under threat of violence, after which Held handed over roughly $5,000 and waited briefly before reporting a robbery to her supervisor; all three were charged with bank-related offenses, with Held and Farrelly pleading guilty and Bowser proceeding to trial and being convicted on all counts. Bowser appealed, arguing he was improperly charged with larceny rather than embezzlement, since Held, as a bank employee, had lawful possession of the money.
Whether a staged bank robbery, involving a willingly complicit bank teller who hands money to an unauthorized co-conspirator, constitutes larceny or embezzlement.