David Kay (defendant) was an American citizen and a vice president for marketing of American Rice, Inc. (ARI), who was responsible for supervising sales and marketing in the Republic of Haiti. Douglas Murphy (defendant) was an American citizen and president of ARI.

Congressional intent is a guiding principle of judicial interpretation. Here the court is asked to make a judgment about the scope of legislation. It answers that question by examining the purpose of the law and the applicability of that purpose to the facts of this case.
1. What is the difference between bribery and "innocuous grease payments"?
Clue: For a payment to be innocuous, what effects would it have had to avoid?
2. What ethical norm is advanced by enforcing the statute in this case?
Clue: How is fairness affected by permitting a firm to escape some of its tax liability?