IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF ALABAMA

SOUTHERN DIVISION

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA )

 )

 v. ) CR. NO. 1:06cr197-MEF

)

RODERICK CHARLES MELVIN )

UNITED STATES’ PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTIONS

Comes now the United States of America, by and through Leura G. Canary, United States

Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama, and respectfully requests that the following Jury

Instructions be given to the jury in the above-styled case.

Respectfully submitted this the 20th day of November, 2006.

LEURA G. CANARY

UNITED STATES ATTORNEY

s/Tommie Brown Hardwick

TOMMIE BROWN HARDWICK

One Court Square, Suite 201

Montgomery, AL 36104

Phone: (334) 223-7280

Fax: (334) 223-7135

E-mail: tommie.hardwick@usdoj.gov

ASB4152 W86T

Case 1:06-cr-00197-MEF-CSC Document 22 Filed 11/20/2006 Page 1 of 15
IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF ALABAMA

SOUTHERN DIVISION

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA )

 ) 

 v. ) CR. NO. 1:06cr197-MEF

)

RODERICK CHARLES MELVIN ) 

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that on November 20, 2006, I electronically filed the foregoing with the

Clerk of the Court using the CM/ECF system which will send notification of such filing to:

Kevin L. Butler, Esquire.

Respectfully submitted,

s/Tommie Brown Hardwick

TOMMIE BROWN HARDWICK

One Court Square, Suite 201

Montgomery, AL 36104

Phone: (334)223-7280

Fax: (334)223-7135

E-mail: tommie.hardwick@usdoj.gov

ASB4152 W86T

Case 1:06-cr-00197-MEF-CSC Document 22 Filed 11/20/2006 Page 2 of 15
GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 1

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Basic Instruction No. 2.2

DUTY TO FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS

PRESUMPTION OF INNOCENCE

(WHEN ANY DEFENDANT DOES NOT TESTIFY)

You must make your decision only on the basis of the testimony and other evidence presented

here during the trial; and you must not be influenced in any way by either sympathy or prejudice for

or against the Defendant or the Government. 

You must also follow the law as I explain it to you whether you agree with that law or not;

and you must follow all of my instructions as a whole. You may not single out, or disregard, any of

the Court’s instructions on the law. 

The indictment or formal charge against any Defendant is not evidence of guilt. Indeed, the

Defendant is presumed by the law to be innocent. The law does not require a Defendant to prove

his innocence or produce any evidence at all. The Government has the burden of proving a

Defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, and if it fails to do so you must find the Defendant not

guilty.

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GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 2

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Basic Instruction No. 3

DEFINITION OF REASONABLE DOUBT

Thus, while the Government’s burden of proof is a strict or heavy burden, it is not necessary

that the Defendant’s guilt be proved beyond all possible doubt. It is only required that the

Government’s proof exclude any “reasonable doubt” concerning the Defendant’s guilt. 

A “reasonable doubt” is a real doubt, based upon reason and common sense after careful and

impartial consideration of all the evidence in the case. 

Proof beyond a reasonable doubt, therefore, is proof of such a convincing character that you

would be willing to rely and act upon it without hesitation in the most important of your own affairs.

If you are convinced that the Defendant has been proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, say so.

If you are not convinced, say so.

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GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 3

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Basic Instruction No. 4.2

CONSIDERATION OF THE EVIDENCE, DIRECT AND CIRCUMSTANTIAL –

ARGUMENT OF COUNSEL AND COMMENTS BY THE COURT

As I said earlier, you must consider only the evidence that I have admitted in the case. The

term “evidence” includes the testimony of the witnesses and the exhibits admitted in the record.

Remember that anything the lawyers say is not evidence in the case. It is your own recollection and

interpretation of the evidence that controls. What the lawyers say is not binding upon you. Also,

you should not assume from anything I may have said that I have any opinion concerning any of the

issues in this case. Except for my instructions to you on the law, you should disregard anything I

may have said during the trial in arriving at your own decision concerning the facts.

In considering the evidence you may make deductions and reach conclusions which reason

and common sense lead you to make; and you should not be concerned about whether the evidence

is direct or circumstantial. “Direct evidence” is the testimony of one who asserts actual knowledge

of a fact, such as an eye witness. “Circumstantial evidence” is proof of a chain of facts and

circumstances tending to prove, or disprove, any fact in dispute. The law makes no distinction

between the weight you may give to either direct or circumstantial evidence.

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GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 4

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Basic Instruction No. 5

CREDIBILITY OF WITNESSES

Now, in saying that you must consider all of the evidence, I do not mean that you must accept

all of the evidence as true or accurate. You should decide whether you believe what each witness

had to say, and how important that testimony was. In making that decision you may believe or

disbelieve any witness, in whole or in part. Also, the number of witnesses testifying concerning any

particular dispute is not controlling.

In deciding whether you believe or do not believe any witness I suggest that you ask yourself

a few questions: Did the witness impress you as one who was telling the truth? Did the witness

have any particular reason not to tell the truth? Did the witness have a personal interest in the

outcome of the case? Did the witness seem to have a good memory? Did the witness have the

opportunity and ability to observe accurately the things he or she testified about? Did the witness

appear to understand the questions clearly and answer them directly? Did the witness’s testimony

differ from other testimony or other evidence?

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GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 5

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Basic Instruction No. 6.6

IMPEACHMENT AND INCONSISTENT STATEMENT AND FELONY CONVICTION

(DEFENDANT TESTIFIES WITH FELONY CONVICTION)

You should also ask yourself whether there was evidence tending to prove that a witness

testified falsely concerning some important fact; or, whether there was evidence that at some other

time a witness said or did something, or failed to say or do something, which was different from the

testimony the witness gave before you during the trial.

The fact that a witness has been convicted of a felony offense, or a crime involving

dishonesty or false statement, is another factor you may consider in deciding whether you believe

that witness.

You should keep in mind, of course, that a simple mistake by a witness does not necessarily

mean that the witness was not telling the truth as he or she remembers it, because people naturally

tend to forget some things or remember other things inaccurately. So, if a witness has made a

misstatement, you need to consider whether it was simply an innocent lapse of memory or an

intentional falsehood; and the significance of that may depend on whether it has to do with an

important fact or with only an unimportant detail.

A Defendant has a right not to testify. If a Defendant does testify, however, you should

decide in the same way as that of any other witness whether you believe the Defendant’s testimony.

[Evidence of a Defendant’s previous conviction of a crime is to be considered by you only in

deciding whether you believe or disbelieve the Defendant as a witness, and must never be considered

as evidence of guilt of the crime(s)for which the Defendant is on trial.]

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GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 6

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Basic Instruction No. 7

EXPERT WITNESSES

When knowledge of a technical subject matter might be helpful to the jury, a person having

special training or experience in that technical field is permitted to state an opinion concerning those

technical matters.

Merely because such a witness has expressed an opinion, however, does not mean that you

must accept that opinion. The same as with any other witness, it is up to you to decide whether to

rely upon it.

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GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 7

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Special Instruction No. 6

POSSESSION

The law recognizes several kinds of possession. A person may have actual possession or

constructive possession. A person may also have sole possession or joint possession.

A person who knowingly has direct physical control of something is then in actual possession

of it.

A person who is not in actual possession, but who has both the power and the intention to

later take control over something either alone or together with someone else, is in constructive

possession of it.

If one person alone has possession of something, that possession is sole. If two or more

persons share possession, such possession is joint.

Whenever the word “possession” has been used in these instructions it includes constructive

as well as actual possession, and also joint as well as sole possession.

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GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 8

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Offense Instruction No. 30.6

POSSESSION OF FIREARM BY A CONVICTED FELON

18 U.S.C. § 922(g)

Title 18, United States Code, Section 922(g), makes it a Federal crime or offense for anyone

who has been convicted of a felony offense to possess any firearm in or affecting interstate

commerce.

The Defendant can be found guilty of that offense only if all of the following facts are proved

beyond a reasonable doubt.

First: That the Defendant knowingly possessed a firearm in or affecting interstate

commerce as charged; and 

Second: That before the Defendant possessed the firearm the Defendant had been convicted

in a court of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term in excess of one year,

that is, a felony offense.

The term “firearm” means any weapon which is designed to, or may readily be converted to,

expel a projectile by the action of an explosive; and the term includes the frame or receiver of any

such weapon, or any firearm muffler or firearm silencer.

The term “interstate commerce” includes the movement of a firearm between any place in

one state and any place in another state. It is not necessary for the government to prove that the

defendant knew that the firearm had moved in interstate commerce before the defendant possessed

it, only that it had made such movement.

 

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GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 9

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Special Instruction No. 4

SIMILAR ACTS EVIDENCE

(Rule 404(b), FRE)

During the course of the trial, as you know from the instructions I gave you then, you

heard evidence of acts of the Defendant which may be similar to those charged in the indictment,

but which were committed on other occasions. You must not consider any of this evidence in

deciding if the Defendant committed the acts charged in the indictment. However, you may

consider this evidence for other, very limited, purposes.

If you find beyond a reasonable doubt from other evidence in this case that the Defendant

did commit the acts charged in the indictment, then you may consider evidence of the similar acts

allegedly committed on other occasions to determine whether the Defendant had the state of

mind or intent necessary to commit the crime charged in the indictment.

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GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 10

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Basic Instruction No. 9.2

ON OR ABOUT – KNOWINGLY (ONLY)

(WHEN WILLFULNESS OR SPECIFIC INTENT IS NOT AN ELEMENT)

You will note that the indictment charges that the offense was committed “on or about” a

certain date. The Government does not have to prove with certainty the exact date of the alleged

offense. It is sufficient if the Government proves beyond a reasonable doubt that the offense was

committed on a date reasonably near the date alleged.

The word “knowingly,” as that term is used in the indictment or in these instructions, means

that the act was done voluntarily and intentionally and not because of mistake or accident.

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GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 11

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Basic Instruction No. 10.

Caution – - Punishment

(Single Defendant – Single Count)

I caution you, members of the Jury, that you are here to determine from the evidence in

this case whether the Defendant is guilty or not guilty. The Defendant is on trial only for the

specific offense alleged in the indictment.

Also, the question of punishment should never be considered by the jury in any way in

deciding this case. If the Defendant is convicted the matter of punishment is for the Judge alone to

determine later.

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GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 12

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Basic Instruction No. 11

DUTY TO DELIBERATE

Any verdict you reach in the jury room, whether guilty or not guilty, must be unanimous. In

other words, to return a verdict you must all agree. Your deliberations will be secret; you will never

have to explain your verdict to anyone.

It is your duty as jurors to discuss the case with one another in an effort to reach agreement

if you can do so. Each of you must decide the case for yourself, but only after full consideration of

the evidence with the other members of the jury. While you are discussing the case do not hesitate

to reexamine your own opinion and change your mind if you become convinced that you were

wrong. But do not give up your honest beliefs solely because the others think differently or merely

to get the case over with.

Remember, that in a very real way you are judges – judges of the facts. Your only interest

is to seek the truth from the evidence in the case.

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GOVERNMENT’S PROPOSED JURY INSTRUCTION NO. 13

Eleventh Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions, Criminal

Basic Instruction No. 12

VERDICT

When you go to the jury room you should first select one of your members to act as your

foreperson. The foreperson will preside over your deliberations and will speak for you here in court.

A form of verdict has been prepared for your convenience.

[Explain verdict]

You will take the verdict form to the jury room and when you have reached unanimous

agreement you will have your foreperson fill in the verdict form, date and sign it, and then return to

the courtroom.

If you should desire to communicate with me at any time, please write down your message

or question and pass the note to the marshal who will bring it to my attention. I will then respond

as promptly as possible, either in writing or by having you returned to the courtroom so that I can

address you orally. I caution you, however, with regard to any message or question you might send,

that you should not tell me your numerical division at the time.

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