Pursuant to 5 T H C IR . R. 47.5, the court has determined that thi s opinion should not * be publishe d and is not precedent except under the limited circu mstance s set forth in 5 T H C IR . R. 47.5 .4. 

### INTHE UNI TED S TATESCOU RT OFAPPEALS

FORTHEFIFTH CIRCU IT

N o. 07- 41025 Su m m ar y Cal endar

UN I TE D S TA TE S OF AM ERI CA P l ai n t i f f

- A pp el l ee v. CA RL O S TH O M AS FL O RE S D efen d a n t- A p p ell a n t

A pp ealf

rom t h e U n i t ed S t ates D i st ri ctC ou rt f or th e Sou t h ern D i st ri ctof T exas U S D C N o . 5 :07 -C R -6 1 9 -1

B ef ore JO L LY , B E N AV ID E S , an d H AY N E S , C i rcui tJu dg es . P E R C U R IA M: * A pp el l an tC arl os Th om as F l ores cha l l en ges t h e suff i ci en cy of t h e evi den ce su p p o rti n g h i s con victi on f or co n sp i ra cyto po sse ss coca i n e w i th i n ten t t o d istr ib u te , p o ss e s s io n of co ca in e w ith in te n t to d istr ib u te , a n dp o ss e ss ion of a f i r e a r m i n f

u r t h e r a n c e o f

a dr u gt r a f

f i c k i n gc r i m e . F i n d i n gn o e r r o r , we AF FI RM Fl o r e s ’ s c o nvi c t i o n. United States Court of App eals Fifth Circuit 

### F I L E D Aug ust10, 2009 Cha rl es R. F ulb ru g e II I ClerkN o. 07- 41025

2 I

. Bac kg r o und I n Oct o be r2 00 6, A l i c e Sol i s , an i nve s t i ga t o rw i t h t he Te xa s D e pa r t m e nt
o f F a mi l ya n dP r o t e c t iv e S e rv i c e s (“ CP S ” ) , r e c e iv e di n f o r m a t i o n t h a tt wo in d iv i d u a l s w e r e u s in gco c a in e a t t h e h o m e o f c o -c o n s p ir a to rE d g a rK la d is in Laredo , Texas , endan ger i ng t he w elfar e of theirchi l dre n, an d thatthe hom e w as be i ng us e d f

or d r ug de ali ng. W he n So l i s e nt e r e d t he ho m e t o i nve s t i ga t e t he report , she en coun t ered K l ad i s and observed m a riju an a, pi l l s, an d a scal e. K la d is te s te dp o s iti v e fo rco c a in e u s e . O n D e c e m b e r1 8 , 2 0 0 6 , C P S o ffic ia ls
o bt ai ne d c o ur t ap pr o va l t o r e m o ve t he c hi l dr e n f r o m t hat ho m e . W he n So l i s a nd he ra i de a r r ive d, t he y o bs e rve d s e ve r alv e hi c l e s dr ivi ng up t o t he r e s i de nc e a nd in d iv id u a ls e n te r in gth e h o m e fo rab r ie f tim e . S o m e d r iv e r s re m a in e dinth e ir aut om obil es as K l adi s c am e out si de, l eaned t hro ugh t he vehi c l e w i ndow to br i e f l y i nt e r ac tw i t h t he o c c upa nt s , a nd wentb ack i n t o t he ho us e a bo uto ne
m i n u t e l ater
. H e di d not get i n t o an y of t h e veh i cl es, an d the au t os w ere t h ere on l y a few m i n u t es be for e d rivi n g aw ay. Sol i s es t i m ated t h at s h e saw t en vehi c l es ar r ive w hi l e s he w as w at c hi ng t he house , and eac h re m ai ned abo utf ive
m in u te s . T exas D epa rt m en tof P u bl i c S afet y S ergean tC ornel i o F l ores an d T rooper Ab u n d i o M ed i n aw ere d is p a tc h e d to th e h ou se to a ssist S oli s i n h er effort to
r e m o vet he chil dr e n. As t he of f i c e r s ar r ive d, t he y s aw a p i c kup t r uc k c o nt ai ni ng tw o occ u p a n ts pa rk edi n th e d rive w a y. T h e tru ck ’ s m otor w a s ru n n i n g, an di ts do m e l i ghta nd h e ad l i ght s w e r e o n. So l i s , Se r ge antFl o r e s , a nd Tr o o pe rM e di na
w al ked up t o t he pass enger ’ s si de and Sol i s r ec ogni ze d t he pas se ngeras E dgar K l adi s. T h e d r iver , l at eri dent i f i ed as appell antC ar l os Fl or es , w as hol di ng a
s m a ll p ie c e o f tin fo il a n dtw is te dh is b o d ya n dh u n c h e do v e rth e ce n te rco n s o le
w h ere s i lver a l u m i n u m pap er, suspected coc ai n e, an d a black di gi t alsc al e w ereN o. 07- 41025

Serge antFlore s testified that such a scale is consistent withcoc aine di stribution

. 1 3 i n pl ai n vi ew . Sergean tF l ores i den t i f i ed h i m sel f

as a p ol i ce of

f i cer an d ordered 1 t he o c c upa nt s t o pl ac e t he i rha nds o n t he da s hbo ar d. Kl ad i s c o m pl i e d, b ut Fl o r e s di d no t
. I ns t e ad , he s w e pti t e m s f r o m t he c e nt erc o ns o l e w i t h hi s r i ght handt o w ar d the f

r o nta nd t o w ar d hi m s e l f

. Fl o r e s ’ s r i ghtha nd the n went b e tw e e n h is le g s , a s if h e w a s r e a c h in g fo r a w e a p o n . A g a in o r d e r e dto p la c e h is hand s o n t he da s hbo ar d, Fl o r e s s l o w l y r e ac he d f o rt he s t e e r i n g w he e l , put t i ng h i s l ef tha n d on t op. Final l y, T rooper M edi n a open ed t h e door an d p u l l ed F l ores f r o m t h e t r u c k , a t wh i c h t i m e t h e o f f i c e r s h e a r d a t h u m p i n t h e v i c i n i t yo f t he dr ive r ’ s s i de f

l o o rbo ar d. S ergeantFl o r e s a nd Tr o o pe rM e di na l at e rf o und a l o ad e d . 40 ca l ibe rf

ir e ar m , w i t h a ro und o f am m uni t i o n i n t he cha m be r , o n t he driver’ s s i de f

l oorboard. Th e f

i rearm w as operable an d had been report ed st ol en in G r a n ts P a s s , O r e g o n . D ur i ng a s e a r c h o f

t h e t r u c k , t h e o f

f i c e r s f o u n dt h e f

o i la n ds o m e o f

t he
w h i te su b stan ce l od ge d b etw ee n th e cen ter of th e con sole a n d th e d rive r’ s sea t. T h ere w ere al so c h u n ks of t h e sa m e s u b st an ce, w h i ch l atert est ed p osi t ive f or c oc ai ne, on the dr iver ’ s si de f l oo rboar d. T he coc ai ne i n t he f r ontof t he t r uck had
an e t w e ig h t o f 2 4 .6 8 g r a m s a n da n a p p r o x im a te v a lu e o f $ 6 1 7
. T h e d ig ita l s c a le hadc o c ai ne r e s i dueo n ita nd was f o und o n t he c e nt e r f

l o o rbo ar d. The l i d o f t he di gi t alsc al e an d f

ive t w en t y dol l ar bi l l s w ere st i l lon the con sol e, an d p i eces of f o i l , c o ns i s t e ntw i t h pa c ka gi ng s m all e rq uant i t i e s o f c o c ai ne f

o rr e di s t r ibut i o n,
w er e i nsi de t he c ons ol e. Fl or es l at er st at ed t o t he of f i c er s t hat t he m oney w as h is

. In th e b a c k s e a to f th e tr u c kw a s ab la c ks p o r ts b a gco n ta in in gap la s tic f reezerbag w i t h i n w h i ch w as a bri ck of com pressed coc ai n e w i t h a net w ei gh tof 1 2 9 g ra m s. The c oc ai ne had an appr oxi m at e w or t h of $3, 225. The s por t s bag al s o co nt ai ne d a pl as t i csho ppi ng ba g w i t h l ive a nd s pe nta m m uni t i o n, i nc l udi ng

. 40 cal iber bu l l et s. I n t h e t ruck’ s bed, t h e of f i cers f ou n d a sad dl e, a l ari at r ope,N o. 07- 41025

4 a s addl e b l anket , a w el der ’ s hel m et , and w el di ng t oo l s. Test i m ony i ndi c at ed t hat t he t r uc k was re gi s t e r e d t o F l o r e s ’ s fat he r , t hatFl o r e s ha d b e e n as t ude nti n a
w el di ng c l as s i n t he fal lof 2006, an d thatF l or es had appr oac hed an i ndivi dual i n 200 4 t o l earn t h e basi cs of ropi n g. T h e contents of t h e t ruck b e d w e re later
r e le a s e dto F lo r e s ’s fa t h e r . A n o t h e rs c a le w a s r e c o v e r e din as e a r c h o f K la d is ’s h o m e , b u t t h e o ffic e r s fo u n dn o a d d itio n a l d r u g s o rw e a p o n s . Am o ng o t he r t hi ngs , e xp e r tw i t ne s s e s t e s t i f i e d t hatt he f

o r m o f t he c o c ai ne fou n don the con sole an dthe dr ive r’ s si d e fl oo rb oa rdw a s in con sist en t w i th pe r s o nalus e , a nd the f o r m and qua nt i t y o f t he c o m pr e s s e d br i c k o f c o c ai ne i n t he sp orts b a g w a s n ot c on sist en t w i th s a l e to a n en d -use r. T h e coc a i n e in th e sp orts bagha d n otbeen m i xe d w ith a n ya du l t eran t , an d w as i n a com pressed f orm com m on l y u sed f

or s h i pp i n g l arge qu an t i t i es of coc ai n e. A n expert al so t est i f i ed aboutt he c onnec t i on be t w ee n f i r ear m s and narc ot i c s t r af f i c k i n g; t hati s, t hat f i rearm s are u sed i n f

u rt h eran ce of

drugt raf

f i cki n g t o prot ectcoc ai n e, safegu ard
an i n divi du alf

rom ot h er t raf

f i ckers, f

or personalsafet y, a n d p ossibl y f or pro t e c t i o n f

r o m l a w e nf

o r c e m e nt
. Fl o r e s was c o nv i c t e d o f a l l t hr e e c ount s at t ri alan d sub sequ en t l y sentenced to c on current t erm s of t w en t y- seven m on t h s’ i m pri sonm en tf

or th e na rcot i cs of

fen ses, consecutive t o a sixty- m on t h sentence f o rt he f i r e ar m s v i o l at i o n. O n app eal , F l ores contend s t h at t h e evi den ce w as i n suff i ci en tt o est abli sh hi s gui l tf

ort he t hre e of

fens es charg ed. H e i nst ead ur ges t hatt he c i r c um st ant i al evi den ce gives equ alsup port t o a theory that F l ores w as si m pl y a pu rchaser of cocai n e f

rom K l ad i s and t h eref ore ca n n o t be convic t ed of t h e conspi racy or subs t ant ive di st r ibut i on c ount
. I n addi t i on, Fl or es ar gues t hat t he e vi denc e w as in s u ffic ie n t t o e s ta b lis h th a t a n yp u r p o r t e d p o s s e s s io n o f th e fir e a r m w a s in fu r th e r a n c e o f ad r u gtr a ffic k in gcr im e .N o. 07- 41025

5 II

. S t an da rd of

R evi ew B ecau se t h e app el l an trai sed h i s s u f f i ci en cy cl ai m s i n a t i m el y m ot i on unde rRul e 2 9 o f

Fe de r alRul e s o f

Cr i m i nalPr o c e dur e , t hi s Cour trevi ew s d e no vo“ w h et he rt he e vi de nc e , w he n r e vi e w e d i n t he l i ghtm o s tfav o r ab l e t o t he g o v e r n m e n t w ith a ll re a s o n a b le in fe r e n c e s a n dcr e d ib ilit ych o ic e s m a d e in
s upp o r to f

ac o nvi c t i o n, a l l o w s ar at i o nalfac tf i nde rt o f

i nd e ve r y e l e m e nto f

t he offen se b ey on da re a son a b l e d ou b t. ” Un itedS ta tes v. Ha rr is , 293 F. 3d 863, 869 (5 t h C i r . 2002) ( quot i ng Un i t ed S t ate s v. A si bor , 1 09 F. 3d1 02 3, 1 03 0 ( 5t h C i r. 1 9 9 7 )); see als o Un i t ed S t ate s v. I zydore , 1 6 7 F .3 d2 1 3 , 2 1 9 ( 5 th C ir . 1 9 9 9 ). T h is
r e v ie w is h ig h lyd e fe r e n tia l to t h e v e r d ic t. Ha rr is , 2 93 F. 3da t8 69
. “The
e v id e n c e n e e dn o t e x c lu d e e v e r yre a s o n a b le h y p o th e s is o f in n o c e n c e o rb e w h o lly i n con sist en t w i th ev erycon cl u sionex cep t t h a t of gu i l t, an dthe j u ryi s f ree to ch oo s e a m on g re a son a b l e con stru cti on s of th e ev i d en ce.” Uni t e d S t at e s v. Mo r e no , 1 8 5 F .3 d4 6 5 , 4 7 1 (5 th C ir . 1 9 9 9 ). II I. A n al ysi s A

. N arcot i cs O f

fen ses To e s t ab l i s h ac o ns pir ac y t o po s s e s s c o c ai ne w i t h i nt e nt t o di s t r ibut e , t he go ver nm e ntm us tpr o ve( 1) t he e xi s t e nc e o f a n a gr e e m e ntt o po s s e s s a nd d is t r ib u t e c o c a in e ; (2 ) F lo r e s ’s k n o w le d g e o f t h a ta g r e e m e n t ; a n d(3 ) F lo r e s ’s
v o lu n ta r yp a r tic ip a tio n inth e co n s p ir a c y . Un i t ed S t ate s v. Mart i n ez , 975 F. 2d 159 , 161 ( 5th C i r. 199 2 ). A n express agreem en ti s not requ i red, an d each
e l e m e n to f th e cr im e m a yb e e s ta b lis h e db ycir c u m s ta n tia l e v id e n c e . Un i t ed S ta tes v . Infa n te , 404 F. 3d 376, 385 ( 5t h C i r . 2005)

. H ow ever, t h e m ere presence o f ad e fe n d a n t is in s u ffic ie n t t o s u p p o r t a co n s p ir a c yco n v ic tio n . Un i t ed S t ate s v . Paul , 142 F

. 3d836 , 8 4 0 (5 th C i r. 199 8)

. E vi den ce of a bu yer- sel l er
r e la tio n s h ip ca n n o t , a lo n e , e s ta b lis h aco n s p ir a c y . Un itedS ta tes v. Ma ta , 491 F .3 d2 3 7 , 2 4 1 (5 th C ir . 2 0 0 7 ).N o. 07- 41025

6 Pos s e s s i o n o f

c o c ai ne w i t h i nt e ntt o di s t r ibut e req ui r e s pr o o f b e yo nd a
rea son a b l e d ou b t th a t F l ore s k n ow i n gly p oss ess ed a con troll ed s u b stan ce w i th th e in te n t t o d is tr ib u te it. Se e Uni t e d St at e s v . Pat i no - Pr ado , 533 F. 3d 304, 309 (5 th C ir .), cer t
. den i ed , 1 29 S. Ct

. 3 28 ( 20 08 )

. “To be g ui l t y o f a i di ng anda be t t i ng possessi on of

drug s w i t h i n t en tt o di st ribu t e, [t h e] defen da n tm u stha ve aid ed
a n da b e tt e db o th th e p o s s e s s io n o f th e d r u ga n dth e in te n t t o d i s t r ib u te it.” Un i t e dS t a t e s v . Wi l l i a ms , 98 5 F

. 2 d74 9 , 7 5 3 ( 5 th C i r. 19 9 3 ). “ [T ]he i n ten t t o di s t r ibut e m aybe i nfe r r e d f r o m t he quant i t y andquali t y o f t he co c ai ne . . . a nd f rom possess i on of

a sc al e of

a ty p e c o m m on l y u sed i n t h e di st ribu t i on of
n a rcotics. ” Uni t e d St at e s v . Pr i e t o - Te j as , 7 7 9 F .2 d1 0 9 8 , 1 1 0 3 (5 th C ir . 1 9 8 6 ). Th e e vi dence eli c i t ed att r i alw as c l earl y s uf f i c i entt o pe r m i ta r at i onal t r i e ro f fac tt o f

i nd the e s s e nt i ale l e m e nt s o f t he na r c o t i c s of

fen ses beyond a reasona bl e dou bt. Ac c o r ding t otheg o ve r nm e ntw it nesses , F l ores w as di scovered i n t h e driver’ s s eat of a ru n n i n g veh i cl e i n cl ose proxi m i t y t o al m ostan oun ce of
c o c ai ne , f

o i l , s c al e s , a nd c as h. The t r uc k was r e gi s t e r e d t o Fl o r e s ’ s fat he ra nd
c ont ai ned i t em s con sis t entw i t h F l or es ’ s dom i ni on and c ont r ol

. Fl or es w as observed cond u ct i n g a n arcot i cs t ran sa ctio n w i t h K l ad i s, an d a n u m ber of
w i t n esses st ated tha ttheysaw F l ores h an dl i n g a l arge chu n k of coc ai n e as t h ey ap proach e d. The c o c ai ne ap pe ar e d t o hav e be e n br o ke n o f f a ki l o br i c k of
coca i n e. K l a d i s h a dpr ev i ou sly be en f ou n di n a h om e w i th sca l es co n sist en t w i th
c o c ai ne di s t r ibuti o n, a nd So l i s o bs e rve d Kl ad i s c o nduc ta ppr o xi m at e l y t e n ha ndt o- hand drug tr ansac t i ons earli erthatev eni ng. The of f i c er s f ound no addi t i onal
n arcot i cs i n hi s hom e. As the o f

f i c e r s i de nt i f

i e d t he m s e lve s , Fl o r e s at t e m pt e d t o c o nc e al t he dr ug ev i denc e. W hen t he o f f i c er s se ar c hed t he t r uck, t hey f ound a s por t s bag
c ont ai ni ng a br i c k of c om pre ss ed c oc ai ne i n t he bac k s eat
. The c oc ai ne w as pa ckag ed i n a m a n n e r and w as i n an am ou n tconsi st en tw i t h di st ribu t i on or t r af f i c ki ng r at he rt han pe r s o nalus e . I tha d no tb e e n m i xe d wi t h a ny ad ul t e r antN o. 07- 41025

At trial, Flore s al so suggested thatthe evi dencesupported a conclusion that Kla dis 2 got in the car so that Flores coul d give him a ride to get awayfrom Soli s. Under the facts of this c a s e , thi s c o nclu s io n i s not “e qu ally s up p ort e d , ” thu s we ne e d not re ach th e qu e stionof whether this theory, if true, would support reversal

. 7 f or r esal e. Th ere w as a l so a bag of am m u n i t i on i n t h e sport s bag that i n cl u ded bull e t s o f

t he s am e c alibe ra s t he f i r e ar m f

o und ne arFl or e s . Of c o ur s e , t he pr e s e nc e o f

af i r e ar m o n o rne arFl o r e s i s a l s o c o ns i s t e ntw i t h hi s kno w i ng p a r tic ip a tio n inth e n a r c o tic s o ffe n s e s . S ee, e. g. , Un i t ed S t ate s v. Mart i n ez , 808 F

. 2d 105 0, 105 7 ( 5th C i r. 198 7) (f i rearm s are “t ool s of t h e t rade” of t h ose enga ged in ille g a l d r u ga c tiv itie s ). F lo r e s s u g g e s ts th a t t h e e v id e n c e is “e q u a llyco n s is te n t” w ith as im p le b u y e r - s e l l e rr e l a t i o n s h i p w h e r e h e w a s p u r c h a s i n gc o c a i n e f r o m K l a d i s . H e 2 argu es t h at th e prosecuti on im perm i ssibl y st run g t ogether i n ferences t o reach
a n i m p r o b a b l e c o nc l us i o n, c i t i ng Un i t ed S t ate s v. R oj as A l varez , 451 F. 3d 320, 3 2 6 (5 th C ir . 2 0 0 6 ). H o w e v e r , t h e tr ia l e v id e n c e d o e s n o t g iv e e q u a l o rn e a r ly
e q u a l s u p p o r tto th is t h e o r yo f in n o c e n c e . K la d is h a dn o te n t e r e da n y o n e e ls e ’s
c a rth a t n ig h t d e s p ite m a k in gs e v e r a l s a le tr a n s a c tio n s inh is d r iv e w a y . A
se ar c h of

K l adi s, t he ar ea i n t he t r uck ar ound hi m , and t he hous e w her e he w as st aying reveal ed n o gu n t o w h i ch the am m u n i t i on i n t h e sport s bag bel on gednor a n ya d d itio n a l co c a in e . F u r th e r , it is n o t eq u a lly p la u s ib le to th in kK la d is w o u ld p u t h is e n tir e co c a in e s ta s h inth e b a c ks e a t o f s o m e o n e e l s e ’s c a ro u t o f h is
r eac h, nort hathe w oul d choos e t o co ndu c ta drug t r ansac t i on i n t he r unn i ng c ar bef or e b ei ng dr iven aw ay f r om t he hom e. I ti s al sonot eq u al l y pl ausibl e that F l ores, as a drugpu rchaser, w ou l d be arm ed, w h i l e K l ad is, a s a drugdealer
c a r r y in gas ig n ific a n t a m o u n t o f c o c a in e , w o u ldb e u n a r m e d

. T h e di rect an d ci rcum st an t i alevi den ce presented att ri al , w h en revi ew ed i n the li gh t m ost fav ora b l e to th e j u ry ’ s ve rd i ct, p erm i ts a ra ti on a lfac t fi n d er toN o. 07- 41025

8 f i nd eve r y e l em entof

t he dr ug of

fens es beyo nd a r eas onabl e doubt

. A c c or di ngl y, it w a s s u ffic ie n t t o s u p p o r t h is co n v ic tio n fo rb o th n a r c o tic s cr im e s . B

. F i rearm s O f

fen se To e s t abl i s h po s s e s s i o n o f af i r e ar m i n f

ur t he r anc e o f

adr ug t r af

f i c ki ng o ffe n s e , th e g o v e r n m e n t w a s re q u ir e dto s h o w th a t F lo r e s (1 ) k n o w in g ly possessed a f

i rearm ; an d ( 2) t h at h i s possessi on f u rt h ered, adv an ced, or h el ped fo r w a r dad r u gtr a ffic k in go ffe n s e . S ee Un i t ed S t ate s v. Ceballos- T orre s , 218 F

. 3d409 , 414

- 15 (5t h C i r. ) , am en ded on other groun ds, 226 F

. 3d6 5 1 ( 5th C i r. 20 00 )

. Thi s Cour tha s e xp l ai ne d: S om e fa c t or s t hatw oul d hel p det er m i ne w het hera par t i c ul ar de fe nda nt ’ s po s s e s s i o n f ur t he r s , ad va nc e s , o r he l ps f o r w ar d adr ug tr a ffic k in go ffe n s e m ig h t in c lu d e : th e ty p e o f d r u ga c tiv ityth a t is be i ng c o nduc t e d, a c c e s s ibil i t y o f t he f i r e ar m , t he t yp e o f

t he w e ap o n, w h et h ert he w e ap o n i s s t o l e n, t he s t at us o f t he po s s e s s i on (l egit i m at e o ril l egal) , w het her t he gun i s l oade d, pr oxi m i t y t o dr ugs o rdr ug pr o f

i t s , a nd the t i m e a nd c i r c um s t anc e s u n der w hi c h t he guni s f o und. Id

. H ere, t h e evi d e n ce w a s su f f i ci en tf or a r ati on alfact f

i n der t o f

i n d every
e l e m e nt o f t he f

i r e ar m s o f

fe ns e be yo nd a r e as o nab l e do ubt

. Th e gover nm e nt el i cit ed tes t i m on y t h at Fl ores w as en gag ed i n a ha n d-t o- h an d d rug transacti on
w i t h af i r e ar m r e ad i l y ac c e s s ibl e . Fl o r e s a ppe ar e d t o b e r e ac hi ng f o rt he g un
w h en the off

i cers ap p roa ch edh i m , an dthe cl ose pr ox i m i ty of t h e g u n su gg ests hi s i nt entt o e xer c i sedom i ni on a n d cont r olov eri t
. The s t ol en handgun w as l oade d, w i t h ar o und i n t he c ham be r , a nd was r e ad i l y av ail ab l e t o pr o t e c tt he
s i gnif i c anta m o unto f

c o c ai ne i n Fl o r e s ’ s truck. Addit i o nala m m uni t i o n, i nc l udi ng t hatm at c hi ng t he c alibe ro f t he ha ndg un, w as f o und ne arby

. The fir e a r m w a s o p e r a b le , a n dw a s n o t a n a n tiq u e o rs u ita b le fo rh u n tin g .N o. 07- 41025

Aninve stigatortestified that there were “no usab le prints” onthe gun. 3 9 F lo r e s p o in t s t o th e a b s e n c e o f fin g e r p r in t e v id e n c e o rte s tim o n yo f h is 3 di r ec t physi c al c ont r ol ove rt he f i r ear m . H ow eve r , pos se ss i on o f c ont r aband m ay b e a ctu a lor con stru ctiv e , a n dsu ch po sse ssion m a y b e p rov en w i th
c ir c u m s ta n tia l e v id e n c e . Se e, e . g. , Uni t e d St at e s v . McKnight , 953 F. 2d 898, 901- 0 2 (5 th C ir . 1 9 9 2 ). H e r e , ara tio n a l ju r o r c o u ldco n c lu d e th a t F lo r e s k n o w in g ly p o s s e s s e dth e .4 0 ca lib e rh a n d g u n fo u n d o n th e d r iv e r ’ s s id e flo o rb o a r do f h is t r uc k, a nd thats uc h po s s e s s i o n f ur t he r e d hi s dr ug t r af f i c ki ng c r i m e . The evi denc e, vi ew ed i n a l i ght m os t favor abl e t o t he go ver nm ent , es t abl i she d t hat t he l oad e d g un was a va i l ab l e t o pr o t e c tFl o r e s dur i ng t he ha nd- t o - hand t r ans ac t i o n a nd s af

e gua r d the t ho us and s o f do l l ar s o f

c o c ai ne f

o und i n hi s t r uc k. Acc o r di ngly, t he e vi de nc e w as s uf f i c i e ntf o rc o nvi c t i o n. II I. C on cl u si on Bec aus e ar at i o nalj ur o rc o u l d h ave f o und alle s s e nt i ale l e m e nt s o f t he t h r e e c r i me s , t h e e v i d e n c e wa s s u f f i c i e n tf o rF l o r e s ’ s c o n v i c t i o n . A c c o r d i n g l y , we A F F I R M.