Source: https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/978/537/183684/
Timestamp: 2019-03-21 03:24:40
Document Index: 680572317

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 922', '§ 924', '§ 4', '§ 4', '§ 924', '§ 924', '§ 4']

United States of America, Plaintiff-appellee, v. Fredrick Garcia-cruz, Defendant-appellant, 978 F.2d 537 (9th Cir. 1992) :: Justia
Justia › US Law › Case Law › Federal Courts › Courts of Appeals › Ninth Circuit › 1992 › United States of America, Plaintiff-appellee, v. Fredrick Garcia-cruz, Defendant-appellant
United States of America, Plaintiff-appellee, v. Fredrick Garcia-cruz, Defendant-appellant, 978 F.2d 537 (9th Cir. 1992)
US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit - 978 F.2d 537 (9th Cir. 1992)
On September 26, 1990, the Grand Jury for the Southern District of California returned a one-count indictment against Cruz, charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g) (1). The indictment also informed Cruz of the government's intention to seek sentencing enhancement under the Armed Career Criminal Act, 18 U.S.C. § 924(e) (1). Cruz had been convicted twice previously of assault with a deadly weapon and once of being a felon in possession of a concealable firearm.
"A proposed instruction regarding the [defendant's] theory of the case should be given if there is foundation for it in the evidence and it is supported by the law." United States v. Tabacca, 924 F.2d 906, 912 (9th Cir. 1991) (citing United States v. Escobar de Bright, 742 F.2d 1196, 1198 (9th Cir. 1984)).
Constructive possession can be proved even where a defendant never actively "asserts" dominion and control over the contraband. See United States v. Terry, 911 F.2d 272, 279 (9th Cir. 1990). Terry established a relatively passive standard, namely, whether the defendant "exercised" dominion over the contraband or the premises in which it was concealed. See id. at 278 n. 5. In Terry, we explicitly stated that possession could be based merely on "knowledge of the gun's location and [the defendant's] unhindered access to it...." 911 F.2d at 278. Cruz's proposed instruction implied a requirement that the defendant take some affirmative action, perhaps even amounting to a physical touching of the weapon, to establish constructive possession. There is no such requirement.
Cruz's proffered instruction was not supported by law. Further, the instructions given, which included an instruction indicating that mere presence or proximity to a firearm is insufficient, without more, to support a finding of possession, fairly and adequately covered the issues presented. Nothing more was required. See United States v. Powell, 955 F.2d 1206, 1210 (9th Cir. 1992).
Where a defendant makes a substantial preliminary showing that a false statement was (1) deliberately or recklessly included in an affidavit submitted in support of a search warrant, and (2) material to the finding of probable cause for the issuance of that warrant, a district court must hold a hearing to investigate the affiant's veracity. United States v. Motz, 936 F.2d 1021, 1023 (9th Cir. 1991) (applying Franks v. Delaware, 438 U.S. 154, 98 S. Ct. 2674, 57 L. Ed. 2d 667 (1978)). A hearing is also available where essential facts intentionally have been omitted. United States v. Whitworth, 856 F.2d 1268, 1280 (9th Cir. 1988), cert. denied, 489 U.S. 1084, 109 S. Ct. 1541, 103 L. Ed. 2d 846 (1989).
The omissions that Cruz mentions are neither reckless nor intentional. See United States v. Davis, 714 F.2d 896 (9th Cir. 1983) (affiant signed statement in the first person knowing it would mislead the magistrate into believing affiant had firsthand knowledge of the facts therein contained); United States v. Stanert, 762 F.2d 775, 781 (9th Cir.), amended, 769 F.2d 1410 (9th Cir. 1985) (affiant stated that he had investigated a lab blowup at the suspect's house the year before, but recklessly failed to mention the suspect purchased and moved into the residence after the explosion).
The alleged omissions are also immaterial. The pivotal question is whether an affidavit containing the omitted material would have provided a basis for a finding of probable cause. See United States v. Ippolito, 774 F.2d 1482, 1486 n. 1 (9th Cir. 1985); United States v. Martin, 615 F.2d 318, 328 (5th Cir. 1980). Even if the allegedly omitted facts had been inserted, probable cause would have remained.
Cruz further complains that Detective Raybould omitted facts tending to demonstrate that an insufficient nexus existed between the contraband sought and the premises searched. The affidavit contains no direct evidence that contraband would be found in Cruz's residence, but this is not controlling. See United States v. Poland, 659 F.2d 884, 897 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 454 U.S. 1059, 102 S. Ct. 611, 70 L. Ed. 2d 598 (1981). We indulge normal inferences about where criminals would be likely to hide property, taking into account the type of crime, the nature of the contraband, and the opportunity for concealment. Id. "The magistrate need only conclude that it would be reasonable to seek the evidence in the place indicated in the affidavit." United States v. Ocampo, 937 F.2d 485, 490 (9th Cir. 1991) (quoting United States v. Fannin, 817 F.2d 1379, 1382 (9th Cir. 1987)). The district court did not err in failing to hold a Franks hearing.
Cruz assigns error to the district court's holding that the search was a valid parole search. A parole search is proper if conducted in a manner consistent with state law. See United States v. Wryn, 952 F.2d 1122, 1124 (9th Cir. 1991); Latta v. Fitzharris, 521 F.2d 246, 252 (9th Cir.) (en banc), cert. denied, 423 U.S. 897, 96 S. Ct. 200, 46 L. Ed. 2d 130 (1975). Under California law, a parole agent may search the residence of a parolee if he has a reasonable suspicion that the "parolee is again involved in criminal activity, ... and that the search may turn up evidence of that activity...." People v. Burgener, 41 Cal. 3d 505, 224 Cal. Rptr. 112, 132, 714 P.2d 1251, 1271 (1986). The suspicion must "be based on articulable facts which together with rational inferences from those facts warrant objectively reasonable suspicion." Id.
Cruz argues that the district court erroneously admitted statements made by him after he had invoked his right to remain silent. The exercise of the right to remain silent does not necessarily preclude all further questioning. Michigan v. Mosley, 423 U.S. 96, 96 S. Ct. 321, 46 L. Ed. 2d 313 (1975). The question is whether the defendant's right to terminate interrogation is "scrupulously honored." Id. at 104, 96 S. Ct. at 326. A suspect may waive his right to remain silent selectively, waiving it with regard to some, but fewer than all, topics of discussion. United States v. Lopez-Diaz, 630 F.2d 661, 664 n. 2 (9th Cir. 1980) (citing United States v. Lorenzo, 570 F.2d 294, 297-98 (9th Cir. 1978)). A suspect also may revoke selectively a previously effected comprehensive waiver. See Lorenzo, 570 F.2d at 297-98.
Cruz contends that the evidence admitted at trial was insufficient to prove his possession of the firearm found in the home he jointly occupied with his aunt. The question is whether "any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt." United States v. Shirley, 884 F.2d 1130, 1134 (9th Cir. 1989) (quoting Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319, 99 S. Ct. 2781, 2789, 61 L. Ed. 2d 560 (1979)).
In United States v. Terry, 911 F.2d 272, 278 (9th Cir. 1990), we held that knowledge of the location of a weapon, coupled with both the power and the intention to exercise dominion and control over it, suffices to show constructive possession. In Terry, this standard was met by evidence demonstrating that the defendant knew the location of the weapon and had unhindered access to it when the other joint occupant was absent. See id.
In United States v. Sahakian, 965 F.2d 740, 741 (9th Cir. 1992), we held that being a felon in possession of a firearm is not a "crime of violence" for purposes of applying U.S.S.G. § 4B1.2, the Career Offender guideline. Section 4B1.2 defines "crime of violence" in almost precisely the same manner that the Armed Career Criminal Act defines "violent felony."1
In Taylor v. United States, 495 U.S. 575, 600, 110 S. Ct. 2143, 2159, 109 L. Ed. 2d 607 (1990), the Supreme Court mandated a "formal categorical approach," according to which a sentencing court may look only to the fact of conviction and the statutory definition of the prior offense in determining whether it involves a crime of violence. The same approach logically applies here.
Our holding in United States v. O'Neal, 937 F.2d 1369 (9th Cir. 1990), is not to the contrary. O'Neal involved the interpretation of an earlier version of U.S.S.G. § 4B1.2, a version which, in contrast to the present version, emphasized the "nature of the crime charged." See Sahakian, 965 F.2d at 742; see also, United States v. Huffhines, 967 F.2d 314, 315 (9th Cir. 1992) (applying Sahakian) .
The only other circuit to face this issue determined that felon in possession is not a "violent felony" for purposes of § 924(e). See United States v. Doe, 960 F.2d 221 (1st Cir. 1992).3
18 U.S.C. § 924(e) (2) (B) (i) and (ii). The only difference between this definition and that found in U.S.S.G. § 4B1.2 is that the latter specifies "burglary of a dwelling" in place of the former's more general "burglary."