Opinion ID: 203172
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Possession of the firearm and ammunition

Text: To sustain a conviction under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(5)(A), the government must present at trial sufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant knowingly possessed a firearm and ammunition in or affecting interstate commerce. Diaz does not quibble with the interstate commerce portion of the charge, but does contend that the government did not sufficiently prove possession. Knowing possession of a firearm may be either actual or constructive. United States v. Wight, 968 F.2d 1393, 1397 (1st Cir.1992). In order to show constructive possession, the government must prove that the defendant 'had dominion and control over the area where the contraband was found.' Id. (quoting United States v. Barnes, 890 F.2d 545, 549 (1st Cir.1989)). We find that the government proffered sufficient evidence to meet its burden. The jury heard evidence that the loaded firearm was discovered under the passenger seat, within the lunge area of the driver's seat, in the car Diaz was driving moments after police ordered Diaz to exit the vehicle, and that Diaz was the only occupant of the vehicle. The jury also heard Detective Burokas and Officer Ayala, the Spanish-speaking police officer who Mirandized Diaz, testify that during booking Diaz stated he had bought the gun on the street for $300. Diaz, on the other hand, argues that there was no evidence that he owned the car in which the gun was found and that his fingerprints were not on the gun, ammunition, or clip. In addition, he attempts to cast aspersions on the testimony of Detective Burokas and Officer Ayala, merely because they did not video or audio-tape Diaz's statement regarding his purchase of the gun. We are mindful, however, that as the reviewing court we may neither evaluate the credibility of the witnesses nor weigh the relative merit of theories of innocence postulated by the defendant. United States v. Maldonado-Garcia, 446 F.3d 227, 231 (1st Cir.2006)(citing United States v. Woodward, 149 F.3d 46, 56 (1st Cir.1998)). Rather, we are tasked with upholding any verdict that is supported by a plausible rendition of the record. United States v. Liranzo, 385 F.3d 66, 69 (1st Cir.2004)(internal quotations omitted). Even under the more permissive standard for a preserved sufficiency challenge, to say nothing of the plain error standard that applies in this case, there was sufficient evidence for the jury to find, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Diaz possessed the firearm and ammunition.