Opinion ID: 1535578
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Appellant Curry

Text: The evidence against Curry was insufficient to convict for the offenses of possession of an unregistered firearm or unlawful possession of ammunition. A reasonable mind could not fairly conclude, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Curry had constructive possession of the loaded pistol which was found in the bedroom nightstand. The government's initial burden was to present evidence sufficient to show beyond a reasonable doubt that Curry knew of the existence of the loaded pistol. The government did not carry that burden, which in this case was a heavy one because Curry did not have exclusive access to the apartment. Even if others had not been present during Curry's absence, a reasonable mind could not fairly conclude, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Curry knew of the existence and location of the weapon. Curry's fingerprints were not found on the gun. Her temporary and intermittent use of Apartment Four was shared with Jones and Washington, both of whom appear to have had keys and one of whom paid the rent. In the absence of evidence linking Curry to a concert of criminal activity of which the loaded pistol was a part, her tenuous and shared connection to the apartment must create a reasonable doubt that Curry was in possession of an illegal item which could have been placed in the bedroom nightstand unbeknownst to her. Both Jones and Washington also had access to the apartment; Curry stayed there only sporadically; there was no evidence that Curry slept there the previous night; and Curry's last visit to Apartment Four some five hours previously was apparently a fleeting one for the purpose of changing her clothes. The government's argument is even less convincing on the facts of this case, where several people were actually seen in the apartment during Curry's absence prior to the raid. Even if Curry had been the sole, full-time resident of the apartment, her absence at the time the loaded pistol was seized, at which point many others were present, compels a reasonable doubt that Curry knew of the presence of a loaded pistol in her bedroom nightstand. Both Jones and Washington were in Apartment Four, with three other people, when the loaded pistol was found during a raid on a large-scale drug distribution operation. Curry, on the other hand, was not shown to have been in the apartment at any point during the preceding five-hour period. Although the loaded pistol was found in the bedroom nightstand amongst her clothes, a reasonable mind must concede the reasonable possibility that Jones, Washington, or any of the three others found in the midst of a drug distribution operation could have placed the weapon in the bedroom unbeknownst to its occupant. The government failed to present evidence which could permit a reasonable mind to fairly conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that Curry knew of the loaded pistol in the bedroom nightstand. By the same token, the government failed to meet its additional obligation to present evidence sufficient to establish that Curry had some appreciable ability to guide the destiny of the weapona weapon whose very existence may well have been outside her ken.