Opinion ID: 1103060
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: unlawful possession and the habitual felony offender act

Text: Although the Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed Graves's conviction for unlawful possession of a pistol by a person previously convicted of a crime of violence, that court held that the Habitual Felony Offender Act, § 13A-5-9, cannot be applied for enhancement purposes to sentences for [unlawful possession] convictions under § 13A-11-72(a). For such convictions, sentencing must be in accordance with § 13A-11-84(a). Graves v. State, 632 So.2d at 32 (citing this Court's September 18, 1992, opinion in Ex parte Johnson ). We note, however, that on April 16, 1993, on application for rehearing, this Court withdrew its September 18, 1992, opinion in Ex parte Johnson and substituted a new opinion; that substituted opinion omits any discussion of the application of the Habitual Felony Offender Act to convictions for unlawful possession. See Ex parte Johnson, 620 So.2d 665 (Ala.1993) (opinion on rehearing). Furthermore, this Court in Gholston v. State, 620 So.2d 219 (Ala.1993), specifically held that the Habitual Felony Offender Act mandates that convictions for unlawful possession be enhanced if the prior conviction for a crime of violence was a felony conviction. We held: [W]e conclude that the intent of the legislature, as shown by the plain language of the statutes, is that the sentence for a conviction for unlawful possession of a pistol under § 13A-11-72(a) can be enhanced by the Habitual Felony Offender Act when the prior conviction for a `crime of violence' is also a prior `felony' conviction. The Court of Criminal Appeals, in Nunnery v. State, 410 So.2d 444, 448 (Ala.Cr.App. 1981), held that unlawful possession of a pistol by a person convicted of a crime of violence is a felony and that the Habitual Felony Offender Act applies to such a conviction. The Habitual Felony Offender Act is mandatory and must be applied whenever a repeat offender with a prior felony conviction is convicted of another felony. See, e.g., § 13A-5-9(a), Ala.Code 1975 (`In all cases when it is shown that a criminal defendant has been previously convicted of any felony and after such conviction has committed another felony, he must be punished as follows: ...' (emphasis added)); see also Watson v. State, 392 So.2d 1274 (Ala.Cr.App.1980), cert. denied, 392 So.2d 1280 (Ala.1981). Because a violation of § 13A-11-72(a) is a felony, and the Habitual Felony Offender Act, § 13A-5-9, requires that every sentence for a felony conviction be enhanced when the defendant has a previous felony conviction, we hold that the apparent legislative intent is that the sentence upon conviction for unlawful possession of a firearm by a person convicted of a crime of violence is to be enhanced by the Habitual Felony Offender Act if the prior conviction was a felony conviction.... Gholston, 620 So.2d at 724. Graves had a previous conviction for manslaughter, which is both a crime of violence, under § 13A-11-72(a), Ala.Code 1975, and a felony, under § 13A-6-3(b). Therefore, based upon our decision in Gholston and the substituted opinion in Johnson on rehearing, we reverse the Court of Criminal Appeals' judgment remanding for resentencing on the conviction for unlawful possession; that court erred in holding that that sentence had been improperly enhanced under the Habitual Felony Offender Act.