Opinion ID: 182739
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Fourth Issue: Is there sufficient evidence to support Butch's felon in possession of a firearm conviction?

Text: Sufficient evidence supports Butch's felon in possession of a firearm conviction. To convict Butch under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), as set forth in Count 5, the government was required to prove: `(1) [Butch] had previously been convicted of a crime punishable by a term of imprisonment exceeding one year; (2) [Butch] knowingly possessed a firearm; [and] (3) the firearm [was] in or ... affected interstate commerce.' United States v. Claybourne, 415 F.3d 790, 795 (8th Cir. 2005) (quoting United States v. Maxwell, 363 F.3d 815, 818 (8th Cir.2004)). Butch only challenges the second element. In denying Butch's motion for judgment of acquittal, the district court observed [t]he case is a little thin on the knowledge element, but held a reasonable jury could find Butch knowingly possessed the High Point underneath his mattress. The district court did not err. It is not fatal that, as Butch stresses, there is no direct evidence he possessed the firearm, because proof of joint constructive possession is sufficient to sustain a conviction under § 922(g)(1). Id. `Constructive possession... is established if the person has dominion over the premises where the firearm is located, or control, ownership, or dominion over the firearm itself.' Id. at 795-96 (quoting United States v. Boykin, 986 F.2d 270, 274 (8th Cir.1993)). Here, a reasonable jury could find Butch knowingly possessed the High Point with Barb jointly under a constructive possession theory: (1) Butch lived in the home in which the firearm was found; (2) Butch slept on the bed in which the firearm was hidden; (3) documents addressed to Butch were found in the same bedroom as the firearm; and (4) Butch admitted to Taylor he owed $4,000 to his methamphetamine supplier, and the firearm was hidden next to $4,000 in cash. As Detective Griffiths testified at trial, drug dealers commonly use firearms for intimidation and protection. Butch, a confessed drug dealer, was more likely to possess a firearm and, as a consequence, use a firearm to protect his methamphetamine, cash, and family. See, e.g., Boykin, 986 F.2d at 274 (holding there was sufficient evidence to support § 922(g)(1) conviction, where firearms were seized in the defendant's master bedroom, including one between the mattress and box spring, a room the defendant shared with his wife).