Opinion ID: 769865
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Admissibility of the Ammunition

Text: 6 Mr. Jones first argues that the district court should have excluded the ammunition evidence as irrelevant. He contends that it was not found in his possession and so was not probative of whether he knew the instrument he possessed was a firearm. Because Mr. Jones objected to the ammunition's relevancy at trial, we review the district court's decision to admit that evidence for an abuse of discretion. See United States v. Montani, 204 F.3d 761, 765 (7th Cir. 2000). 7 Relevant evidence is defined as evidence having any tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence. Fed. R. Evid. 401; United States v. Griffin, 194 F.3d 808, 821 n.6 (7th Cir. 1999), cert. denied, 120 S. Ct. 1546 (2000). At trial, Mr. Jones' sole defense-- one presented exclusively through cross- examination and argument by counsel--was that he thought that the instrument he possessed was a BB gun. The prosecution's ammunition evidence demonstrated the size differences between .30 caliber ammunition and standard BB gun ammunition and between the BB gun ammunition and the bore of Mr. Jones' rifle. This evidence rendered less probable Mr. Jones' contention that he thought his rifle was a BB gun; therefore, the ammunition evidence was relevant. Because relevant evidence is admissible under Federal Rule of Evidence 402, the district court did not abuse its discretion in admitting the ammunition. See Griffin, 194 F.3d at 821 n.7. 8 Mr. Jones also contends that admission of the ammunition was highly prejudicial. We note, however, that despite two opportunities to do so, Mr. Jones did not request that the jury be cautioned that the ammunition was admitted solely for demonstrative purposes. We cannot say that the district court erred in concluding that the probative value of the evidence was not substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice. See Fed. R. Evid. 403.