Opinion ID: 2559480
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: The PFCV Convictions Merge

Text: Mr. Hampleton next argues that his three convictions for possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime of violence (PFCV), each based on the armed robbery of a different victim, merge. (The sentences on these counts were imposed to run concurrently.) We review issues of merger de novo. Roy v. United States, 871 A.2d 498, 510 (D.C. 2005). [A]s a general rule, where two predicate armed offenses do not merge, a defendant may be convicted of separate counts of PFCV relating to each offense.... Stevenson v. United States, 760 A.2d 1034, 1035 (D.C.2000). We have, nevertheless, held that multiple PFCV convictions will merge, even if the predicate felony offenses do not merge, if they arise out of a defendant's uninterrupted possession of a single weapon during a single act of violence. Matthews v. United States, 892 A.2d 1100, 1106 (D.C.2006); see also Nixon v. United States, 730 A.2d 145, 153 (D.C.1999) (same). To determine whether two PFCV convictions are based on a single act of violence or distinct acts, we [have] adopted the so-called `fresh impulse' or `fork-in-the road' test.... Matthews, 892 A.2d at 1106. Each time the defendant commits an independent violent crime, a separate decision is made whether or not to possess the firearm during that crime. Stevenson, 760 A.2d at 1037 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). The evidence at trial showed that Mr. Hampleton pointed his gun at all three victims initially, then turned the gun on Mr. Kastronis individually in an attempt to force him into the Jeep, and finally pointed it at Mr. Ford when he attempted to intervene to protect Mr. Kastronis. However, each PFCV charge was based on a count of armed robbery, not a separate assault. As in Matthews, the predicate felonies... overlapped substantially and were not independent of each other. 892 A.2d at 1107. In other words, the armed robberies were not separated by a fresh impulse or a fork in the road. [11] The three PFCV convictions therefore merge into one.