Opinion ID: 610906
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Sufficiency of the Evidence of Aiding and Abetting Armed Robbery

Text: 31 James also argues that even if the district court's instruction on his liability for armed robbery were correct, the jury's conclusion that James neither planned nor had knowledge of the bank robbery until after Mackey exited the bank highlights the insufficiency of the evidence presented to support James' conviction for armed robbery. James only challenges the sufficiency of the evidence supporting the armed component of his conviction for aiding and abetting armed robbery. 32 Our standard for reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence is well established. In a criminal prosecution, the government bears the burden of proving beyond a reasonable doubt every element necessary to convict the defendant. See In re Winship, 397 U.S. 358, 364, 90 S.Ct. 1068, 1072, 25 L.Ed.2d 368 (1970). Once this has occurred, and the defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence, the defendant bears a heavy burden. See, e.g., United States v. Tejada, 956 F.2d 1256, 1265 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 113 S.Ct. 124, 121 L.Ed.2d 80 (1992). The conviction will be upheld if  ' after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. '  Id. (quoting United States v. Roldan-Zapata, 916 F.2d 795, 802 (2d Cir.1990) (citations omitted), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 111 S.Ct. 1397, 113 L.Ed.2d 453 (1991)). 33 James testified that when Mackey entered the car after exiting the bank, Mackey had a brown canvas bag and a gun. Therefore, it is indisputable that James knew Mackey had a gun during the escape phase of the robbery. Under our reasoning in Grubczak and our holding today, this testimony was sufficient to support his conviction for armed robbery as opposed to simple robbery. James' contention that [p]ermitting a conviction based on mere post-robbery knowledge of Mackey's possession of a gun would vitiate the requirement of proof that James had the specific intent to aid the armed element of the robbery, is without merit. James' testimony establishes that he aided and abetted Mackey in the commission of the crime knowing that Mackey had a gun. Therefore, he aided and abetted an armed, not a simple, robbery.