Opinion ID: 666317
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Sufficiency of the Evidence as to Wilson.

Text: 8 Wilson first challenges the sufficiency of the evidence supporting his convictions. In particular, he maintains that there was insufficient evidence linking him to the contraband found in Huggins' apartment. In considering this argument, we review the evidence in the light most favorable to the government to determine whether any rational trier of fact could have found Wilson guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319 (1979); United States v. DePriest, 6 F.3d 1201, 1206 (7th Cir.1993). This standard does not permit us to reweigh the evidence or to reassess the credibility of witnesses. DePriest, 6 F.3d at 1206. Wilson specifically challenges the district court's denial of his motion for acquittal at the close of the government's case-in-chief. We review that challenge under a similar standard. We must consider  'whether at the time of the motion there was relevant evidence from which the jury could reasonably find [the defendant] guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the government.'  United States v. Hagan, 913 F.2d 1278, 1281 (7th Cir.1990) (quoting United States v. Reis, 906 F.2d 284, 292 (7th Cir.1990)); see also United States v. Church, 970 F.2d 401, 405 (7th Cir.1992), cert. denied, 113 S.Ct. 1009 (1993). 9 Wilson maintains that he was entitled to a judgment of acquittal because the government failed to prove that he lived in the 45th Street apartment. According to Wilson, the government failed to disprove his story that he was only there visiting a friend when the search warrant was executed. Wilson argues that the evidence clearly established that he resided instead at 2119 North 51st Street in Milwaukee and that he therefore should not have been held responsible for the contraband found in Huggins' apartment. We thus review the evidence that links Wilson to the 45th Street apartment. 10 First, even assuming that Wilson's official residence may have been 2119 North 51st Street, the government produced substantial evidence indicating that Wilson spent a good deal of his time at the 45th Street apartment. First, the owner of the apartment, Janice Cottrell, who had leased it to Huggins and Evans, and who lived in the lower duplex on the same property, testified that Wilson began to live in the apartment in May or June 1992. Cottrell indicated that Wilson's red Ford Bronco was typically parked on the street in front of the apartment. She also testified that by November 1992, when the search warrant was executed, she believed that Evans had moved out of the apartment and that it was then being occupied by Huggins, Wilson, and one other man. 11 Cottrell's testimony was corroborated by the physical evidence discovered in the course of the search. In addition to the contraband, the search also revealed the following evidence linking Wilson to the property: (1) two suitcases in the living room closet that contained luggage tags bearing Wilson's name; (2) a letter addressed to Wilson at the 45th Street address in a living room end table; (3) Wilson's driver's license in the same end table; (4) money transfer receipts and various other receipts, bills, and envelopes bearing Wilson's name; (5) airline tickets to Jamaica in Wilson's name; (6) a picture of Wilson's two children on the living room mantle; (7) a passport with Wilson's picture but a false name in one of the bedrooms; (8) additional receipts and a birthday card addressed to Wilson in the same bedroom; and (9) other documents bearing Wilson's name in the closet of a second bedroom where an empty gun case also was found under the bed. Significantly, these materials were not found in a single location but were scattered throughout the apartment, suggesting that Wilson was more than merely an infrequent visitor there. 12 The ultimate issue is of course not whether Wilson lived in the 45th Street apartment, but whether the government proved his constructive possession of the contraband found there. In that regard, the government must show that Wilson had the ability to exercise control over the narcotics and firearms--that is, that he had the power to possess them. United States v. Molinaro, 877 F.2d 1341, 1348 (7th Cir.1989); see also United States v. Hernandez, 13 F.3d 248, 252 (7th Cir.1994) (Constructive possession is established when the evidence sufficiently demonstrates ownership, dominion, or control); United States v. Martinez, 937 F.2d 299, 305 (7th Cir.1991). The government may meet its burden by showing that the defendant had dominion or control over the premises where the contraband was concealed. United States v. Galiffa, 734 F.2d 306, 316 (7th Cir.1984). The exercise of control need not be exclusive to support a finding of possession. Hernandez, 13 F.3d at 252; see also Martinez, 937 F.2d at 306; United States v. Garrett, 903 F.2d 1105, 1110 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, 498 U.S. 905 (1990). Yet, where possession is not exclusive, the government must establish a sufficient nexus between the defendant and the contraband. Hernandez, 13 F.3d at 252. 13 We have no doubt that a reasonable jury could conclude that Wilson, in conjunction with Huggins and possibly others, had constructive, if not exclusive, possession of this contraband. Although Wilson had not signed the lease to the 45th Street apartment, the jury was entitled to conclude that he either lived there or spent a good deal of his time there by November 1992. He was found in the apartment when the search warrant was executed, and the owner of the apartment indicated that, based on the frequency with which she saw either Wilson or the red Ford Bronco, she believed that Wilson lived there. A search of the residence revealed many items belonging to Wilson, including mail addressed to Wilson at the 45th Street apartment, his suitcases, airline tickets to Jamaica, and a falsified passport. This evidence established that Wilson had sufficient control over the 45th Street apartment to enable the jury to conclude that he had constructive possession of the contraband found there. After all, implements of the drug trade were strewn throughout the apartment. See Galiffa, 734 F.2d at 316. The evidence was therefore sufficient to support Wilson's convictions. 14