Opinion ID: 2279580
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Insufficient Evidence Possession by a Person Prohibited

Text: Barnett's other weapon's conviction was pursuant to 11 Del.C. § 1448 (Section 1448). That statute prohibits possession of a deadly weapon by certain prohibited persons. Barnett stipulated that he had previously been adjudicated as delinquent for conduct which, if committed by an adult, would have constituted a felony. Therefore, he was within the category of persons prohibited by Section 1448 from possessing a deadly weapon. 11 Del.C. § 1448(a)(4). Barnett contends, however, that the evidence presented at trial was insufficient to sustain his conviction of that offense because the State failed to establish that he possessed the weapon. Possession of a weapon by a defendant sufficient to sustain a conviction under Section 1448 was construed by this Court in Sexton v. State, Del.Supr., 397 A.2d 540 (1979). In Sexton, this Court held that a jury must find that a weapon was physically available and accessible to the defendant. Id. at 547. The record reflects that the State relied upon the same evidence to establish Barnett's possession of the gun that was seized from the locked box in the hallway linen closet, for the purpose of convicting him under both Section 1447A and Section 1448. In its closing argument, with regard to the charge of Possession of a Deadly Weapon by a Person Prohibited, the State advised the jury that the possession element is addressed when I speak of Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony. Accordingly, the State's position at trial was that it would establish that Barnett possessed the weapon during the commission of a felony and that same possession would also constitute the separate crime of possession by a prohibited person because of Barnett's prior record. The term possession, as it is used in both Section 1447A and Section 1448, means physically available and accessible to the defendant. Sexton v. State, Del.Supr., 397 A.2d 540 (1979); Mack v. State, Del.Supr., 312 A.2d 319 (1973). This Court has already determined that the evidence presented at trial was insufficient, as a matter of law, to establish that the firearm was possessed by Barnett during the commission of a felony. Consequently, the State's reliance upon that same evidence was also insufficient to support Barnett's conviction for Possession of a Deadly Weapon by a Person Prohibited. See 11 Del.C. § 1448; Sexton v. State, Del.Supr., 397 A.2d 540 (1979).