Court Opinion

ID: 9836751
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-02 03:14:57.569782+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:45:18.757992
License: Public Domain

COX, Senior Judge
(dissenting):
As the majority notes, there is strong circumstantial evidence to support a belief that appellant received a modem, took it, then set up an elaborate scheme to cover up his theft. However, in order to convict a servicemember of an offense, it is axiomatic that the Government must prove each and every element of that offense beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 319, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979).
The elements of larceny are set out in Article 121, UCMJ, 10 USC § 921. Foremost among them is that the Government must prove that the accused took property “from the possession of the owner.” There is no proof in the record, direct or circumstantial, that the Government was ever in possession of “the modem” allegedly stolen by appellant. Accordingly, no matter how suspicious the circumstances, the Government’s proof of a larceny fails.