Court Opinion

ID: 9479128
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 07:09:04.961715+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:46:50.591854
License: Public Domain

SNEED, Circuit Judge,
concurring separately:
I agree that under our law appellant was not proven to be other than an innocent bystander beyond a reasonable doubt. However, were I a bookmaker, I would say that the odds on his not being an innocent bystander are at least five to one. It is not the odds, however, that prevent upholding appellant’s convictions. Rather, it is the absence of any proof that appellant did anything other than being there. That deficiency in the proof must preclude conviction of participating in the conspiracy if the “innocent bystander” defense is to have vitality.
*1394Thus, although we say that the jury did not evaluate the proof properly, I submit that our reversal rests on a legal principle, viz., mere presence of an accused, in the absence of any other evidence linking the accused to the crime charged, precludes conviction of the accused of that crime. If this were not the true basis of our decision in this case, I would vote to affirm.