US v. Denton Braithwaite, No. 10-4229 (4th Cir. 2010)
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UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 10-4229 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. DENTON SOLOMON BRAITHWAITE, a/k/a James Keitt, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, at Durham. James A. Beaty, Jr., Chief District Judge. (1:08-cr-00054-JAB-1) Submitted: July 14, 2010 Decided: July 22, 2010 Before MOTZ, KING, and GREGORY, Circuit Judges. Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion. James B. Craven, III, Durham, North Carolina, for Appellant. Anna Mills Wagoner, United States Attorney, Harry L. Hobgood, Assistant United States Attorney, Greensboro, North Carolina, for Appellee. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. PER CURIAM: Denton Solomon Braithwaite appeals his conviction of aggravated identity theft, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1028A(a)(1) (2006) (Count evidence is 3). On appeal, insufficient to Braithwaite convict him contends of Count that 3, as the the Government failed to prove that Braithwaite knew that the means of identification used belonged to another individual. We affirm. A defendant challenging sufficiency of the United States v. Foster, 507 evidence faces a heavy burden. F.3d 233, 245 (4th Cir. 2007). the This court reviews a sufficiency of the evidence challenge by determining whether, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the Government, any rational trier of fact could find the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. United States v. Collins, 412 F.3d 515, 519 (4th Cir. 2005); see Glasser v. United States, 315 U.S. 60, 80 (1942). circumstantial This evidence, court and reviews accords both the direct Government and all reasonable inferences from the facts shown to those sought to be established. Cir. United States v. Harvey, 532 F.3d 326, 333 (4th 2008). This court will uphold the jury s verdict if substantial evidence supports it, and will reverse only in those rare cases of clear failure by the prosecution. F.3d at 244-45. 2 Foster, 507 In order to prove a violation of 1028A(a)(1), the Government must demonstrate that: 18 U.S.C. (1) during the commission of a predicate felony offense, (2) the defendant knowingly transferred, possessed, or used without lawful authority; (3) a means of identification of another person; and (4) the defendant knew the means of identification belonged to See Flores-Figueroa, 129 S. Ct. at 1888, 1894. another person. Braithwaite concedes the first three elements, only challenging whether the Government identification he used proved actually that he knew to belonged the means another of person. After reviewing the record, we find that a rational trier of fact could find this element beyond a reasonable doubt. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the district court. We dispense with oral argument, as the facts and legal contentions are adequately expressed in the materials before the court, and argument would not aid the decisional process. AFFIRMED 3
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