United States v. Krause, No. 17-3674 (8th Cir. 2019)
Annotate this CaseThe Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction for damaging property of the United States valued at more than $1,000 after a drunk-driving incident in which defendant struck and destroyed a localizer antenna array at an airport. The court held that the district court did not erroneously instruct the jury as to the elements of the offense and rejected defendant's assertion that 18 U.S.C. 1361 required that a defendant know the damage property belonged to the United States. The court also held that sufficient evidence supported the jury's conclusion, beyond a reasonable doubt, that defendant acted willfully in driving his car into the localizer antenna array.
Court Description: Shepherd, Author, with Kelly and Stras, Circuit Judges] Criminal case - Criminal law. The district court correctly instructed the jury on the offense of injuring or committing any depredation against any property of the United States valued at more than $1,000; knowledge of government ownership is not an element of the offense and the jury instructions did not need to include this as an element; defendant's conviction was supported by sufficient evidence, and his argument that his voluntary intoxication prevented him from possessing the requisite intent is rejected; there was more than enough evidence to support the jury's determination that defendant acted willfully when he drove his car into the localizer antenna array at his local airport.
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