United States v. David Allen, No. 21-3060 (8th Cir. 2022)
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Defendant was charged with one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Section 922(g)(1). He filed a motion to suppress evidence obtained during a vehicle search. The district court denied the motion. Defendant proceeded to trial, where a jury found him guilty. He appealed and raised four arguments: (1) the district court should have granted his motion to suppress; (2) the district court should have admitted impeachment evidence; (3) the district court should have given additional jury instructions; and (4) the evidence was not sufficient to convict.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed, finding that the district court correctly denied Defendant’s motion to suppress because the search was supported by reasonable suspicion. At trial, any error in excluding defense Exhibits S and T was harmless because the impeachment information was admitted through the officer’s testimony. The district court did not abuse its discretion by rejecting Defendant’s proposed jury instructions because the instructions it gave fairly and accurately set forth the law. Finally, the evidence was sufficient to support Defendant’s conviction.
Court Description: [Melloy, Author, with Colloton and Gruender, Circuit Judges] Criminal case - Criminal law. The police officer had probable cause to stop defendant's vehicle because it was illegally parked, and he had reasonable suspicion of criminal activity which permitted him to extend the traffic stop; any error in excluding two defense videos defendant claimed impeached a government witness was harmless as the impeachment evidence was introduced by other means; the court did not err in refusing to give defendant's proposed instructions on innocent or transitory possession as there is no such defense to the charge of being a felon in possession; nor did the court err in refusing to give defendant's proposed instruction on possession and "knowingly"; the evidence was sufficient to support defendant's conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
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