US v. Newhoff, No. 09-30143

Felon in Possession Conviction Affirmed

In US v. Newhoff, No. 09-30143, the court affirmed defendant's convictions for being a felon in possession of a firearm and for possession of a stolen firearm where 1) the district court erred by reading back a witness's testimony without an admonition, but this did not affect defendant's substantial rights; and 2) it was a reasonable inference, from the fact that defendant was the burglar who was trying to sell the pistol, that he was the one who found and stole it.

As the court wrote:  "This case went to a jury trial, and accounts varied. Newhoff was convicted in this case of being a felon in possession of a firearm and for possession of a stolen firearm, and, in a separate state proceeding, of the burglary in which the firearm
was stolen. The burglary was the night of July 4, and the police contact leading to the felon in possession charge, a traffic stop, was on July 6."

Related Resources

• Read the Ninth Circuit's Decision in US v. Newhoff, No. 09-30143