US v. Thongsy, No. 08-30198

Defendant's conviction for possession of a firearm in furtherance of a felony is affirmed where: 1) the evidence was sufficient to show the requisite nexus between the firearm and the drug operation; and 2) the district court erred in instructing the jury to find that defendant possessed the firearm "during and in relation to the crime" instead of "in furtherance of" the crime, but the error was harmless because the evidence demonstrating that defendant used the pistol to facilitate the criminal activity was overwhelming.

Read US v. Thongsy, No. 08-30198

Appellate Information

Argued and Submitted May 5, 2009

Filed August 17, 2009

Judges

Opinion by Judge Ikuta

Counsel

For Appellant:

Robert M. Stone, Medford, OR

For Appellee:

Karen J. Immergut, Assistant United States Attorney, Medford, OR

Judith R. Harper, Assistant United States Attorney, Medford, OR