US v. Sistrunk, No. 09-12798

Firearm Possession Conviction Affirmed

In US v. Sistrunk, No. 09-12798, the court affirmed defendant's conviction for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, holding that, although the trial court erred by ruling that the defense of entrapment was not available to defendant as a matter of law, the error was harmless.

As the court wrote:  "Tavaris Sistrunk appeals his conviction by a jury of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1).   He argues that:  (1) the district court erred by ruling, as a matter of law, that the entrapment defense did not apply to 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1) because it is a strict liability offense;  (2) that withdrawal of the entrapment instruction with respect to 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1) violated Fed.R.Crim.P. 30; and (3) that the district court erred by giving the jury a modified Allen charge after the jury informed the court that they were deadlocked."

Related Resources

• Full Text of US v. Sistrunk, No. 09-12798