United States v. Mauricio Martinez Morales , 259 F. App'x 221 ( 2007 )

[DO NOT PUBLISH]
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FILED
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
________________________ ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
DEC 13, 2007
No. 07-12327 THOMAS K. KAHN
Non-Argument Calendar CLERK
________________________
D. C. Docket No. 06-00488-CR-SLB-PWG
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
MAURICIO MARTINEZ MORALES,
Defendant-Appellant.
________________________
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Northern District of Alabama
_________________________
(December 13, 2007)
Before CARNES, BARKETT and HULL, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
After a jury trial, Mauricio Martinez Morales was convicted of conspiracy to
distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, in violation of 21
U.S.C. § 846; possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, in violation of
21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(C); possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug
trafficking crime, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c); and possession of a firearm
while being an illegal alien, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(5).
On appeal, Morales challenges only his conviction for possession of a
firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, arguing that there was
insufficient evidence to convict him of this firearm offense.1 Specifically, Morales
maintains that the government failed to prove a sufficient nexus between the
firearms found in his vehicle and his drug offenses.
To convict a defendant of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug
trafficking offense, the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that
“during and in relation to any crime of violence or drug trafficking crime . . . [he]
use[d] or carrie[d] a firearm, or . . . , in furtherance of any such crime, possesse[d]
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We “review de novo . . . the sufficiency of the evidence to sustain a conviction, viewing
the evidence in the light most favorable to the government and drawing all reasonable inferences
and credibility choices in favor of the jury’s verdict.” United States v. Tampas, 493 F.3d 1291,
1297-98 (11th Cir. 2007) (quotation marks omitted). To support a guilty verdict, “[i]t is not
necessary that the evidence exclude every reasonable hypothesis of innocence or be wholly
inconsistent with every conclusion except that of guilt . . . .” United States v. Anderson, 289 F.3d
1321, 1326 (11th Cir. 2002) (quotation marks omitted). Rather, “[t]he evidence is sufficient so
long as a reasonable trier of fact, choosing among reasonable interpretations of the evidence,
could find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.” United States v. Pineiro, 389 F.3d 1359, 1367 (11th
Cir. 2004).
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a firearm.” See 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(1)(A). For a defendant’s possession to be “in
furtherance of” a drug trafficking crime, “there must be ‘some nexus between the
firearm and the drug selling operation.’” United States v. Garcia, 447 F.3d 1327,
1340 (11th Cir. 2006) (quoting United States v. Timmons, 283 F.3d 1246, 1253
(11th Cir. 2002)). In determining whether a nexus exists sufficient to sustain the
conviction, we consider, inter alia, “the type of drug activity that is being
conducted, accessibility of the firearm, the type of the weapon, whether the
weapon is stolen, the status of the possession (legitimate or illegal), whether the
gun is loaded, proximity to the drugs or drug profits, and the time and
circumstances under which the gun is found.” Timmons, 283 F.3d at 1253
(quotation marks omitted).
Here, sufficient evidence supported the jury’s finding that Morales’s
possession of the firearms was “in furtherance of” his drug trafficking offenses.
The search of Morales’s vehicle uncovered: a firearm on the right side of the
driver’s seat, where Morales was sitting when officers responded to the scene;
another firearm behind the front passenger’s seat; methamphetamine in the pocket
of the driver’s side door and beneath the steering wheel; a glass pipe used for
smoking methamphetamine underneath the driver’s seat; and $4,800 in the glove
compartment. The firearms, which Morales admitted were his, were loaded and
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easily accessible. The firearms were found in close proximity to the
methamphetamine and the money, which the jury reasonably believed to be drug
profits.
The government presented evidence that drug dealers frequently carry
firearms to protect themselves, their drugs and their money and that one of
Morales’s guns was a type commonly possessed by drug traffickers. Alcocer
Jimenez Sabino, Morales’s coconspirator, testified that he had been buying
methamphetamine from Morales for eighteen months and that he had observed
Morales carrying a firearm when Morales went to get drugs, but not at other times.
A reasonable jury could infer from this evidence that the purpose of the
firearms found in the car was to protect Morales’s drugs and drug profits that were
also found in the car. Accordingly, there was sufficient evidence in the record to
establish a nexus between the firearms and Morales’s drug trafficking offenses
and for the jury to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that the firearms were not
merely present, as Morales contends, but were possessed in furtherance of
Morales’s drug trafficking offenses.
AFFIRMED.
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