Smith's Criminal Case Compendium
Table of Contents
State v. McKiver, 247 N.C. App. 614 (May. 17, 2016)
The court held that the trial court did not err in denying the defendant’s motion to dismiss a charge of felon in possession of a firearm, rejecting the defendant’s argument that there was insufficient evidence establishing that he had constructive possession of the weapon. The evidence showed, among other things, that an anonymous 911 caller saw a man wearing a plaid shirt and holding a gun in a black car beside a field; that someone saw that man dropped the gun; that an officer saw the defendant standing near a black Mercedes wearing a plaid shirt; that the defendant later returned to the scene and said that the car was his; and that officers found a firearm in the vacant lot approximately 10 feet from the Mercedes. This evidence was sufficient to support a reasonable juror in concluding that additional incriminating circumstances existed--beyond the defendant’s mere presence at the scene and proximity to where the firearm was found--and thus to infer that he constructively possessed the firearm.