State v. Chevallier, ___ N.C. App. ___, 824 S.E.2d 440 (Mar. 5, 2019)

The court rejected the defendant’s argument that the evidence was insufficient to support an instruction on actual possession of the firearm in question. Actual possession requires that a party have physical or personal custody of the item. The case arose out of a drug transaction between an undercover officer and the defendant and others in a vehicle at a prearranged transaction site. The undercover officer testified that the defendant was fidgeting, looking around, and acting nervous as if he was “the lookout.” Another officer involved in the arrest saw the defendant in the front passenger seat with his hands “low” and not visible. When the officer opened the front passenger door, he saw a weapon between the seat and the passenger side door, where the defendant’s right hand had been. A photograph confirmed the location of a weapon. Although the firearm was not found on the defendant, the evidence was sufficient to show that he had “personal custody” of it and this was sufficient to support an instruction on actual possession.

Error | UNC School of Government

Error

The website encountered an unexpected error. Please try again later.