UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. JAMAL BOWENS (18-5636); LEE HOPE (18-5637) - Articles

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. JAMAL BOWENS (18-5636); LEE HOPE (18-5637)

Posted by: Tanja Trezise on Sep 12, 2019

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys 1:

ARGUED: Tyrone J. Paylor, FEDERAL PUBLIC DEFENDER, Memphis, Tennessee, for Appellant in 18-5636. Alexander C. Wharton, THE WHARTON LAW FIRM, Memphis, Tennessee, for Appellant in 18-5637. Marques T. Young, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, Memphis, Tennessee, for Appellee.

Attorneys 2:

ON BRIEF: Tyrone J. Paylor, FEDERAL PUBLIC DEFENDER, Memphis, Tennessee, for Appellant in 18-5636. Alexander C. Wharton, THE WHARTON LAW FIRM, Memphis, Tennessee, for Appellant in 18-5637. Marques T. Young, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, Memphis, Tennessee, for Appellee.

Judge(s): ROGERS, GRIFFIN, and NALBANDIAN, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee at Memphis

A jury convicted Jamal Bowens and Lee Hope of possessing firearms while being unlawful users of marijuana, a controlled substance, after they were arrested with guns and marijuana in May 2017. See 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(3). There was sufficient evidence of the defendants’ regular and repeated use of marijuana to sustain the conviction, notwithstanding defendants’ arguments regarding the credibility of some of the evidence from their Facebook accounts. There was also ample evidence showing that the defendants knew they used marijuana, such that it was not plain error that the jury was never asked if the defendants were “knowingly” unlawful users of a controlled substance, notwithstanding the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Rehaif v. United States, 139 S. Ct. 2191 (2019). There was not, however, enough of a connection between Bowens’ possession of a firearm in January 2017 to justify the district court’s determination that the earlier possession was “relevant conduct” that could count against him at sentencing. In all, the defendants’ convictions stand but Bowens’ case will be remanded for resentencing.

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