United States v. Bull, 2025 WL 1387949 (8th Cir. 2025)
In Rapid City, South Dakota, a police officer stopped Evan Brown Bull in a pickup truck because of an obstructed rear license plate and overly dark windshield tint that made it impossible to see the dealer plate in the rear window. As soon as Brown Bull stopped, his passenger, Angel Bush, got out of the truck and began to walk away. The officer recognized Bush and arrested him on an outstanding warrant. Brown Bull also had warrants and was arrested. A search of the vehicle incident to the arrest revealed a handgun holster, three boxes of ammunition and a wooden rifle or shotgun stock. Consequently, Brown Bull was charged with being a felon in possession of ammunition.
A jury convicted Brown Bull after a two-day trial. Brown Bull appealed, arguing the prosecution produced insufficient evidence he had knowingly possessed the ammunition.
In its ruling affirming the lower court’s decision, the 8th Circuit panel noted the prosecution’s burden to prove Brown Bull’s possession of the ammo beyond a reasonable doubt. This burden is often met with evidence that a defendant actually held the ammunition or “n the usual case, the defendant’s control over the area where the weapon was found ‘gives rise to a strong inference of knowledge.’”
To support his claim that he did not knowingly possess the ammunition, Brown Bull pointed out he had remained in the truck while Bush walked away. There was no evidence he had scrambled to hide the ammunition. The prosecution didn’t try to connect the ammunition to him by DNA evidence or through pictures from his Facebook posts. Further, Bush had been seated closer to the ammunition in the glove box. Brown Bull also pointed out that, like him, Bush was a convicted felon and had a motive to walk away from the ammunition.
To support the charge that Brown Bull had been in possession of the ammunition, the prosecution introduced testimony from Brown Bull’s former girlfriend, Billi American Horse. American Horse testified she had purchased Brown Bull’s pickup truck for him from a man at a grocery store in a nearby town for $5,000 cash. There was also evidence Brown Bull had gone to the impound yard and used a known alias to try (unsuccessfully) to register the truck .
The prosecution also introduced testimony from an ATF investigator who questioned Angel Bush before interviewing Billi American Horse. “after having interviewed hundreds of people throughout my career,” he concluded Angel Bush “had no knowledge of the ammunition.”
The appellate court held the evidence was sufficient for a reasonable jury to conclude Brown Bull had constructive, knowing possession of the ammunition. Though the usual case of a felon in possession of a firearm and/or ammunition turns on far less ambiguous evidence, this case points to the benefit of dogged post-arrest investigation. It is likely the ATF investigator’s efforts to track down and interview the former girlfriend and Angel Bush that was the key to a conviction.
