United States v. Mann

A New Mexico grand jury charged Clay O’Brien Mann with eight counts, including three 18 U.S.C. 924(c) violations, arising from his shooting three people on an Indian reservation. He appealed one section 924(c) conviction, arising from his assault and shooting of Paula Nez. As with the other two 924(c) counts, the government charged that Mann had knowingly discharged a firearm in relation to his assaulting Paula Nez. Under Supreme Court precedent, the discharge did not have to be done either “knowingly” or “in relation to” the underlying crime of violence. Mann did not object to the district court’s instructions ignoring these "unnecessarily charged conditions." For the first time on appeal, Mann argued that the district court constructively amended his indictment by not instructing the jury that, to convict, it needed to find these conditions were met. Upon review, the Tenth Circuit found no constructive amendment and thus no error. "The charged but uninstructed language was mere surplusage to the true elements of the crime." View "United States v. Mann" on Justia Law