United States v. Luna-Morales

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

United States v. Luna-Morales

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT

No. 99-50138 Summary Calendar

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff-Appellee,

versus

JUAN ANTONIO LUNA-MORALES,

Defendant-Appellant.

-------------------- Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas USDC No. SA-98-CR-93-ALL --------------------

October 20, 1999

Before DAVIS, EMILIO M. GARZA, and DENNIS, Circuit Judges.

PER CURIAM:*

Juan Antonio Luna-Morales (“Luna-Morales”) appeals his

conviction after a bench trial of being a felon in possession of

a firearm, pursuant to

18 U.S.C. § 922

(g)(1). He argues that the

district court committed reversible error by admitting

inadmissible hearsay evidence that he possessed a firearm found

in a hotel room that he was sharing with another person.

Although we agree that the district court erred in admitting the

evidence at issue because it was hearsay, see United States v.

* Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined that this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR. R. 47.5.4. No. 99-50138 -2-

Johnston,

127 F.3d 380, 394-95

(5th Cir. 1997), cert. denied,

118 S. Ct. 1173

, 1174 (1998), we nevertheless AFFIRM Luna-Morales’

conviction because the district court’s error was harmless given

that evidence sufficiently corroborated his confession that he

possessed the firearm, and the corroborated confession and other

evidence sufficiently supported the district court’s judgment.

See United States v. Ybarra,

70 F.3d 362, 365-66

(5th Cir. 1995).

AFFIRMED.

Reference

Status
Unpublished