People v. Jeffers

Convicted felon Bronico Jeffers (defendant) delivered a wrapped box to a gun shop on behalf of a friend, telling the shop owner he was making a delivery, only for the owner to discover it contained a handgun with filed-off serial numbers; Jeffers provided his contact information as requested and left, and when later confronted by police, he explained he had delivered the gun for a friend he could not help locate. Numerous witnesses, including the alleged friend, corroborated Jeffers's account that he believed he was merely delivering a package for repair without knowing it contained a firearm; the trial court refused Jeffers's requested instruction that a felon who unknowingly acquires possession of a firearm and has no intent to control it lacks the intent required for felon-in-possession, and he was convicted and appealed.