United States v. Hawkins
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
776 F.3d 200 (2015)
- Written by Sean Carroll, JD
Facts
Collin Hawkins (defendant), a convicted felon, allegedly participated in a carjacking of Rueben King. King identified Hawkins as one of the carjackers. Over two weeks later, the police were investigating a separate incident that they believed involved Hawkins. Police located Hawkins and arrested him. Hawkins had a firearm on his person. The United States (plaintiff) charged Hawkins with carjacking and brandishing a firearm in connection with the carjacking (Counts I and II) and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm due to his carrying a firearm when he was arrested (Count III). The gun that police recovered when arresting Hawkins was not the same gun that Hawkins allegedly used in the carjacking. Hawkins filed a motion to sever Counts I and II on the ground that they were improperly joined, or the alternative ground that the joinder was unduly prejudicial. The prosecution argued that the three crimes were of a similar character because they were gun-related offenses and occurred within three weeks of each other. The district court denied Hawkins’s motion and convicted Hawkins on all three counts. Hawkins appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Agee, J.)
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