## Facts

- Maine law enforcement responded to a report of gunshots in a wooded residential area and pursued a fleeing vehicle down a dirt road.
- Police stopped the car with roadblocks; the driver, Hazen D. Shaw, rammed his sedan into a police vehicle after stopping.
- As officers approached and ordered Shaw to show his hands, an officer heard the action of a pump-action gun and observed Shaw manipulating the firearm.
- Shaw, the sole occupant, was arrested; a 12-gauge Mossberg 500A sawed-off shotgun was found within easy reach in the passenger compartment.
- A search located a spent 12-gauge shell between the front seats and additional ammunition on Shaw’s person and in his pack.
- Officers measured the shotgun’s interior barrel length at 16.25 inches; an expert testified the barrel appeared obviously too short at first glance.
- Police also found a second modified shotgun (20-gauge with a sawed-off stock) in the trunk, along with knives and a hatchet.
- Shaw was convicted by a jury of possessing an unregistered short-barreled shotgun under the National Firearms Act (NFA), 26 U.S.C. §§ 5861(d), 5871.

## Issues

1. Whether the evidence was sufficient for a rational jury to find beyond a reasonable doubt that Shaw knew the shotgun’s barrel was shorter than 18 inches, the characteristic making it an NFA “firearm” under 26 U.S.C. § 5861(d).

## Decision

- The First Circuit affirmed the conviction.
- The court held the evidence permitted a rational jury to find that Shaw knew the shotgun had the regulated characteristic (a barrel under 18 inches).
- The court upheld denial of Shaw’s Rule 29 motion for judgment of acquittal.

## Legal Principles

- On appellate review of sufficiency, the evidence is viewed in the light most favorable to the verdict, and the conviction stands if any rational factfinder could find each essential element beyond a reasonable doubt.
- For possession of an unregistered firearm under 26 U.S.C. § 5861(d), the government must prove the defendant knew the facts that bring the weapon within the NFA’s coverage (here, that the barrel was shorter than 18 inches), consistent with *Staples v. United States*.
- Knowledge of the regulated characteristic may be proven through circumstantial evidence, including the weapon’s obvious physical features, the defendant’s handling and use of the weapon, related conduct suggesting consciousness of guilt, and familiarity with firearms.
- The government need not prove the defendant knew the precise statutory measurement; it is enough to prove awareness of the weapon’s relevant physical characteristic.

## Conclusion

Because the shotgun’s barrel was conspicuously shortened, Shaw was observed handling it during the stop, related evidence suggested he had been using it, and he possessed other modified firearms and ammunition, the jury could reasonably infer he knew the weapon had a barrel below the legal threshold; the conviction was therefore affirmed.


United States v. Shaw, 670 F.3d 360 (1st Cir. 2012)