State v. Saccomano, 84-138
| Decision Date | 05 October 1984 |
| Docket Number | No. 84-138,84-138 |
| Citation | 218 Neb. 435,355 N.W.2d 791 |
| Parties | STATE of Nebraska, Appellee, v. Michael Angelo SACCOMANO, Appellant. |
| Court | Nebraska Supreme Court |
Syllabus by the Court
1. Weapons: Words and Phrases. A weapon is concealed on or about the person if it is concealed in such proximity to the driver of an automobile as to be convenient
of access and within immediate physical reach.
2. Criminal Law: Weapons: Evidence. Ordinarily, when an object is found in an automobile possessed and operated by the defendant, the evidence of unlawful possession is sufficient to sustain a conviction.
3. Weapons: Evidence: Words and Phrases. The requirement that the State prove that the defendant "knowingly and intentionally" concealed the weapon is satisfied by evidence that the defendant voluntarily and intentionally concealed the weapon.
Philip P. Lyons of Colfer, Lyons, Wood, Malcom & Goodwin, McCook, for appellant.
Paul L. Douglas, Atty. Gen. and Mel Kammerlohr, Lincoln, for appellee.
After trial to a jury the defendant, Michael Angelo Saccomano, was convicted of carrying a concealed weapon, sentenced to jail for 80 days, and fined $1,000. He has appealed, and contends that the evidence was insufficient to support the judgment and that the sentence imposed was excessive.
The defendant is 28 years of age and is employed as a heavy equipment operator by the Burlington Northern railroad. At the time of his arrest he was working in the vicinity of McCook, Nebraska, and staying in a motel in McCook.
The defendant spent the July 4, 1983, weekend in Denver, Colorado, visiting his mother. He returned to McCook by train, arriving at about 2:30 a.m. on July 5, 1983. Prior to leaving for Denver, he had placed a loaded .22-caliber revolver under the front seat of his automobile so that it would not be stolen from his parked car while he was in Denver.
While driving to his motel after returning from Denver, he was stopped by the police for speeding. Because the defendant had been drinking, he was arrested for driving while intoxicated and taken to the police station. At the station the defendant discovered that he had left his wallet in the automobile and requested that the police look for it. The officers returned to the car and in looking for the wallet discovered the loaded revolver under the front seat of the automobile.
It is undisputed that the defendant had placed the gun under the front seat of his automobile and that it was under the seat at the time he was stopped by the police and arrested. The defendant argues that this evidence is not sufficient to support a conviction because he was in jail at the time the gun was found under the front seat of his automobile, and he had forgotten that he had placed the gun there before leaving for Denver.
The fact that the defendant was in jail at the time the gun was discovered is of no consequence. The offense was committed when the defendant operated the automobile with the gun concealed under the front seat. A weapon is concealed on or about the person if it is concealed in such proximity to the driver of an automobile as to be convenient of access and within immediate physical reach. State v. Goodwin, 184 Neb. 537, 169 N.W.2d 270 (1969).
The defendant's testimony that he had forgotten that he had placed the gun under the seat of his automobile does not prevent a...
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State v. Warlick
...See State v. Garza, supra note 45.92 State v. Blackson, supra note 85, 1 Neb. App. at 98, 487 N.W.2d at 583.93 State v. Saccomano , 218 Neb. 435, 436, 355 N.W.2d 791, 792 (1984). Accord State v. Goodwin , 184 Neb. 537, 169 N.W.2d 270 (1969).94 See, State v. Senn , 295 Neb. 315, 888 N.W.2d 7......
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...in such proximity to the driver of an automobile as to be convenient of access and within immediate physical reach. State v. Saccomano, 218 Neb. 435, 355 N.W.2d 791 (1984). At trial, the State argued that the elements of the concealed weapon statute were met based upon the handgun's locatio......
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State v. Williams
...available for [ ] immediate use.'" (alterations in original) (quoting Corbin v. State, 206 A.2d 809, 812 (Md. 1965))); State v. Saccomano, 355 N.W.2d 791, 792 (Neb. 1984) ("A weapon is concealed on or about the person if it concealed in such proximity to the driver of an automobile as to be......
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Interest of Shea B., In re
...fact that the weapon was not within Shea's reach at the time it was found in his locker is of no consequence. See State v. Saccomano, 218 Neb. 435, 355 N.W.2d 791 (1984) (upholding a conviction for carrying a concealed weapon where the defendant had been stopped for driving while intoxicate......