UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 14-4807
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
v.
JOSEPH LEON BRUMBY, JR., a/k/a Yasir Justice El Bey, a/k/a
Yasir Justice El-Bey,
Defendant - Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle
District of North Carolina, at Greensboro. Catherine C. Eagles,
District Judge. (1:13-cr-00462-CCE-1)
Submitted: June 18, 2015 Decided: June 22, 2015
Before SHEDD, DUNCAN, and AGEE, Circuit Judges.
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Louis C. Allen, Federal Public Defender, Eric D. Placke, First
Assistant Federal Public Defender, Greensboro, North Carolina,
for Appellant. Ripley Rand, United States Attorney, Kyle D.
Pousson, Assistant United States Attorney, Greensboro, North
Carolina, for Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
A jury convicted Joseph Leon Brumby, Jr., of making a false
statement in a passport application, in violation of 18 U.S.C.
§ 1542 (2012), and using or attempting to use a false passport,
in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1543 (2012). On appeal, Brumby
contends that the district court erred in denying his motion for
a judgment of acquittal under Fed. R. Crim. P. 29 because the
Government presented insufficient evidence to sustain his
convictions. Finding no error, we affirm.
We review de novo challenges to the sufficiency of evidence
and a district court’s denial of a motion for a judgment of
acquittal under Rule 29. United States v. Alerre, 430 F.3d 681,
693 (4th Cir. 2005). “The jury’s verdict must be upheld on
appeal if there is substantial evidence in the record to support
it, where substantial evidence is evidence that a reasonable
finder of fact could accept as adequate and sufficient to
support a conclusion of a defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable
doubt.” United States v. Perry, 757 F.3d 166, 175 (4th Cir.
2014) (emphasis and internal quotation marks omitted), cert.
denied, 135 S. Ct. 1000 (2015). In evaluating whether
substantial evidence supports a conviction, we must “view[] the
evidence and the reasonable inferences to be drawn therefrom in
the light most favorable to the Government.” Id. (internal
quotation marks omitted).
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To obtain a conviction for making a false statement in a
passport application, the Government must prove that Brumby
(1) willfully and knowingly, (2) made a false statement in a
passport application, (3) with intent to induce or secure a
passport. 18 U.S.C. § 1542. To obtain a conviction for using
or attempting to use a false passport, the Government must prove
that Brumby (1) willfully and knowingly, (2) used or attempted
to use, (3) an instrument purporting to be a passport. 18
U.S.C. § 1543.
Although Brumby acknowledges that a passport acceptance
clerk received an application for a Yasir Justice El Bey that
contained both a false statement and a fake passport, he
contends that the Government failed to submit sufficient
evidence demonstrating that he submitted the application. Trial
testimony, however, showed that (1) identification materials,
including the fake passport, contained pictures matching
Brumby’s appearance; (2) the passport acceptance clerk had a
practice of comparing identifying photos to the applicant when
accepting an application; (3) a friend of Brumby’s accompanied
Brumby to the passport office and signed an affidavit in support
of the application; and (4) Brumby used the alias Yasir Justice
El Bey on other occasions. Accordingly, the Government
presented sufficient evidence to permit a jury to conclude that
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Brumby submitted the passport application in question, and used
a false passport in doing so.
Brumby also contends that, even if he submitted the
application, the Government failed to prove that he intended to
secure a passport through the application. This assertion
fails. First, the application identifies travel plans
necessitating a passport. Second, by putting forth evidence
that Brumby took an oath and attested that the statements on the
passport application were true and correct, the Government
presented sufficient evidence for the jury to conclude that
Brumby intended to secure a passport through the
application. See United States v. Winn, 577 F.2d 86, 91 (9th
Cir. 1978) (holding defendant’s oath of truthfulness and
signature under warning that false statements violated law
provided sufficient evidence of specific intent).
Accordingly, we affirm Brumby’s convictions. We dispense
with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are
adequately presented in the materials before this court and
argument would not aid the decisional process.
AFFIRMED
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