United States v. Marlin Ronald Belperio

Appellant was indicted, tried by a jury and convicted of being a felon in possession of an illegal firearm in violation of 18 App.U.S.C. § 1202(a) (1), in one count and of simple possession of the same illegal firearm in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 5861 (d) and § 5871 in a second count.

STATEMENT

A deputy sheriff stopped appellant for driving a pickup with deficient headlights. The officer recognized appellant and, being aware of his criminal record, asked if he had any weapons. Appellant replied, “No, . . . other than the shotgun.” This gun was plainly visible on the front seat. When the officer measured the length of the barrel on the shotgun, he found that it was less than 18 inches long.

MIRANDA WARNING

The appellant was not in custody at the time he told the officer about possession of the shotgun. In these circumstances, the officer was not required to give the warning outlined in Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 477-478 , 86 S.Ct. 1602 , 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966). See United States v. Edwards, 421 F.2d 1346 (9th Cir. 1970); United States v. Chase, 414 F.2d 780 (9th Cir. 1969), cert. denied 396 U.S. 920 , 90 S.Ct. 247 , 24 L.Ed.2d 200 (1969), and Lowe v. United States, 407…