United States v. James Scott Daly

James Daly was convicted as a felon in possession of a firearm, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922 (g)(1), and sentenced to a term enhanced under 18 U.S.C. § 924 (e)(1). During trial, the district court admitted evidence that Daly had an eleven hour shootout with San Diego police officers. Daly challenges the court’s decision to admit this evidence. Daly also claims he was improperly sentenced as a career offender under the federal sentencing guidelines. Additionally, Daly challenges the prosecutor’s decision to exclude two minority jurors from the panel. Finally, he asserts a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel at trial.

A. Admissibility of Shoot-Out Evidence

Daly argues that he was prejudiced by the district court’s order admitting evidence surrounding the circumstances of the shoot-out. Specifically, he contends that this evidence was irrelevant to being a felon in possession of a firearm, the charge for which he was tried. He also argues that the probative value of the evidence is outweighed by its prejudicial nature. We review the district court’s decisions regard- ing relevance and prejudice for abuse of discretion. United States v. Kessi, 868 F.2d 1097, 1107 (9th…