UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Joaquin GARCIA, Defendant-Appellant

In this case, we must determine the applicability of the recent Supreme Court case of Bailey v. United States, - U.S.-, 116 S.Ct. 501 , 133 L.Ed.2d 472 (1995), to Joaquin Garcia’s conviction for use of a machinegun while drug trafficking in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924 (c)(1). We are also called upon to determine to what extent the Supreme Court’s decision in Staples v. United States, 511 U.S.-, 114 S.Ct. 1793 , 128 L.Ed.2d 608 (1994), requires the Government to prove the defendant’s mens rea as an element of the crimes of possessing a machinegun with an obliterated serial number in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 5861 , and using a machinegun in relation to a drug trafficking crime in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924 (c)(1).

I. FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

The facts underlying Garcia’s conviction are undisputed. On August 20, 1989, five Los Angeles County Sheriffs Deputies conducted undercover surveillance of an apartment complex in Southgate, California. When they arrived at the apartment, the officers found Cesar Cebreros at the back door of the apartment and appellant Garcia lying on the living room floor. The officers questioned Cebreros about rent and the neighborhood. Garcia…