United States v. Richard Felix, Jr.

MEMORANDUM

Defendant Richard Felix appeals his criminal conviction for Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition under 18 U.S.C. §§ 922 (g)(1) and 924(a)(2). Defendant contends that, in admitting at trial the prior out-of-court statements of Sabrina Bernal, a government witness, the district court made two evidentiary errors warranting reversal.

First, Defendant argues that the district court erred by admitting Bernal’s prior statements for “impeachment” purposes. Although Federal Rule of Evidence 607 permits the government to impeach its own witness, this Court has admonished that “the government must not knowingly elicit testimony from a witness in order to impeach him with otherwise inadmissible testimony.” U.S. v. Gomez-Gallardo, 915 F.2d 553, 555 (9th Cir.1990) (quoting U.S. v. Whitson, 587 F.2d 948, 952-53 (9th Cir. 1978)). Here, the record does not indicate either that the government knew Bernal would change her testimony, or that its primary purpose in calling Bernal was to get her prior statements in front of the jury under the guise of impeachment. See id.; U.S. v. Crouch, 731 F.2d 621, 623 (9th Cir.1984), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 1105 , 105 S.Ct. 778 , 83 L.Ed.2d…