UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Mika GERGEN, Defendant-Appellant

TAKASUGI, Senior District Judge:

Mika Gergen (“Gergen”) appeals from a judgment of conviction and sentence for violating 26 U.S.C. § 5861(d), arguing that the Supreme Court’s holding in Staples v. United States, 511 U.S. 600, 114 S.Ct. 1793, 128 L.Ed.2d 608 (1994), requires the government to prove that he knew of the particular characteristics of the shotgun which made the shotgun illegal under the National Firearms Act (the “Act”). Ger-gen maintains that the district court erroneously removed the mens rea element required under the Act, that the jury was not presented with sufficient evidence…