Walls v. Commonwealth

ELDER, Judge.

Kenneth Martin Walls (appellant) appeals from his jury trial conviction for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, in violation of Code § 18.2-308.2. On appeal, he contends the trial court abused its discretion when it ruled he could not inform the jury during closing argument in the guilt phase of the trial that a conviction for the charged offense would require imposition of a mandatory minimum sentence of two years. We hold that information regarding the mandatory minimum sentence was irrelevant in the guilt phase of appellant’s trial and, therefore, that the trial…