Norwood v. Premo

LINDER, S. J.

The issue presented in this post-conviction appeal is whether a defense lawyer exercising reasonable professional skill and judgment would have challenged the evidence at petitioner’s criminal trial as insufficient to establish that he was armed with a deadly weapon during his commission of a burglary. To resolve that issue, we must determine whether an unloaded firearm qualifies as a “deadly weapon” when the firearm is contained in a closed, zippered carrying case and is possessed together with a separate bag that contains ammunition for the firearm. As we will explain, we…