United States v. Douglas Paul Breitkreutz

KOZINSKI, Circuit Judge:

We consider how the government may go about proving a defendant’s prior crimes when they are an element of the charged offense.

Background

A jury convicted Breitkreutz of being a felon in possession of a firearm in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g), and the court sentenced him to 15 years in prison as a career criminal pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 922(e). When he was arrested, Breitkreutz was driving a pickup truck that had been reported stolen. Behind the seat of the truck was a rifle. He denied knowledge of the weapon when police found it, and he told the arresting officer he…