People of Michigan v. David Lee Swanigan
330271
| Mich. Ct. App. | Apr 11, 2017Background
- JA was assaulted during a purse snatching; the robber brandished a handgun and fled after a bystander interfered.
- A pursuing officer observed defendant, who fit the suspect description, running from the scene and dropping a cell phone and later discarding a metal object.
- A .32-caliber handgun was recovered from a restaurant roof and a black hooded sweatshirt resembling the attacker’s was identified by JA.
- Defendant was convicted of felon in possession and felony-firearm, but acquitted of armed robbery and a related felony-firearm charge.
- Defendant challenged counsel substitution, sufficiency of evidence, constitutional bear-arms issues, and PSIR accuracy; the trial court addressed the PSIR objections at sentencing.
- The appellate court affirmed the convictions and rejected each challenged issue.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Right to substitute counsel | Swanigan requested substitute counsel due to ineffectiveness. | Court should have appointed substitute counsel upon request. | No abuse; defendant did not request substitute counsel. |
| Constitutionality of felon-in-possession/felony-firearm | Right to bear arms allows restrictions on felons; statute constitutional. | Statutes overly broad and infringe right to self-defense. | Statutes constitutional; no error to sustain convictions. |
| PSIR correction | PSIR contained irrelevant/incorrect armed-robbery references. | Information about acquitted conduct should be removed. | Court acted within discretion; information upheld and incorporated. |
| Sufficiency of the evidence | There was sufficient evidence of firearm possession by defendant. | Lack of fingerprint/ dash-cam corroboration undermines sufficiency. | Sufficient evidence supported felon-in-possession and felony-firearm convictions. |
Key Cases Cited
- People v. Traylor, 245 Mich App 460 (2001) (abuse-of-discretion standard for substitution of counsel)
- People v. Mack, 190 Mich App 7 (1991) (good-cause standard for appointment of substitute counsel)
- People v. Lucey, 287 Mich App 267 (2010) (procedure for correcting PSIR; sentencing court's discretion)
- People v. Compagnari, 233 Mich App 233 (1998) (courts may consider acquitted conduct at sentencing)
- United States v. Watts, 519 U.S. 148 (1997) (courts may consider conduct underlying charges acquitted by preponderance)
- People v. Deroche, 299 Mich App 301 (2013) (felon-in-possession upholds constitutionality under Heller)
- People v. Powell, 303 Mich App 271 (2013) (upholds felon-in-possession/felony-firearm constitutionality)
- People v. Dupree, 486 Mich 693 (2010) (self-defense defense as to felon-in-possession context)
- Heller v. District of Columbia, 554 U.S. 570 (2008) (framework for evaluating firearm restrictions)