State v. Senn, 884 N.W.2d 142

On Oct. 4, 2014, Joseph Senn drove a U-Haul to Buckley Auxier’s property during a dispute; witnesses said Senn retrieved a handgun from the U-Haul, pointed it, and fired once; Senn denied firing or retrieving the gun that day.
After Senn left, police stopped the U-Haul; a blue manufacturer’s firearms box behind the passenger seat (partially behind the seat and against the right-side wall of the cab) contained Senn’s 9mm handgun.
Two officers testified the firearm’s location was on the opposite side of the cab and not reachable by the driver while driving.
Forensics linked a spent shell found at the property to the handgun recovered from the U-Haul; Senn testified he had fired the gun at the property about a week earlier and may have left casings.
Senn was tried by jury: convicted of carrying a concealed weapon (Neb. Rev. Stat. § 28-1202) and acquitted or dismissed on other charges; he appealed, arguing insufficient evidence that the gun was concealed "on or about" his person during the traffic stop.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (State)	Defendant's Argument (Senn)	Held
Whether evidence sufficed to prove the firearm was concealed "on or about" the driver under § 28-1202 when found in the cab	Presence of the gun in the driver compartment of the U-Haul allowed the jury to find it was concealed "on or about" Senn	Gun was located where the driver could not reach it during the stop, so it was not "convenient of access and within immediate physical reach"	Reversed: insufficient evidence — gun was not within the driver’s immediate physical reach when stopped, so conviction cannot stand
Whether § 28-1212 prima facie presumption that a firearm in a vehicle is "carried by" occupants establishes the "on or about" element	§ 28-1212 permits submission to jury because presence in vehicle is prima facie evidence of being carried by occupants	The § 28-1212 presumption does not establish the separate locational element requiring "on or about" the person	Rejected: § 28-1212 creates a presumption of carriage/possession but does not substitute for the statutory requirement that the weapon be concealed "on or about" the person

State v. Saccomano, 218 Neb. 435 (interpretation: "on or about" means convenient of access and within immediate physical reach)
State v. Goodwin, 184 Neb. 537 (glove compartment held to be within immediate physical reach given driver’s control)
Kennedy v. State, 171 Neb. 160 (firearms on back seat found readily accessible to occupants)
State v. Jasper, 237 Neb. 754 (limits on using § 28-1212 to relieve prosecution of proving elements)
Muscarello v. United States, 524 U.S. 125 ("carries a firearm" can include carrying in vehicle, illustrating different statutory language/contexts)
The People v. Niemoth, 322 Ill. 51 (vehicle firearm outside reach not "on or about" driver)
State v. Soles, 191 N.C. App. 241 (weapon in rear of van not proven to be within easy reach; conviction reversed)