United States v. Quentin Perry
908 F.3d 1126
8th Cir.2018Background
- 911 caller reported shots fired outside a bar and described the shooter as a taller Black man with a goatee, white shirt, and dark pants.
- Minutes later police saw Perry (taller of two men), who matched material parts of that description, near a car a few blocks away; the car had a handgun and magazines visible under the passenger seat.
- Officers arrested Perry and found three bullets in his pockets; he was charged under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1) for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.
- At trial Perry proceeded pro se with standby counsel; he was placed in jail segregation before trial and contends reduced access to legal materials impaired his defense; he also challenges a limited evidentiary ruling during cross-examination of a DNA expert.
- At sentencing the district court applied the ACCA 15-year mandatory minimum, treating Perry’s prior Minnesota convictions (aggravated robbery, robbery, two second-degree assaults, and felony domestic assault) as three separate violent-felony predicates.
- The Eighth Circuit affirmed: probable cause supported the arrest/search; Perry’s pro se/access and limited cross-examination claims failed; ACCA predicates were properly counted as violent felonies and as separate occasions.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (Government) | Defendant's Argument (Perry) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Probable cause for arrest/search and suppression of bullets | Officers had probable cause: matching descriptive details, proximity in time/place to shots fired, visible gun in car | Description mismatched (height, beard, shirt color changes), delay/time between report and encounter, calm behavior negates suspicion | Probable cause existed under the totality of circumstances; suppression denied |
| Sixth Amendment / access to legal materials & cross-examination | Any restriction was not shown to have hindered Perry’s trial rights; limited questioning was marginally relevant and properly curtailed | Segregation and limited library access impaired self-representation; court improperly limited cross‑examination (e.g., asking “what is a ‘blob’?”) | Claim forfeited and, on the merits, no showing of prejudice; evidentiary ruling and limits did not violate confrontation rights |
| ACCA predicate: whether Minnesota first-degree aggravated robbery is a "violent felony" | Aggravated robbery satisfies ACCA’s force element | Argues it does not qualify | Court affirmed that Minn. Stat. §609.245(1) categorically qualifies as a violent felony under ACCA |
| ACCA: whether robbery and subsequent shooting were on the same "occasion" (count separately) | The robbery and later shooting involved different victims, locations, and a temporal separation—thus separate occasions | The shooting was part of the same continuous episode/evasion from the robbery and should be one occasion | Court held they were separate occasions (different victim/aggression, different place/time) so both count as ACCA predicates; domestic-assault enhancement also properly counted |
Key Cases Cited
- Minnesota v. Dickerson, 508 U.S. 366 (search incident to arrest/suppression standard)
- District of Columbia v. Wesby, 138 S. Ct. 577 (probable cause assessed by totality of circumstances)
- United States v. Adams, 346 F.3d 1165 (probable-cause timing of arrest rule)
- United States v. Gunnell, 775 F.3d 1079 (standard of review cited)
- United States v. Oakley, 153 F.3d 696 (probable cause and mens rea context)
- Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466 (facts increasing penalty must be submitted to a jury)
- Alleyne v. United States, 570 U.S. 99 (mandatory minimum facts and jury-trial rule)
- Mathis v. United States, 136 S. Ct. 2243 (limits on judicial factfinding about prior convictions)
- Descamps v. United States, 570 U.S. 254 (limits judicial use of underlying facts of prior convictions)
- Shepard v. United States, 544 U.S. 13 (permissible documents for identifying prior offense of conviction)
- United States v. Willoughby, 653 F.3d 738 (three-factor test for "different occasions")
- United States v. Libby, 880 F.3d 1011 (Minnesota aggravated robbery is an ACCA violent felony)