On Wednesday, founding Dysart Willis Houchin & Hubbard partner, Ryan Willis, won his second consecutive not guilty verdict in federal court. The client was originally indicted in the Eastern District of North Carolina for one count of attempted possession of a firearm by a felony. This charge, not generally accepted as an actual crime, was later amended to possession of a firearm by a felon and the case proceeded to trial. If convicted, the client faced up to ten years in federal prison.
Throughout the course of the day-long trial, the government alleged that the defendant tried to grab an officer’s gun during a struggle to arrest the defendant. In defense, Mr. Willis demonstrated that there was no evidence showing that the client ever possessed the gun and the government’s theory of “constructive possession” was unsupported by the facts. Ultimately, following a full day of deliberations after the close of evidence, the jury acquitted the client by returning a verdict of not guilty.
The verdict follows Mr. Willis’ last federal trial in August of 2019 where he similarly won a not guilty verdict for a client facing a firearm offense. Mr. Willis has also achieved recent success at the state level, having obtained two not guilty verdicts in separate state superior court felony trials in 2019. Over the last twelve months, Mr. Willis has tallied a total of four not guilty verdicts in state and federal trials.
The attorneys at Dysart Willis Houchin & Hubbard are proud of the favorable results they achieve for clients in state and federal courts across North Carolina and South Carolina. If you have questions about criminal charges, defense options, or trial strategies, contact our office. Our attorneys are eager to put decades of collective experience to work defending your rights.