United States of America v. Christopher Acevedao, aka Essay

Brooklyn, New York criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with murder.



After a jury trial, Defendant-Appellant Christopher Acevedo was convicted of murder in aid of racketeering, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1959(a)(1), and causing the death of the victim through the use of a firearm, in violation of 18 U.S.C.§ 924(j). Acevedo appeals, submitting both counseled and self-represented briefs.



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Taken in the light most favorable to the government, the evidence showed Acevedo alone getting into the white BMW, which is owned by his mother. The BMW is then seen on multiple cameras as it travels the streets for about twenty minutes; there is no evidence that anyone got into or out of the car in the course of its travels. Meanwhile, cell phone locationata shows Acevedo's phone traveling generally in the direction of the shooting site, and forensic evidence shows his phone connected to the BMW by Bluetooth just before and after the murder. Twelve bullets were fired from the BMW into the car where the victim sat. A jury could reasonably infer from the video of the shooting that the shooter was sitting

in the driver's seat, extending the shooting arm across the passenger seat and out the open window. After the shooting, Acevedo's girlfriend left the BMW, covered by a tarp, at a residence in Roosevelt, NY. She also gave a bag to her co-worker, which the co-worker and another man both testified they believed, based on their observations of the opaque bag, held a gun. From this evidence, a jury could reasonably find beyond a reasonable doubt that Acevedo committed the murder

and did so using a firearm.

Affirmed