Confession - Sufficiency of Evidence to Corroborate a Confession

United States v. Adams, 583 F.3d 457 (6th Cir. 2009)

The trial court erred in refusing to instruct the jury that it could not convict the defendant based solely on the defendant’s own confession, without corroborating evidence. The fact that there was other corroborating evidence does not eliminate the need to properly instruct the jury if a request is made.

United States v. Stephens, 482 F.3d 669 (4th Cir. 2007)

The defendant was arrested and found in possession of a gun. He promptly confessed that he had been involved in a drug deal and needed the gun for protection (and had actually shot at another participant in the drug deal). Though the police had heard the gunshots (this is what prompted the defendant’s arrest), there was no other evidence to establish the existence of any drug transaction. The evidence was insufficient to support his convictions of carrying a gun in relation to a drug trafficking crime and conspiracy to distribute cocaine.

United States v. Irving, 452 F.3d 110 (2d Cir. 2006)

The defendant was charged with a variety of crimes, including sex tourism. The government relied, on certain counts, on journals that were seized from the defendant and which purported to chronicle his illegal acts with minors in a foreign country. The Second Circuit held that the journals did suffice to prove his guilt on those counts when coupled with other evidence developed in the case. In the initial panel decision, 432 F.3d 401 (2005), the Second Circuit held that the journal was not sufficient, based on the principle that a defendant’s confession is sufficient, even without corroboration to prove his guilt of the crime if the corpus delecti is established in the confession and is reliable. See Opper v. United States, 348 U.S. 84 (1954). The Second Circuit has applied Opper to permit a conviction based on a confession if there is substantial independent evidence which would tend to establish the trustworthiness of the statement. In the rehearing decision, however, the Second Circuit held that there was sufficient corroboration of the journals.

United States v. Norris, 428 F.3d 907 (9th Cir. 2005)

Though the evidence was sufficient on other counts of the indictment, the evidence was insufficient on one of the indictment for which only the defendant’s confession established that he committed the offense charged.

United States v. Reynolds, 367 F.3d 294 (5th Cir. 2004)

The defendant was charged with robbing three banks. The victims never witnessed his possession of a firearm, however. When he was arrested he made the statement that he “always had that gun with him” and that he “never intended on using the gun either on a victim teller or on the police but on himself in the event that he got caught.” These uncorroborated confessions by the defendant were not sufficient to sustain a §924(c) conviction.