The Bag That Never Left Him

A police sergeant had met the Accused ten days earlier. Off duty in his own vehicle a week later, he happened to see him drive alone into a pawn shop parking lot while prohibited from driving. Closed-circuit footage from the pawn shop showed the Accused wearing a black shoulder satchel slung across his body, resting at his right hip, with a distinctive metallic zipper. A week after that, courthouse video tracked the same satchel through the building. Officers entered the probation office, steps from the sheriffs' office, and arrested him. He was seated beside a woman who was carrying a purse of her own. A search of the satchel incident to arrest produced a loaded 9mm handgun; a switchblade was on his person. The only real issue at trial was whether he knew what was inside the bag.