Case Caption: Eugene Roberts vs. People of the Virgin Islands Case Number: SCT-CRIM-2019-0051Date: 04/19/2022Author: Swan, Ive Arlington Citation: 2022 VI 10Summary: The Superior Court’s denial of a Rule 29 post-trial motion for a judgment of acquittal or, alternatively, a new trial is affirmed. Under the totality of the circumstances, a reasonable jury certainly could have concluded beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant possessed the necessary premeditation, deliberation, and malice to be guilty of attempted first degree murder. First degree assault occurs when a perpetrator assaults another with the intent to murder, as provided in 14 V.I.C § 295(1), and here the defendant pointed a gun at the victim and fired five times. In the Virgin Islands, a person commits unauthorized possession of ammunition if he lacks a firearms license but possesses, sells, purchases, manufactures, advertises for sale, or uses firearm ammunition. Here the defendant failed to preserve for appeal his argument concerning whether 14 V.I.C. § 2256(a)(1) was satisfied. He has not challenged the Superior Court’s ruling that the jury could have reasonably inferred from the evidence that § 2256(a)(2) was satisfied, and he does not dispute that the evidence established that § 2256(a)(3) and (a)(4) were satisfied. In addition, he has not established a prima facie case for an exemption under the statute. As a result, his conviction and sentence for unauthorized possession of ammunition will also be affirmed. The Rule 29 motion was correctly denied, and other argued errors were harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. Although there was sufficient evidence to convict this defendant of both first degree assault and attempted first degree murder, Titre v. People, 70 V.I. 797 (V.I. 2019), requires vacatur of the sentence for first degree assault, and the case is remanded for that purpose.Attachment: Open Document or Opinion