US v. King, No. 18-50122 (11-6-20)(Korman w/Wardlaw & Hurwitz). Rehaif giveth and Rehaif taketh away. The defendant was convicted at a bench trial of being a prohibited possessor. The Supremes remanded, given Rehaif. The defendant argues the prosecution failed to produce evidence he knew of his status as a felon and his conviction should be vacated. The 9th recently rejected this “failure to prove an element” argument, characterizing the challenge as more like applying an erroneous legal standard in assessing guilt.  See US v. Johnson, 2020 WL 6268027 (9th Cir. Oct. 26, 2020). Johnson further held that harmless error review permitted looking beyond the trial record. A peek at the presentence report reveals that the defendant served prison sentences of over a year. Johnson controls here.

The decision is here:

https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2020/11/06/18-50122.pdf