Free Republic

On November 15, 2022, the United States Attorney in the Western District of Texas, Ashley C. Hoff, filed a Notice of Appeal to the United States District Court fro the Western District of Texas, Pecos Division in the case of USA v. Perez-Gallan. Previously, on November 10, 2022, Judge David Counts had issued a Memorandum Opinion dismissing the indictment to Litsson Antonio Perez-Gallan as invalid because it was unconstitutional under the United States Supreme Court decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association (NYSR&PA) v. Bruen decision, which restored the Second Amendment as a full-fledged member of the Bill...

Federal District Judge David Counts in the Western District of Texas has ruled the controversial federal law banning gun possession by a person who has been served with a restraining order for domestic violence is unconstitutional under the Second Amendment. The statute in question is 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(8). This statute makes it a crime to possess a firearm if the person is subject to a court issued restraining order about domestic violence. The maximum term of imprisonment for violation of the statue is up to 10 years in prison. The actual wording of 18 U.S.C. §922(g)(8) is this:(g) It...

It’s important to be aware that unexplained bruising in someone you know may be a sign of domestic violence or abuse. Your health providers are required by law to ask questions to make sure you’re safe in your domestic situation.

Since 1996, the so-called "Lautenberg Amendment" (named for its sponsor, Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ)), has banned the acquisition or possession of firearms by anyone convicted of a "misdemeanor crime of domestic violence." Applicable crimes are limited to those that have "as an element, the use or attempted use of physical force, or the threatened use of a deadly weapon" and that are committed by persons with a specified relationship to the victim, such as a current or former spouse or a parent. The prohibition applies no matter when the offense occurred and can include convictions that predated the 1996 law....

<p>A very close friend of mine recently discovered that he could not buy a gun, the feds delayed the purchase so long that the gun dealer sold it to him anyway.</p> <p>He later found out that he cannot own any guns because of the Lautenberg Amendment dated 1996.</p>

A federal appeals court has overturned the conviction of a Wisconsin man barred from owning firearms because of his criminal record, ruling the lifetime prohibition may violate Americans' Second Amendment rights and calling into question the future of a 13-year old gun control law. In a 3-0 decision on Wednesday, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ordered a trial judge to take a second look at the evidence that a 1996 federal law prohibiting anyone convicted of a "misdemeanor crime of domestic violence" is constitutional in light of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year that emphasized "the individual right...

<p>CHEYENNE -- A bill that would require Wyoming judges to warn defendants that they would lose their federal gun rights by pleading guilty to misdemeanor domestic violence charges received preliminary approval in the state Senate on Monday.</p> <p>The Senate unanimously approved Senate File 70, sponsored by Sen. Cale Case, R-Lander. The bill would also classify misdemeanor domestic violence as a serious offense requiring defendants to have lawyers.</p>

Associated Press CHEYENNE - The state of Wyoming says the federal agency that enforces gun laws was wrong to reject a state law that seeks to allow people convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence to regain their firearms rights in the state courts. Wyoming this week filed its opening brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals in Denver, challenging a ruling issued in May by U.S. District Judge Alan Johnson of Cheyenne. Johnson ruled against the state's claim that the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives arbitrarily rejected a 2004 state law allowing people convicted of domestic violence to...

<p>HARTFORD -- Laws that allow police to confiscate guns in cases of domestic violence will be better enforced with the help of a new centralized computer system, the state's victim advocate said Monday.</p> <p>In a 40-page investigative report, James F. Papillo also criticizes Shelton Police for not taking guns last year from a man accused of harassing, stalking and threatening his ex-girlfriend, who had a restraining order against him.</p>