Third Circuit Deems Federal Felon-in-Possession Law Unconstitutional

Earlier this month, the Third Circuit, sitting en banc, found the federal felon-in-possession statute unconstitutional as applied. The decision was based on the new interpretive approach announced in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, 597 U.S. __, 142 S. Ct. 2111 (2022). The Third Circuit’s ruling is a massive decision that seems virtually certain to be reviewed by the Supreme Court. Keep reading for more details. The shortest possible recap of Bruen. In District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008), the Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to bear arms for lawful purposes like self-defense. In Bruen, the Court held that gun restrictions are constitutional only if they are consistent with our nation’s historical tradition of gun regulations. The burden is on the party defending a law to show that there were analogous, though not necessarily identical, regulations in place during the Founding era. As detailed in earlier posts here and here, Bruen represents a major shift in how Second Amendment claims must be analyzed, and it has sparked a great deal of litigation. The background of Range. The Third Circuit case is Range v. Attorney General, __ F.3d __ (3d Cir. 2023) (en banc). The facts are not in dispute. Bryan Range pled guilty in Pennsylvania state court in 1995 to making a false statement to obtain $2,458 worth of food stamps. He could have received up to five years in prison for the offense, but was actually sentenced to [...]