(RestoreAmericanGlory.com) – On Tuesday, a federal appeals court, in an 11-4 ruling, determined that the federal government was not allowed to ban people convicted of non-violent crimes from owning guns.
The ruling came from the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and it is another win for gun rights groups, following the U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year that expanded gun rights and defeated a gun control law in New York.
The decision in Philadelphia is the result of a lawsuit filed in 2020 by a Pennsylvania man, Bryan Range, who was blocked from possessing a gun because he had previously pleaded guilty to welfare fraud. In 1995, Range pleaded guilty to committing welfare fraud, which allowed him to get access to $2,458 in food stamps. This misdemeanor has a maximum punishment of five years imprisonment. Range was only sentenced to three years of probation. In his case, he claimed that the prohibition violated his Second Amendment rights as set forth by the U.S. Constitution.
Peter Patterson, Range’s lawyer, stated in an email that they had been glad that the 3rd Circuit had decided to rule in favor of Range and that they had “faithfully” applied the previous decision of the Supreme Court.
Prior to this ruling, federal criminal law stated that any person convicted of a crime that is punishable by more than 1 year in prison would be blocked from owning guns. This includes felonies, but in some states, misdemeanors might also count. Previously, a federal judge had ruled against Range in 2021, but following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision, Range decided to appeal the case.
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