Summary
The Seventh Circuit reverses the Northern District of Illinois's dismissal of an indictment charging Glen Prince under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), holding that the statute cannot be declared facially unconstitutional under the Second Amendment. The court relies on Supreme Court precedent and decisions from other courts of appeals recognizing that § 922(g)(1) has at least some constitutional applications. The court reserves the question of as-applied challenges by defendants whose felony convictions do not suggest that firearm possession would be dangerous.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1) is facially unconstitutional under the Second Amendment after District of Columbia v. Heller, New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen, and United States v. Rahimi.
- Whether the indictment charging Prince under § 922(g)(1) could be dismissed on the ground that the statute is invalid in every possible application.
Holdings
- Section 922(g)(1) cannot be declared unconstitutional on its face because it is valid in at least some applications.
- The district court erred by dismissing the indictment on the basis that § 922(g)(1) is facially invalid; for a defendant such as Prince, whose felony convictions and alleged firearm conduct indicate danger, the general validity of the statute defeats the facial challenge.
Key quotations
“longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons” (at 2)
“But the one thing on which all courts of appeals that have addressed the question after Bruen agree is that §922(g)(1) is valid in many applications and cannot be declared unconstitutional “on its face.”” (at 4)
“As in Watson, we reserve decision on as-applied challenges by persons whose felony convictions do not suggest that firearms would be dangerous in their hands.” (at 5)
Factual background
Prince had prior convictions for armed robbery and aggravated battery. The conduct underlying the § 922(g)(1) prosecution involved accosting public-transport passengers with a firearm and demanding their valuables. When arrested at another public-transit station, Prince possessed a loaded semiautomatic weapon despite signs prohibiting guns at the station.
Procedural history
The Northern District of Illinois dismissed the indictment after concluding that § 922(g)(1) was facially invalid under the Second Amendment. The United States appealed. The Seventh Circuit reversed and remanded.
Remand instructions
The district court's dismissal of the indictment is reversed, and the case is remanded for further proceedings consistent with the Seventh Circuit's determination that § 922(g)(1) may not be declared facially unconstitutional.