No. 22-915
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Opinion by Justice Roberts
Date Rendered: June 21, 2024
Issue: Whether 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(8), a federal statute which prohibits an individual subject to a domestic violence restraining order from possessing a firearm if that order includes a finding that he “represents a credible threat to the physical safety of [an] intimate partner,” or a child of the partner or individual, is consistent with the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution.
Respondent Rahimi was indicted under 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(8), a federal statute that prohibits individuals subject to a domestic violence order (“DVO”) from possessing a firearm. The statute requires that the DVO contain a finding that the defendant “represents a credible threat to the physical safety” of his intimate partner or his partner’s child, or “by its terms explicitly prohibits the use” attempted use, or threatened use of “physical force” against those individuals. Rahimi admitted that the DVO against him satisfied those criteria, but that the statute violated the Second Amendment right to “keep and bear arms.”
The Supreme Court of the United States upheld the statute as constitutional. Specifically, the Supreme Court held that “when an individual has been found by a court to pose a credible threat to the physical safety of another, that individual may be temporarily disarmed consistent with the Second Amendment.” The Supreme Court reasoned that the Statute fit within the Nation’s historical tradition of enacting firearm regulations to stop individuals who threaten physical harm to others from misusing firearms.
Digested by Emily T. Cecconi