U.S. District Court: Some Felons Do Have Second Amendment Rights

By Dean Weingarten

On Thursday, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois held that some felons have the right to keep and bear arms. Larry Hatfield pled guilty to a non-violent felony 28 years ago and wants his Second Amendment rights back.

In his decision, Judge J. Phil Gilbrert wrote . . .

Plaintiff Larry Edward Hatfield wants to keep a gun in his home for self-defense. But the Government bans him from doing so, because 28 years ago, Hatfield lied on some forms that he sent to the Railroad Retirement Board: a felony in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1001(a). Hatfield later pled guilty to one count of violating the statute, an offense for which he received no prison time and a meager amount in restitution fees pursuant to a formal plea agreement with the Government.

Now, Hatfield brings this as-applied challenge to 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1)—the statute that bans him from owning a gun—on the grounds that it violates his Second Amendment rights. Hatfield embeds his argument in United States v. Williams, 616 F.3d 685 , 692 (7th Cir. 2010), which instructed that “[the Supreme Court’s decision in D.C. v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008)] referred …Read the Rest

Source:: Concealed Nation