Second Amendment challenge to felon-in-possession conviction
Especially in light of my hunting post yesterday, I was very intrigued to see this morning’s New York Sun article headlined “Convicted Felon Tests Second Amendment.” Here are excerpts:
Current federal law prevents felons from keeping a firearm. [Damon] Lucky, already a felon twice over, was convicted this year of violating that law. His court motion seeks to have that conviction tossed out on the grounds that the law violates the Second Amendment.
At its essence, the question before the Supreme Court in an upcoming case is whether the Second Amendment gives individuals the right to own guns or grants only a collective right to form militias. Even some proponents of the individual rights position say the Second Amendment allows for some gun control, like laws that prevent felons from owning firearms.
[Lucky’s lawyer Harry] Batchelder conceded that the motion is a long shot. Still, few defendants in gun possession cases in New York ever raise a Second Amendment argument. Except for Lucky, Mr. Batchelder said, “they all go away quietly.”
It’s possible, several lawyers say, that Lucky’s case is the only challenge currently in court in New York City claiming that the Second Amendment provides for an individual right to own a gun. Mr. Batchelder, an ex-military man, described Lucky as “the recon scout for the Second Amendment.”…
In Lucky’s legal motion, Mr. Batchelder refers to the gun rights advocates as “Paineists,” and the gun control advocates as “Stalinist collectivists.” Yet the lawyer says he personally favors gun control. “But my personal views have nothing to do with what I advocate,” Mr. Batchelder said. “Otherwise, I wouldn’t be advocating for too many people.”
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