Of Arms and the Law

Navigation
About Me
Contact Me
Archives
XML Feed
Home


Law Review Articles
Firearm Owner's Protection Act
Armed Citizens, Citizen Armies
2nd Amendment & Historiography
The Lecture Notes of St. George Tucker
Original Popular Understanding of the 14th Amendment
Originalism and its Tools


2nd Amendment Discussions

1982 Senate Judiciary Comm. Report
2004 Dept of Justice Report
US v. Emerson (5th Cir. 2001)

Click here to join the NRA (or renew your membership) online! Special discount: annual membership $25 (reg. $35) for a great magazine and benefits.

Recommended Websites
Ammo.com, deals on ammunition
Scopesfield: rifle scope guide
Ohioans for Concealed Carry
Clean Up ATF (heartburn for headquarters)
Concealed Carry Today
Knives Infinity, blades of all types
Buckeye Firearms Association
NFA Owners' Association
Leatherman Multi-tools And Knives
The Nuge Board
Dave Kopel
Steve Halbrook
Gunblog community
Dave Hardy
Bardwell's NFA Page
2nd Amendment Documentary
Clayton Cramer
Constitutional Classics
Law Reviews
NRA news online
Sporting Outdoors blog
Blogroll
Instapundit
Upland Feathers
Instapunk
Volokh Conspiracy
Alphecca
Gun Rights
Gun Trust Lawyer NFA blog
The Big Bore Chronicles
Good for the Country
Knife Rights.org
Geeks with Guns
Hugh Hewitt
How Appealing
Moorewatch
Moorelies
The Price of Liberty
Search
Email Subscription
Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

 

Credits
Powered by Movable Type 6.8.3
Site Design by Sekimori

« Fred Thompson quotes Don Kates on the 2d Amendment! | Main | Arizona »

Wyoming suit vs. BATF shot down

Posted by David Hardy · 10 May 2007 09:21 PM

Details here.

Gist of the suit: Wyoming had a statute allowing persons convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence to get their convictions "enpunged." As in a lot of states, that didn't mean the Court ordered the file shredded. It remained on the books, and could be used to enhance sentencing in a second offense. The 1986 amendment to the Gun Control Act said that a conviction for purposes of GCA did not include a conviction which the court had expunged. ATF said the state statute did not qualify, since the records were not really destroyed and the conviction had continuing legal effect. Wyoming said the statute said they were "expunged" (or set aside, now I forget the language) and that should suffice. The court of appeals agreed with BATF.

Not to ramble, but I had a hand in drafting the 1986 amendments. Maybe I'll tell the story someday. It was pretty wild at times. I recall there was then a movement to have states adopt procedures so that people could get rid of misdemeanors and even felonies to a greater or lesser degree, but still keep them around just in case they erred again. I think it hadn't caught hold quite yet, but there was the federal Youth Corrections Act. Unfortunately, I can't just now recall whether under the YCA the records were actually destroyed, and the legal effect vacated, or not.

2 Comments | Leave a comment

straightarrow | May 11, 2007 12:33 PM | Reply

of course Wy. lost. This is what happens when you want it both ways. Somebody will use it against you. If Wy. had done what the said and actually expunged they would have won. Control is hard to give up and they just couldn't do it, now it is taken from them by another and the control will be practiced against them.

Bpaul | May 13, 2007 1:50 PM | Reply

Dave,

The article says it was a District judge and not the court of appeals which is what you wrote. Which is correct??

Leave a comment