The Supreme Court Upholds A Gun Ban On Convicted Domestic Abusers

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On Monday morning, the Supreme Court upheld women’s basic rights and safety in a landmark abortion case (while striking down Texas’ extremely restrictive abortion law). And the highest court in the land also upheld a federal ban on convicted domestic abusers being able to get access to guns.

According to CBS News, the case concerns two men from Maine, who tried to argue that pleading guilty to misdemeanor domestic violence charges shouldn’t disqualify them from owning guns. The men also argued that since their crimes were committed “in the heat of an argument” and not with intention, a federal law banning them from owning a gun should not apply to them. The Supreme Court rejected such an argument.

One of the men challenging the federal ban pled guilty for simple assault in 2003 for slapping his girlfriend while drunk. In 2009, an anonymous person called in a tip that they saw the man, Stephen Voisine, shoot a bald eagle. He was then convicted for violating the federal law. The other challenger was charged with illegal gun possession under this statute after police found firearms at his house, as the Wall Street Journal reports.

The Wall Street Journal also reveals that the Supreme Court upheld the federal law in a 6-2 decision, with Justice Elena Kagan authoring the majority opinion. Along with its implications for violence against women and gun control, this case became notable when Justice Clarence Thomas made headlines for asking a question for the first time in 10 years during oral arguments in this case. His questioning involved underlining whether a misdemeanor domestic violence conviction really necessitates taking away someone’s constitutional right to bear arms, as encoded in the 2nd amendment. He redrew this association in his dissent on Monday.

(via CBS News and Wall Street Journal)

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