Background
Michael Anthony Rangel was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition in violation of Section eighteen United States Code Section nine hundred twenty-two subsection g one. The district court sentenced him to eighty-four months in prison. Rangel appealed, arguing that the statute is unconstitutional under the Second Amendment in light of New York State Rifle and Pistol Association versus Bruen. He conceded that current Tenth Circuit law forecloses this argument but sought to preserve the issue for potential future Supreme Court review.
The court’s reasoning
The court noted that in Vincent versus Garland, the Tenth Circuit previously held that Bruen did not abrogate case law upholding the constitutionality of the statute. Although the Supreme Court granted certiorari, vacated the judgment, and remanded for consideration of United States v. Rahimi, the Tenth Circuit on remand concluded that Rahimi does not undermine its earlier reasoning. The Supreme Court subsequently denied certiorari in the remanded case. Because there has been no change in Tenth Circuit law, the court affirmed the judgment of the district court.
What it means going forward
The decision maintains the status quo in the Tenth Circuit regarding the constitutionality of federal felon-in-possession laws, preventing challenges based on recent Second Amendment jurisprudence until the Supreme Court issues a new ruling.