United States of America v. William Robert Shepherd, III
April 2, 2026·24-60622·Per Curiam·By James Taylor
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the conviction of William Robert Shepherd, III for possession of an unregistered firearm. The court held that existing precedent forecloses arguments that the relevant statute violates the Second Amendment as applied to short-barreled shotguns.
William Robert Shepherd, III entered a conditional guilty plea to receipt or possession of an unregistered firearm, specifically a short-barreled shotgun, under federal statutes. He was sentenced to twenty-four months of imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release.
The court’s reasoning
The court relied on its precedent in United States versus Hernandez to foreclose Shepherd’s argument that the statute violates the Second Amendment as applied to his possession of a short-barreled shotgun. The court further noted that the failure of the as-applied challenge is necessarily fatal to his facial challenge to the same statute, citing United States versus Diaz.
What it means going forward
This decision reinforces the Fifth Circuit’s stance that challenges to federal firearm restrictions regarding short-barreled shotguns under the Second Amendment are foreclosed by existing case law.
