Background
Shaun Marqus Robinson was convicted of possession of a firearm after a felony conviction in violation of Section eighteen United States Code Section nine hundred twenty-two subsection G one. On appeal proceeding pro se, he argued that the statute violated the Second Amendment by impeding a citizen’s right to armed defense and violated various executive orders.
The court’s reasoning
The court concluded that further briefing was unnecessary. It determined that Robinson’s facial challenge to the statute was foreclosed by United States versus Diaz. Similarly, the court found his as-applied challenge was foreclosed based on his previous felony conviction for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, citing United States versus Betancourt.
What it means going forward
The decision reinforces the Fifth Circuit’s position that Second Amendment challenges to federal felon-in-possession laws are foreclosed by existing case law when the defendant has a prior felony conviction.
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