FIREARMS OFFENSES
In recent years the United States Supreme Court has reiterated the scope of the right to bear arms, protected by the Second Amendment to the Constitution. Notwithstanding this, hundreds of statutory and regulatory restrictions and requirements, just at the federal level, apply to the ownership and transfer of guns.
Roger Wilson has represented clients charged in multiple federal criminal cases with various weapons-related charges. The charges have included unlawful possession of firearms of certain categories without compliance with federal registration (and taxation) requirements (e.g., under 26 U.S.C. §§ 5821, 5841, 5861, 5871); unlawful transfer of possession of firearms in an alleged capacity as dealer, while lacking a dealer's license, under 18 U.S.C. Chapter 44; "straw purchases" unlawful under 18 U.S.C. § 922(a)(6); and transfer to or possession by "prohibited persons" of firearms in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922.
The federal administrative and criminal law governing firearms possession and transfer is quite complex, in part as a function of the complexity of the regulated firearms themselves. Courts have applied numerous due-process-based requirements such as that the defendant be found to have known of the existence of various circumstances that make their conduct unlawful. Combined with Second Amendment protections, these can create very real opportunities for the defense in these cases.
Roger Wilson has represented clients charged in multiple federal criminal cases with various weapons-related charges. The charges have included unlawful possession of firearms of certain categories without compliance with federal registration (and taxation) requirements (e.g., under 26 U.S.C. §§ 5821, 5841, 5861, 5871); unlawful transfer of possession of firearms in an alleged capacity as dealer, while lacking a dealer's license, under 18 U.S.C. Chapter 44; "straw purchases" unlawful under 18 U.S.C. § 922(a)(6); and transfer to or possession by "prohibited persons" of firearms in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922.
The federal administrative and criminal law governing firearms possession and transfer is quite complex, in part as a function of the complexity of the regulated firearms themselves. Courts have applied numerous due-process-based requirements such as that the defendant be found to have known of the existence of various circumstances that make their conduct unlawful. Combined with Second Amendment protections, these can create very real opportunities for the defense in these cases.
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