Deamonte Law v. United States

This Court’s decisions in N.Y. State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen, 597 U.S. 1 (2022) and United States v. Rahimi, 602 U.S. 680 (2024), require our district courts to engage in a history-based analysis when deciding whether a firearm regulation is part of the historical tradition that sets the outer boundaries of the right to keep and bear arms. To make this determination, a district court must determine whether the challenger or conduct at issue is protected by the Second Amendment and, if so, whether the Government has presented sufficient historical analogues to justify the restriction. Here, the Third Circuit addressed Petitioner’s as-applied challenge to the lifetime ban under 18 U.S.C. §922(g)(1). In doing so, it solidified the division amongst our circuit courts on whether that argument can even be made. The question presented is: Does the Second Amendment allow for an “asapplied” challenge to the constitutionality of Section 922(g)(1)’s lifetime ban?