Deontay Tyre Compton v. United States

Prior to this federal criminal case, Petitioner Deontay Compton’s only conviction of any kind was for carrying a loaded handgun in a vehicle. But see N.Y. State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n, Inc. v. Bruen, 597 U.S. 1, 10 (2022) (holding that “the Second and Fourteenth Amendments protect an individual’s right to carry a handgun for selfdefense outside the home”). That offense is a misdemeanor under state law, and Mr. Compton received a suspended jail sentence. But because the maximum available sentence was more than one year, the offense is classified as a felony for federal purposes and the conviction resulted in Mr. Compton’s complete lifetime prohibition against possessing firearms. He was later again found in possession of a handgun during a traffic stop and charged under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1). If he had been charged in the Third, Fifth, or Sixth Circuits, he would have been able to raise an as-applied challenge to the constitutionality of the statute. The Fourth Circuit and five other courts of appeals, however, have held that the law is constitutional in all its applications, even as to those with old or minor or non-violent prior convictions. Due to this happenstance of geography, Mr. Compton’s potential constitutional claim was entirely foreclosed. The question presented in this case is whether 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1)’s lifetime ban on firearm possession for all individuals previously convicted of any felony offense violates the Second Amendment, either facially or as applied to the Petitioner.