Dallas Divorce Law Blog by The May Firm

Today the US Supreme Court released its opinion in US v Hayes, a decision out of West Virginia.  The questions is whether a person convicted of a crime against a spouse can later possess a gun.  Federal firearms laws prohibit a person convicted of a crime of domestic violence from later possessing firearms.  But, the distinction arises when the conviction is for a crime that does not specifically mention domestic violence as a charging element.  In Hays, the former husband was convicted of assaulting his wife-at-the-time, but the conviction was not for “domestic violence assault”, just “assault”.  Later he was found to have a gun and was charged with illegal possession of a firearm after a domestic violence conviction. 

The former husband appealed the conviction, noting a distinction between a conviction for a crime of domestic violence versus a crime of assault.

Justice Ginsberg, writing on behalf of the majority opinion, states:

Congress defined “misdemeanor crime of domestic violence” to include an offense “committed by” a person who had a specified domestic relationship with the victim, whether or not the misdemeanor statute itself designates the domestic relationshipas an element of the crime.

Thus, the US Supreme Court held that there’s no distinction between a conviction for assaulting your wife versus a conviction for domestic violence assault.  Both are prohibited from future possession of a firearm.