People with domestic violence orders can own guns, US appeals court says

A US appeals court on Thursday declared unconstitutional a federal law making it a crime for people under domestic violence restraining orders to own firearms.

The decision by a three-judge panel of the fifth US circuit court of appeals is the latest victory for gun rights advocates since a US supreme court ruling last June granting a broad right for people to carry firearms outside the home.

The court threw out the guilty plea and six-year prison sentence for Zackey Rahimi, who admitted to possessing guns found in his Kennedale, Texas, home after prosecutors said he participated in five shootings in December 2020 and January 2021.

Rahimi had been under a restraining order since February 2020, following his alleged assault of a former girlfriend.

A federal public defender representing Rahimi did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The fifth circuit is based in New Orleans, and its decision applies in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi.

It had upheld the federal law last 8 June, just over two weeks before the Bruen decision, but withdrew its opinion and ordered additional briefing.