There must be something special about LEAP DAY.
Today, for the first time in a decade, Justice Clarence Thomas asked a question during the oral argument of Voisine v. United States in the U.S. Supreme Court. And, his question was drawn from an amicus brief we filed in that case!!! And ours was the only amicus brief filed in support of Voisine.
The Voisine case involves the infamous Lautenberg Amendment — under which a person who commits a certain type of misdemeanor may suffer a lifetime ban on gun ownership. Our brief challenged the power of Congress to abolish a person’s constitutional right to keep and bear arms for the commission of a misdemeanor.
Justice Thomas began delving into the issue, which then attracted follow-up questions by Justices Kennedy and Breyer.
We are not new to this issue. The first time that we raised this issue was in the Skoien brief in the Seventh Circuit, filed April 2, 2010.
Indeed, we have filed 10 briefs on the broad issue of MCDV violations over the last decade. To see them all, use that tag “MCDV” on the left column of our website.
Our amicus brief was filed for Gun Owners of America, Gun Owners Foundation, Gun Owners of California, U.S. Justice Foundation, Conservative Legal Defense and Education Fund, and Institute on the Constitution.