(UnitedVoice.com) – The Supreme Court expanded gun rights in 2022 which led to a review of restrictions across the nation. One of the laws that came under scrutiny was one from 1994 intended to keep people under restraining orders from obtaining guns. The high court has now issued a ruling in the case.
The case revolves around Zackey Rahimi, a Texas man who was prohibited from carrying a firearm after police arrested him for allegedly hitting his girlfriend and threatening to shoot her. A judge stripped him of his gun rights after finding he posed a threat to the mother of his child. The defendant also reportedly participated in five shootings in just two months.
The US Appeals for the Fifth Circuit struck down the prohibition that prohibited individuals under a restraining order from owning guns. The Department of Justice appealed to the Supreme Court.
On June 21, the SCOTUS released its decision in US v. Rahimi. The court ruled 8-1 that an individual who has been found by a court to be a threat to the physical safety of another can have their right to own a firearm temporarily restricted. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion, saying the law uses “common sense.”
During arguments in November, some of the justices expressed concern that upholding the Fifth Circuit’s prohibition might also jeopardize the background check system. President Joe Biden’s administration revealed that the system prevented over 75,000 people who were under a restraining order from obtaining a firearm over the last 25 years.
Justice Clarence Thomas was the only dissent in the case. He claimed the prohibition strips people of their “ability to possess firearms without any due process.” He also mentioned the 2022 Bruen decision, saying the government didn’t prove the law was consistent with America’s historic tradition of regulating firearms. Thomas said, “Not a single historical regulation justifies the statute at issue.”
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