WV GUN CASE BEFORE US SUPREME COURT

(11/11/2008)

A Second Amendment gun case that originated in Marion County is before the United States Supreme Court. The high court began hearing arguments from the 2004 case of United States vs. Hayes yesterday. The case revolves around a federal law that makes it a crime to possess a gun after a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence. The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to decide whether a misdemeanor of simple battery fulfills the definition of domestic violence. The Court will also decide if the law can be applied retroactively since the conviction of battery happened back in 1994 before the federal statute was passed. Charleston attorney Troy Giatras is arguing the case for Randy Hayes, the man accused of breaking the gun law. The case has already been heard in the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in 2007. That court agreed with Giatras's argument and ruled in favor of Hayes. The U.S. Department of Justice appealed the case to the Supreme Court, and the Court agreed to hear the case based on other federal court decisions that conflicted with the Fourth Circuit's assessment. A written decision in the United States vs. Hayes should come down some time before June 2009.

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