Congressman Dan Goldman Fights to Protect Survivors of Domestic Violence Ahead of Pivotal Supreme Court Decision
Congressman Goldman Joins Colleagues in Filing Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Overturn Fifth Circuit Decision in ‘U.S. v. Rahimi’
SCOTUS Considering Appeal to Fifth Circuit Ruling that Allows Domestic Abusers to Obtain Firearms
SCOTUS Upholding Fifth Circuit Decision Would Allow Domestic Abusers Across the Nation to Obtain Deadly Weapons
Read the Amicus Brief Here
New York, NY – Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) today joined House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force Chairman Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-04) and Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) along with 167 other members of Congress in filing an amicus brief in the Supreme Court as they consider United States v. Rahimi. Congressman Goldman is urging the Supreme Court to overturn the Fifth Circuit decision that allows domestic abusers to obtain firearms.
In February, a three-judge panel on the federal Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the federal prohibition on gun possession for people subject to domestic violence restraining orders is unconstitutional. This decision has opened the floodgates for domestic abusers with a documented history of violence to obtain dangerous firearms. As it stands, more than 70 women in America are shot and killed by an intimate partner per month on average—and the presence of a gun in a domestic violence situation makes it five times as likely that a woman will be killed.
“The recent Fifth Circuit decision in United States v. Rahimi is unconscionable and will have fatal consequences for millions of Americans at risk of domestic violence and abuse from an intimate partner,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “This decision prohibits lawmakers from taking even the most basic and commonsense step to protect victims of domestic violence: preventing their abusers from accessing a deadly weapon. The Supreme Court must overturn the Fifth Circuit decision and allow for commonsense precautions that will save lives. The unconditional desire to own a dangerous weapon cannot be allowed to outweigh the value of human life.”
This case follows the Supreme Court decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen where the Court not only struck down an important part of New York’s concealed carry law but also required courts to evaluate gun safety legislation not in consideration of public safety but in the unsound consideration of the "historical tradition of firearm regulation.”
The defendant in United States v. Rahimi was suspected of five shootings in Texas between 2020 and 2021. Police searched his home and found multiple firearms. He had a domestic violence restraining order which prevented him from owning a firearm under federal law.
The New Orleans-based Fifth Circuit agreed to rehear his case after the Bruen decision and applied the new “history and tradition” legal test. The court found that the federal statute was not sufficiently similar to any historical laws raised by the government. While the prosecutor presented numerous historical laws that disarmed individuals dating from the colonial period, the Court continued to rule in favor of Rahimi.
Congressman Goldman is the Chair of the Dads Caucus Gun Violence Working Group and is a Vice Chair of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force.
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