Gun ban law for domestic violence offenders upheld

A federal law prohibiting anyone convicted of domestic violence from possessing a gun is a legitimate and constitutional measure to keep firearms out of the hands of people who might harm others in the household, a federal appeals court ruled Monday.

The law, as originally adopted, barred gun possession by those convicted of violent felonies, but was extended by Congress in 1996 to cover misdemeanor convictions of domestic violence, the most common charge for physical assaults in the home.

The ban is permanent unless the offender later gets a state court to erase the conviction from the records. Those convicted of misdemeanors in California can get their convictions erased after they have completed their sentences and persuaded the courts that they have "lived an honest and upright life" for a sufficient period of time.

The federal ban was challenged by a San Diego man, Daniel Chovan, who was convicted in 1996 of beating his girlfriend in their home and was sentenced to 120 days in jail, according to Monday's ruling by a three-judge panel of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.

Chovan tried to buy a gun from a dealer in 2009 and denied having a record, but was turned down after a background check, the court said. The FBI found videos online of Chovan and others shooting rifles, and went to Chovan's home after a new domestic violence complaint by his estranged wife in 2010 and confiscated four guns.

After his challenge to the law was rejected, Chovan pleaded guilty to illegal weapons possession and was placed on probation.

His appeal was based on the 2008 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that said "law-abiding, responsible citizens" have a constitutional right to possess and use guns in the home for self-defense.

Chovan said he had been law-abiding since his 1996 conviction, and noted that he was not charged with domestic violence based on the complaint in 2010. He also noted that California law imposes only a 10-year gun possession ban for those convicted of misdemeanor domestic assault.

But the appeals court said even a one-time perpetrator of domestic violence may no longer be considered the type of "law-abiding, responsible citizen" entitled to possess guns, based on evidence presented by the government. The evidence included studies showing that domestic abusers have high rates of reoffending - ranging from 35 to 80 percent - and often use firearms when committing the crime.

The evidence shows that people convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence assaults, like Chovan, "are likely to commit acts of domestic violence again and that, if they do so with a gun, the risk of death to the victim is significantly increased," Judge Harry Pregerson said in the court ruling.