United States Third Circuit

A conviction for of violating the National Firearms Act by possessing an unregistered firearm (shotgun) and unregistered destructive devices (hand grenades) is affirmed in part, and reversed and vacated in part, where: 1) the evidence presented at trial was sufficient to prove that he was in possession of the hand grenades; 2) the Firearms Act was ambiguous as to whether it required defendant to register the gun at issue; 3) thus, applying the rule of lenity, there was no violation of the Act with regards to a 19th-Century shotgun hanging on defendant's living room wall; but 4) vacatur of the shotgun count had no effect on defendant's sentence.

Appellate Information

• Argued 04/24/2007
• Decided 10/25/2007
• Published 10/25/2007

Judges

• Before:  McKEE and AMBRO, Circuit Judges, ACKERMAN, District Judge.

Court

• United States Third Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• William T. Lawson, III, Esquire (Argued), Philadelphia, PA, for Appellant.


• For Appellees:
  
• Patrick L. Meehan, United States Attorney, Robert A. Zauzmer, Assistant United States Attorney, Chief of Appeals Seth Weber (Argued), Assistant United States Attorney, Office of the United States Attorney, Allentown, PA, for Appellee.