Background
Wesley Dylan Talmage Sims was convicted of possessing a firearm after a felony conviction, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1). The predicate offense was a Texas felony conviction for possession of a controlled substance.
On appeal, Sims argued that applying § 922(g)(1) to him violated the Second Amendment. The government conceded that his conviction had to be reversed even if he had not adequately preserved the issue in the district court and the Fifth Circuit reviewed only for plain error.
The Court’s Holding
The Fifth Circuit held that § 922(g)(1) violated the Second Amendment as applied to Sims. The court relied on United States v. Hembree, 165 F.4th 909 (5th Cir. 2026), which held the statute unconstitutional as applied to a defendant whose predicate felony was simple drug possession.
Because Sims’s predicate conviction likewise was for possession of a controlled substance, the court reversed his § 922(g)(1) conviction.
Key Takeaways
- Under binding Fifth Circuit precedent, § 922(g)(1) is unconstitutional as applied when the predicate felony is simple drug possession.
- The government conceded that reversal was required even under plain-error review.
- The ruling reversed Sims’s conviction rather than merely remanding for reconsideration of his Second Amendment claim.
Why It Matters
The decision applies Hembree to another prosecution based on a simple drug-possession felony, reinforcing that such a predicate cannot constitutionally support a § 922(g)(1) conviction in the Fifth Circuit under that precedent.
The opinion is unpublished, and the cited Hembree decision was the subject of a pending petition for certiorari when the court decided Sims’s appeal.