Opinion ID: 71470
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Second Amendment arguments

Text: Scroggins also argues that his conviction for possession of firearms by a felon, without any further showing of violent intent, violates his Second Amendment rights under District of Columbia v. Heller, ___ U.S. ___, 128 S.Ct. 2783, 171 L.Ed.2d 637 (2008). This claim was not raised below, and Scroggins does not contest that it is subject to review for plain error only. We find no clear and obvious error with respect to Scroggins's Second Amendment arguments because those arguments are foreclosed by our circuit's existing precedent. Prior to Heller, this circuit had already recognized an individual right to bear arms, and had determined that criminal prohibitions on felons (violent or nonviolent) possessing firearms did not violate that right. See United States v. Everist, 368 F.3d 517, 519 (5th Cir.2004); United States v. Darrington, 351 F.3d 632, 633-34 (5th Cir.2003); United States v. Emerson, 270 F.3d 203, 260-61 (5th Cir.2001). Dicta in Heller states that the opinion should not be taken to cast doubt on long-standing prohibitions on possession of firearms by felons, 128 S.Ct. at 2816-17, and we have reaffirmed our prior jurisprudence on this point since Heller was decided. See United States v. Anderson, 559 F.3d 348, 352 (5th Cir.) ( Heller provides no basis for reconsidering Darrington ), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 129 S.Ct. 2814, 174 L.Ed.2d 308 (2009). Scroggins presents no Second Amendment argument that our cases have not already considered and rejected, and he identifies no plain error on this ground.