Opinion ID: 672036
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: 1951 Felony As Predicate Offense Under 18 U.S.C. Sec. 922(g)

Text: 34 DeMatteo contends that his 1951 felony conviction cannot serve as a predicate for the offense of being a felon in possession of a firearm in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 922(g). 17 Because amendments to Sec. 922 generally do not have retroactive application, United States v. Brebner, 951 F.2d 1017, 1020-22 (9th Cir.1991), he claims that his prior conviction cannot be a predicate offense under the statute. Therefore, he contends that application of the statute to the predicate violation violates the Ex Post Facto clause of the United States Constitution. See U.S. Const., art. I, Sec. 9, cl. 3. 35 DeMatteo's claim is meritless. A criminal or penal law is ex post facto if it is retrospective and it disadvantages the offender affected by it. United States v. Alkins, 925 F.2d 541, 549 (2d Cir.1991). The critical question in evaluating an ex post facto claim is whether the law changes the legal consequences of acts completed before its effective date. Weaver v. Graham, 450 U.S. 24, 31, 101 S.Ct. 960, 965, 67 L.Ed.2d 17 (1981). A statute does not violate ex post facto principles where it applies to a crime that began prior to, but continued after the statute's effective date. United States v. Alkins, 925 F.2d 541, 549 (2d Cir.1991) (quoting United States v. Torres, 901 F.2d 205, 226 (2d Cir.1990)). 36 One of the principal aims of the Ex Post Facto clause is to ensure that individuals have fair notice of what conduct is criminally proscribed. Id. Courts have determined that Congress intended statutes prohibiting felons from possessing firearms to reach persons convicted of felonies prior to [the effective date of the statute]. United States v. Matassini, 565 F.2d 1297, 1307 (5th Cir.1978) (interpreting 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1202(a)(1), the predecessor to Sec. 922(g)); see also United States v. Jordan, 870 F.2d 1310, 1315 (7th Cir.) (although enhancement provisions of Sec. 1202 became effective in 1984, fact that defendants' underlying convictions occurred in 1970 and 1972 does not violate the Ex Post Facto clause), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 831, 110 S.Ct. 101, 107 L.Ed.2d 65 (1989); United States v. Sutton, 521 F.2d 1385, 1390 (7th Cir.1975) (no ex post facto violation where Congress proscribes future activities of persons who have in the past engaged in conduct Congress has the power to proscribe). 37 DeMatteo violated section 922(g) long after it became the law. Section 922(g) became effective in 1986. DeMatteo's possession of a gun from which the current conviction arises occurred on June 10, 1992. Regardless of the date of DeMatteo's prior conviction, the crime of being a felon in possession of a firearm was not committed until after the effective date of the statute under which he was convicted. By 1992 DeMatteo had more than adequate notice that it was illegal for him to possess a firearm because of his status as a convicted felon, and he could have conformed his conduct to the requirements of the law. Therefore, the Ex Post Facto clause was not violated by the use of a 1951 felony conviction as a predicate for a violation of Sec. 922(g). 18 38 After examining the appellants' other points, we have determined that they are without merit.