U.S. Attorney and Maine Prosecutors’ Joint Statement Regarding Domestic Violence-Related Protective Orders and Firearm Possession

PORTLAND, Maine: U.S. Attorney Darcie N. McElwee joined Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey and Maine’s District Attorneys in a statement today to reassure domestic violence victims in Maine following a recent appellate court decision in Louisiana.

“In 1994, Congress passed Section 922(g)(8) of Title 18, United States Code, a law prohibiting firearm possession by individuals subject to a court order that restrains them from harassing, stalking or threatening an intimate partner or child. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in United States v. Rahimi recently ruled that this federal statute is unconstitutional. The Rahimi decision is not binding on the District of Maine, which is in the First Circuit.

While the Rahimi decision is reviewed, it is the position of the Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maine, the Maine Attorney General’s Office, and Maine’s District Attorneys, that this federal statute, and a parallel state law found at Section 393(D)(1) of Title 15 of Maine’s Revised Statutes, are presumed constitutional.

Domestic abusers in Maine should be aware that both statutes will be enforced.”

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