Court Rules Against Felons in Gun Case

The Associated Press
Tuesday, December 10, 2002; 10:42 AM

The Supreme Court on Tuesday restricted the options of felons who want their gun rights restored.

The justices ruled unanimously that felons must go through a federal agency, even though that agency has been banned by Congress from processing requests.

A former Texas gun dealer tried to get around that by going straight to court. A lower court gave Thomas Lamar Bean his firearms license back, but Tuesday's decision took it away again.

Justice Clarence Thomas, writing for the justices, said that Bean could only go to court if his request was denied by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. The bureau didn't act on his application.

Thomas said the ATF, not a judge, was best prepared to look into whether an applicant could be a danger to public safety.

Felons are barred from carrying guns after their release from prison, but they can ask the government for an exception.

The justices rejected Bean's argument that the government's inability to act amounted to a denial.

Bean was convicted of violating Mexican law when officers found 200 rounds of bullets in his car during a dinner trip across the border four years ago. He said he'd told his assistants to remove the bullets.

The Bush administration had argued against Bean, despite the Justice Department's stance that the Constitution guarantees a right to gun ownership.

The case is United States v. Bean, 01-704.

[URL]http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A34681-2002Dec10.html]http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A34681-2002Dec10.html[/URL]

I still don't get why violating [b]Mexican[/b] law means anything in the US.

....and in the meantime, Mexicans violate our laws every God-given day and we feed them and take care of them before we send them back to their country.

side note: Bean? Mexican? anyone else see the humor  in this? what? just me? okay forget it.

HAHAHA! I can hardly wait for the collective right/subject to reasonable restrictions ruling the supreme court will give if they decide to hear the 9th circuit 2nd amendment case.

You all deserve what is coming. I will rejoice in seeing the steam rollers smashing your precious hobby guns.

Sadly, Imbro, I agree with your FIRST line.

Is it just me, or is Imbroglio's pithy humor getting more vile?

Get laid, or go shooting. Oh, yeah...never mind.

As for the BATF Holding all the keys and refusing to use them, that just sucks. What good are statutes and laws if the government picks and chooses which ones it will uphold or enforce?

"You must be taxed, and in return, we will represent you (if we feel like it)."