CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: Permanent Gun Ban for Individual Committed to a Mental Institution May Violate Second Amendment

     The federal Gun Control Act (18 U.S.C. § 922(g)) prevents gun ownership by individuals who HAVE BEEN involuntarily committed to a mental institution. There is a process for having rights restored; currently 31 states participate in a program which permits a state court, board, or commission to create a relief program. Clifford Charles Tyler lives in Michigan, which does not participate in the relief program. Tyler was committed in 1986 for several weeks for a depressive episode. In 2011, Tyler attempted to purchase a gun and was denied. He appealed to the FBI and was told that he had no recourse unless Michigan began participating in the relief program. In 2012, Tyler filed a lawsuit against county, state, and federal defendants, alleging that because Michigan has no relief program, federal law creates a permanent ban on his Second Amendment rights. He also alleged Equal Protection and Due Process violations. The district court dismissed his case for failure to state a claim, but the Sixth Circuit reversed and remanded to the district court, instructing it to analyze Tyler’s claims using an intermediate scrutiny standard to determine the constitutionality of the federal statute. Tyler v. Hillsdale Cty. Sheriff's Dep't, No. 13-1876, 2016 WL 4916936 (6th Cir. Sept. 15, 2016).