What do federal gun charges carry?
Possessing a firearm as a prohibited person under 18 U.S.C. §922(g) carries up to 15 years since the law changed in 2022. Using or carrying a firearm during a violent crime or drug trafficking crime under 18 U.S.C. §924(c) adds at least 5 years on top of the underlying sentence, and that time cannot run at the same time as anything else.
- Section 922(g) lists nine categories of people who may not possess a firearm or ammunition.
- The maximum for a section 922(g) violation rose from 10 to 15 years in June 2022.
- Section 924(c) adds a consecutive mandatory minimum: 5 years, 7 if brandished, 10 if discharged.
- The weapon itself can raise the floor: 10 years for a short barreled rifle or shotgun, 30 years for a machine gun or a silencer.
- A second section 924(c) conviction carries 25 years, and probation is not available at all.
Most gun cases in Dallas start in state court. Some do not. Once a federal agency is involved, the numbers change, the rules change, and the sentence is built from the guidelines rather than a Texas punishment range. This article explains the three federal charges that come up most often and what each one carries. Peter M. Barrett has been licensed in Texas since 1994, has tried more than 150 jury trials, and is a Past President of the Dallas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (2005). See our Dallas federal crime defense page.
1. Possession by a prohibited person, 18 U.S.C. §922(g)
This is the charge people know as felon in possession, though a felony conviction is only one of nine ways to fall inside it. Section 922(g) makes it unlawful for any of the following to ship, transport, possess in or affecting commerce, or receive a firearm or ammunition:
- a person convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for more than one year;
- a fugitive from justice;
- an unlawful user of, or a person addicted to, a controlled substance;
- a person adjudicated as a mental defective or committed to a mental institution;
- certain non-citizens, including those unlawfully in the United States and most people admitted on a nonimmigrant visa;
- a person discharged from the armed forces under dishonorable conditions;
- a person who has renounced United States citizenship;
- a person subject to a qualifying restraining order that followed a hearing and protects an intimate partner or that partner's child;
- a person convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.
The maximum changed in 2022. Older articles, including the version of this page we replaced, say 10 years. The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act added 18 U.S.C. §924(a)(8), which sets the penalty for a knowing violation of section 922(g) at a fine, up to 15 years, or both. Check the date on anything you read about this.
Two points that decide many of these cases. Possession does not have to mean holding it, because the government can argue constructive possession from where the gun was and who controlled that space. And the government has to prove you knew you belonged to the barred category, which the Supreme Court settled in Rehaif v. United States in 2019.
Texas has its own version in Tex. Penal Code §46.04, a third degree felony, which bars possession for five years after release and then limits it to the place where the person lives. Federal law has no such time limit. The same gun can support either case, which is why the state carry rules are only half the picture.
2. The armed career criminal enhancement, 18 U.S.C. §924(e)
If a person convicted under section 922(g) has three earlier convictions for a violent felony or a serious drug offense, committed on occasions different from one another, section 924(e) turns the case into a 15 year minimum instead of a 15 year maximum. Whether an old conviction counts is a legal question about the elements of that offense, not about how serious it felt. It is worth fighting, because the difference is measured in years.
3. A gun tied to another crime, 18 U.S.C. §924(c)
This is the charge that drives federal gun sentencing. Section 924(c) applies to anyone who, during and in relation to a crime of violence or a drug trafficking crime, uses or carries a firearm, or who possesses a firearm in furtherance of that crime. The sentence is added to the punishment for the underlying offense:
- not less than 5 years for using, carrying or possessing;
- not less than 7 years if the firearm is brandished, which means displaying it or making its presence known to intimidate, even if it was never actually seen;
- not less than 10 years if the firearm is discharged.
The type of weapon sets its own floor. A short barreled rifle, short barreled shotgun or semiautomatic assault weapon carries not less than 10 years. A machine gun, a destructive device, or a firearm fitted with a silencer or muffler carries not less than 30 years.
A second section 924(c) conviction, after the first has become final, carries not less than 25 years, and life if that second weapon was a machine gun, a destructive device or silenced.
Two rules in section 924(c)(1)(D) make this the hardest number in the statute book to move. A court may not place a person convicted under it on probation. And no term imposed under it may run at the same time as any other sentence, including the sentence for the crime the gun was tied to. Everything is consecutive.
The article that used to sit here said a firearm used in a robbery could mean "up to 25 years" and that a silencer carried "up to 30 years." Both are backwards. Those are minimums, not ceilings, and the 25 year figure applies to a second section 924(c) conviction rather than to the number of businesses involved. We rewrote the page against the statute.
Why a case goes federal
There is no single trigger. In practice a Dallas gun case crosses over when one of these is present: an ATF agent was part of the investigation, the gun is tied to a drug case that is already federal, the firearm or ammunition travelled across state lines, the weapon is one the National Firearms Act regulates, or the person has a record that makes the federal exposure far worse than the state exposure. A federal case also means supervised release after prison rather than parole.
What a defense actually looks at
- The search. Most of these cases begin with a stop, a car search or a warrant. If the search fails, the gun usually goes with it. See our post on filing a motion to suppress.
- Possession. Whose gun, in whose space, with whose fingerprints or DNA, and who else had access.
- Knowledge of status. After Rehaif, the government has to prove the person knew they fell in the prohibited category.
- The predicate. A section 924(c) count stands on the underlying crime. If that crime does not qualify as a crime of violence, the count falls with it.
- The prior convictions. Whether an old case counts under section 924(e), and whether the record proves the offenses happened on separate occasions.
Common questions
How long is a federal sentence for felon in possession?
The statutory maximum is 15 years under 18 U.S.C. section 924(a)(8). The sentence actually imposed comes from the guidelines and the facts, and it is far lower than the maximum in most cases. If the armed career criminal provision in section 924(e) applies, 15 years becomes the minimum instead.
Can a felon in Texas ever own a gun again?
State and federal law do not match here. Texas section 46.04 bars possession for five years after release from confinement or supervision, and after that limits possession to the place where the person lives. Federal law under section 922(g)(1) has no such time limit. A person can satisfy Texas law and still be committing a federal offense.
Does a 924(c) sentence run at the same time as the drug sentence?
No. Section 924(c)(1)(D)(ii) says no term imposed under that subsection may run concurrently with any other term, including the sentence for the underlying crime. The same provision bars probation.
What does brandished mean in a federal gun case?
Section 924(c)(4) defines it as displaying all or part of the firearm, or otherwise making its presence known to another person, in order to intimidate that person. The statute says this applies whether or not the firearm was directly visible to that person.
Is a misdemeanor domestic violence conviction enough to lose gun rights?
Yes. Section 922(g)(9) covers a person convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, and section 922(g)(8) covers a person subject to a qualifying protective order issued after a hearing. Texas adds its own five year bar in section 46.04(b) for a Class A misdemeanor assault involving a family or household member.
The law this article describes, at the source. Every figure above can be checked against it.
This article is general legal information about federal and Texas law, not legal advice about your case. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws change, so confirm the current rule with a licensed criminal defense attorney about your specific facts. Request a free, confidential case review.