Restoring the Armed Career Criminal Act
Restoring the Armed Career Criminal Act (H.R. 4334) is a bill that would rework how courts determine when a firearm offense involving a prohibited person (18 U.S.C. 922(g)) carries enhanced, long-term penalties. The core idea is to expand and tighten the criteria for “serious felony” convictions and then impose a mandatory 15-to-30-year prison term (with no suspension or probation) on individuals who commit a 922(g) offense and have three or more prior “serious felony” convictions from separate occasions. The bill also broadens which prior offenses count toward those three serious felonies by including certain additional sections of 18 U.S.C. 922. It applies only to offenses committed after enactment by someone with three or more qualifying prior felonies, and it explicitly states there is no right to challenge the sentence under the new provision. In short, the bill would make it much easier to impose long, mandatory prison terms on repeat gun offenders, by using a broader definition of “serious felony” (based on either a 10-year maximum or a total 10+ years across related convictions) and by including more types of firearm offenses in the trigger for enhanced penalties.
Key Points
- 1Restores and broadens the Armed Career Criminal Act by redefining what counts as a “serious felony” for purposes of enhancing penalties.
- 2Serious felony definition, for eligibility to the enhanced penalties:
- 3- A single felony with a statutory maximum sentence of at least 10 years; or
- 4- A group of convictions in the same or consolidated proceeding totaling at least 10 years in imprisonment.
- 5Enhanced penalties for 922(g) offenses:
- 6- If a person knowingly violates 922(g) and has three or more prior serious felony convictions (as redefined above), they face a mandatory sentence of 15 to 30 years in prison.
- 7- The sentence for the 922(g) conviction cannot be suspended or converted to a probationary sentence.
- 8Expanded triggers for ACCA:
- 9- The bill adjusts which sections of 18 U.S.C. 922 trigger enhanced penalties, specifically adding 922(d) into the mix alongside existing provisions, and clarifying the role of 922(g) with the exception noted in subsection (e).
- 10Timing and applicability:
- 11- The amendments apply to offenses committed after the date of enactment.
- 12- A person must have three or more prior serious felony convictions on the offense date to trigger the enhanced penalties.
- 13Legal effect:
- 14- The bill states there is no right to challenge a sentence imposed under the new subsection (e).