Hey ConLaw gurus: Are people convicted of violating the DC gun law still convicted?
I have not read the Heller opinions but (with apologies to Derrick Smalls) I have a practical question:
Are people previously convicted of violating the DC law still convicted?
It seems that the majority opinion states that there has always been an individual right to bear arms in the Second Amendment. So the DC law has always violated the law. So any conviction could be considered void ab initio (void from the beginning).
Or, is a Constitutional defense an affirmative defense that is waived unless asserted?
Was there prospective only language in the opinion? I don't remember there being a bunch of retrials after Miranda or the like. I just don't know.
the closest analogy of which I am familiar is sodomy which was legalized by SCOTUS in 2003. People convicted before then are still felons, though the case for pardon etc is pretty strong.
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