DECISION RESTRICTS REACH OF U.S. GUN CRIME LAW

The Supreme Court on Tuesday limited the reach of a federal statute that requires stiff penalties for crimes involving a gun.

The 7-2 decision united both conservative and liberal justices. The justices said the law can’t be used to lengthen the sentences of criminals convicted of a specific attempted robbery offense.

The case before the justices involved Justin Taylor, who in the early 2000s was a marijuana dealer in the area of Richmond, Va. The government has said he sold large quantities of marijuana to other dealers who distributed it. In 2003, he and another man planned to steal money from a buyer, and during the robbery the accomplice fatally shot the man.

Taylor was charged with “attempted Hobbs Act robbery,” a federal crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison. He was also charged under a federal statute that outlines mandatory minimum sentences for using a firearm in connection with a “crime of violence.” Taylor pleaded guilty to both and was given a 30-year sentence, 10 years longer than he could have received for just the robbery charge.

A majority of the court, however, ruled that attempted Hobbs Act robbery does not qualify as a crime of violence and therefore that Taylor was not eligible for the longer sentence.

“Simply put, no element of attempted Hobbs Act robbery requires proof that the defendant used, attempted to use, or threatened to use force,” Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote for the majority.

The justices upheld a federal appeals court ruling that Taylor should be resentenced just on the attempted Hobbs Act robbery charge.