Supreme Court limits dual charges in overlapping gun statutes

WASHINGTON (TNND) — The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday clarified how federal gun statutes apply when a single act potentially violates two overlapping provisions, holding that prosecutors may not secure separate convictions under both statutes when one act triggers identical criminal elements.

The decision in Barrett v. United States (No. 24-5774) reversed part of a lower court’s judgment and sharply restricts the government’s ability to secure cumulative punishments for a single criminal act involving guns.

Background of the Case

The case stems from the prosecution of Dwayne Barrett, who was convicted in federal district court of robbery and related gun offenses.

According to court documents, Barrett committed a series of robberies between August 2011 and January 2012. During one, Barrett’s confederate shot and killed Gamar Dafalla.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) previously said Barrett, as well as a co-defendant, were convicted in March 2013 of murder, robberies, and gun charges after a two-week jury

During the commission of the underlying crime, Barrett carried and used a gun, conduct that prosecutors charged under two separate provisions of federal law, including one that makes it a crime to use or carry a gun during and in relation to a crime of violence or drug trafficking, as well as other that escalates the penalty where a person causes death while committing an offense, potentially exposing a defendant to life imprisonment or even the death penalty.

At trial and on appeal, the government argued that Barrett could be convicted under both statutes for the same act, essentially treating the gun use that caused Dafalla’s death as a basis for two separate convictions.