Is Mr. Begay an armed career criminal?
That is what you and the Supreme Court will have to decide in this case. Specifically, this case explores what a “violent felony” is under the Armed Career Criminal Act (18 USC sec. 924(e)). What is at stake, as the facts will show, is the difference between 4 and 15 years in prison for many defendants convicted of DWI–driving while intoxicated. So let’s tell the story of Mr. Begay, a Native American from New Mexico. Important Facts and Law to Know In September 2004 Larry Begay threatened to shoot his sister, Annie Begay, with a rifle if she didn’t give him money. When informed that she didn’t have any, he repeatedly pulled the trigger, but the gun did not fire. She called the Navajo Dep’t of Law Enforcement while he was sleeping, and they found a .22 caliber rifle under a mattress in his room. In the US District Court for the District of NM, he pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm (violating 18 USC sec. 922(g)(1)) [His previous felony convictions fo
