
Federal firearm charges carry some of the harshest mandatory sentences in the system — a single § 924(c) count adds years that must be served consecutively to any other sentence.
Section 924(c) makes it a separate federal crime to carry or possess a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking or violent crime, and its sentence stacks on top of the underlying case and must run consecutively. Multiple counts can multiply the exposure quickly. We challenge whether the firearm was truly connected to the offense "in furtherance" — a legal standard the government must actually meet, not assume.
Under § 922(g) it is a federal crime for certain people — including those with a prior felony — to possess a firearm or ammunition. If the government invokes the Armed Career Criminal Act based on prior convictions, the exposure jumps to a 15-year mandatory minimum. We scrutinize whether the prior convictions actually qualify, an area the courts continue to narrow.
Gun cases often turn on how officers found the firearm. Was the stop lawful? Was the search of a car, a bag or a home justified? If the firearm was recovered through an unlawful search, we move to suppress it — and without the gun, the charge frequently cannot stand.