The instant matter arises out of ATF's revocation of Thomas' federal firearms license due to his alleged failure to comply with the statutory requirements of the Gun Control Act of 1968, 18 U.S.C. §§ 921-931 ("GCA"). Specifically, Thomas seeks review of ATF's decision to revoke his federal firearms license based upon ATF's finding that Thomas committed willful violations of the GCA.
Thomas acquired his federal firearms license in 1992, and since he acquired his license, ATF has conducted various compliance inspections. (Rec. Doc. 13-1 at p. 2). For simplicity purposes, ATF provided the Court with the following chart, which details the timeline of ATF's compliance inspections of Thomas, along with the findings and outcome of such inspections, since he acquired his license:
| 3 violations (including failure to |
| properly maintain acquisition and |
| disposition records and to properly |
| Report of Violations and Warning |
| Letter issued to Petitioner |
| 2 violations (12 instances of |
| and 13 instances of failure to attach |
| ATF Form 5300.35 to Form 4473) |
| Report of Violations issued to |
| 8 violations (including over 20 |
| instances of either incompletely or |
| inaccurately filling out Form |
| 4473 s; plus a like number of forms |
| missing NICS authorizations; |
| multiple failures to maintain |
| acquisition/disposition log) |
| Report of Violations issued to |
| Petitioner; Requirements reviewed |
| with Petitioner who signed an |
| Warning conference subsequently |
| conducted with Petitioner |
| 11 violations (3 of [which] were |
| deemed willful: 2 sales to |
| prohibited persons; 3 failures to |
| obtain NICS background checks; 3 |
| transfers not recorded on ATF |
| Notice of Revocation, sustained |
| after administrative hearing |
See Rec. Doc. 23. ATF's revocation of Thomas' federal firearms license is based upon violations discovered during the March 30, 2015 inspection, which ATF alleges were mostly "repeats of errors/omissions Thomas had previously committed." (Rec. Doc. 13-1 at p. 13). Specifically, following the March 30, 2015 inspection, ATF issued a "Notice of Revocation" on August 21, 2015, which was based upon three of the eleven violations cited at that particular inspection. Id. at p. 5. After Thomas submitted a timely request for a hearing to contest ATF's revocation of his license, a hearing was held on November 17, 2015, in accordance with 18 U.S.C. § 923(f)(2) and 27 C.F.R. § 478.74. Id. at p. 6.
After considering the documentary evidence and testimony at the hearing, the hearing officer, Claude Maraist ("Maraist"), submitted a report to the ATF Director, Industry Operations ("DIO"), Mathew Wren ("Wren"), in which he concluded that Thomas had willfully violated federal firearms laws. Id. Wren then issued a "Final Notice of Revocation" on January 22, 2016. Id. Ultimately, Wren concluded that Thomas committed three willful violations of the GCA:
1) Transfer in Violation of Law
The Licensee, by and through its agents and employees, willfully sold or delivered a firearm on approximately two occasions to persons he knew or had reasonable cause to believe were subject to Federal firearms disabilities, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(d)(1) and 27 C.F.R. §478.99(c).
2) Background Check Violations
The Licensee, by and through its agents and employees, willfully transferred a firearm to an unlicensed person on three occasions, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §922(t) and 27 C.F.R. §478.102(a).
3) ATF Form 4473 Violations
The Licensee, by and through its agents and employees, willfully sold or otherwise disposed of a firearm to an unlicensed person without recording the transaction on a firearms transaction record, ATF Form 4473, on approximately three occasions, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §923(g)(1)(A) and 27 C.F.R. §478.124(a).
Id. at p. 7. Following the "Final Notice of Revocation," Thomas filed a complaint in this Court seeking review of ATF's decision. Thereafter, ATF filed the instant motion for summary judgment.
In its motion for summary judgment, ATF argues that it is entitled to judgment as a matter of law pursuant to Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure because Thomas willfully violated GCA provisions, subjecting him to the revocation of his federal firearms license. Id. at p. 1. ATF maintains that the revocation of a federal firearms license is subject to de novo review pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 923(f). Id. at p. 9. ATF further postures that an evidentiary hearing, which is not required in order for a court to grant summary judgment, is unnecessary under thesecircumstances because Thomas does not dispute the factual basis for revocation, nor does Thomas allege with particularity any facts that would cast substantial doubt on any of ATF's findings. Id. at p. 10. ATF argues that the issues for this Court to consider are whether the evidence in the record demonstrates willfulness with regards to Thomas' violations of the GCA and whether the cited violations, the existence of which are allegedly not contested, merited revocation. Id.
ATF further maintains that the administrative record demonstrates that Thomas willfully committed violations of the federal firearms laws and regulations. Id. at p. 12. ATF contends that when the evidence demonstrates that a licensee understands the legal requirements imposed on him by the GCA, but fails to abide by such obligations, his license may be revoked on the basis that he willfully violated the GCA. Id. In support of its willful violations argument, ATF first contends that Thomas transferred firearms to prohibited persons on two separate occasions. Id. at p. 14. ATF maintains that rather than dispute the violations, Thomas argued that these were mistakes. Id. However, ATF argues that even if these violations could be characterized as minor mistakes, this is irrelevant for purposes of GCA compliance, as there is no exception in the GCA for de minimis violations. Id.
In addition, ATF contends that it produced evidence of several additional violations at the revocation hearing, which included Thomas' failure to conduct a National Instant Criminal Background Check System ("NICS") background check and his failure to obtain a completed Form 4473. Id. at p. 16-7. However, ATF claims that it is not necessary for the Court to examine these additional violations if the Court finds that the transfer violations discussed above were willful and attributable to Thomas. Id. at p. 16.
Finally, ATF's motion addresses the quantity of the violations at issue. Id. at p. 17. ATF maintains that while there are at least eight individual violations cited on the ATF's "Notice ofRevocation," it is well-established that a single willful violation of the GCA is a sufficient basis to revoke a firearms license. Id.
In response to ATF's motion, Thomas pleads with the Court to show him mercy and reinstate his gun license. See Rec. Doc. 20. Thomas offers several explanations regarding a number of the violations and explains that he never "intentionally" transferred a firearm to a person whose clearance had been denied. Id. at p. 2-3. In addition, Thomas attached two letters of support that attest to his character and requests the Court's consideration. Id. at p. 4-6.
In its reply memorandum, ATF emphasizes how Thomas' violations have increased in both number as well as severity. (Rec. Doc. 23 at p. 2). In addition, ATF reiterates the willfulness standard under the GCA, arguing that Thomas' "lengthy track record of violations evidences plain indifference, rendering Petitioner's violations 'willful.'" Id. at p. 3.
