United States v. Thompson/Center Arms Co. - 504 U.S. 505, 112 S. Ct. 2102 (1992)

Rule:

Although the National Firearms Act, 26 U.S.C.S. § 5849, is a tax statute construed in a civil setting, the NFA has criminal applications that carry no additional requirement of willfulness. Making a firearm without approval may be subject to criminal sanction, as is possession of an unregistered firearm and failure to pay the tax on one, 26 U. S. C. §§ 5861, 5871. It is proper, therefore, to apply the rule of lenity to resolve an ambiguity in the term "making" a firearm. 

Facts:

Respondent Thompson/Center Arms Company (“Thompson/Center”) manufactures the "Contender" pistol and, for a short time, also manufactured a kit that could be used to convert the Contender into a rifle with either a 21-inch or a 10-inch barrel. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms advised Thompson/Center that when the kit was possessed or distributed with the Contender, the unit constituted a "firearm" under the National Firearms Act (NFA or Act), 26 U. S. C. § 5845(a)(3), which defines that term to include a rifle with a barrel less than 16 inches long, known as a short-barreled rifle, but not a pistol or a rifle having a barrel 16 inches or more in length. Respondent paid the $ 200 tax levied by § 5821 upon anyone "making" a "firearm" and filed a claim for a refund. When its refund claim proved fruitless, Thompson/Center brought this suit under the Tucker Act. The Claims Court entered summary judgment for the Government, but the Court of Appeals reversed, holding that a short-barreled rifle "actually must be assembled" in order to be "made" within the NFA's meaning.

Issue:

Under a provision of the NFA, where pistol and kit allowing conversion of pistol into firearm are packaged as unit, is tax payment for "making" a firearm required?

Answer:

No

Conclusion:

 The court affirmed a judgment holding that under the NFA, 26 U.S.C.S. § 5849, which imposed a tax on anyone "making" or "otherwise producing" a "firearm," excluding a pistol or a rifle with a barrel at least 16 inches long. Thompson/Center owed no tax since it did not "make" a short-barreled rifle by packaging a pistol with a kit for converting it into a long or short barreled rifle. The court held that the pistol and kit did not fall within the rule; a manufacturer placing a gun together with further parts that have no use in association with the gun except to convert it to a firearm has not "made" a "firearm," since the parts could be used to assemble a long-barreled rifle. Nor did the evidence show that placing the converting parts with the others was "useless" except for the purpose of creating a "firearm," which would have brought it within the ambit of the Act. The court held that the statute was ambiguous in its use of the term "making" and "or otherwise producing a firearm," and since the statute was not just a tax statute, but had criminal applications, the court applied the rule of lenity to interpret it in favor of Thompson/Center.