Whether a defendant must know his prior conviction qualified as a 'misdemeanor crime of domestic violence' under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9)

QUESTION PRESENTED Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9), a person may not possess a gun if he has been convicted of a “misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.” A “misdemeanor crime of domestic violence” is a misdemeanor that (1) has, as an element, the use or attempted use of physical force, and (2) is committed by a person in a specified domestic relationship. United States v. Hayes, 555 U.S. 415, 426 (2009) (discussing 18 U.S.C. § 921(a)(33)(A)). In Rehaif v. United States, 139 S. Ct. 2191 (2019), this Court held that in a § 922(g) prosecution, the government must prove that when a defendant possessed a gun, the defendant knew his status as a prohibited person—even if that means the government must prove that a defendant had knowledge of the law. The question presented, on which the circuits are split, is: Whether, in a § 922(g)(9) prosecution, Rehaif requires the government to prove that a defendant knew his conviction qualified as a “misdemeanor crime of domestic violence,” including that his prior offense had, as an element, the use or attempted use of physical force. i