Man First In Nation Convicted Under Domestic Violence Law

(From For the Record, August 14, 1997): AP correction: William M. Smith pleaded guilty to the federal charge of possessing a firearm after having been convicted of domestic violence. Smith was not convicted of shooting his wife. A Wednesday Associated Press story about domestic violence on A10 stated otherwise.

A man who pleaded guilty Tuesday to possessing the gun he used to shoot his wife became the first person to be convicted under a federal law banning anyone with a record of domestic violence from having a gun.

William M. Smith, 21, of Cedar Falls was convicted of shooting his wife, Lauralee, in the back with a pistol during an argument last November. She was seriously wounded but survived.

Tuesday, he pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm.

Under the federal law that took effect Sept. 30, 1996, Smith faces up to 10 years in prison. No sentencing date has been set.

His attorney, Thomas Frerichs, said the guilty plea reserves Smith’s right to appeal the constitutionality of the federal law after Smith is sentenced.

Chief U.S. District Judge Michael J. Melloy has upheld the law, which carries longer prison terms than state laws.

Frerichs says he expects to appeal Melloy’s rulings to the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Had the case been brought in state court, the most likely outcome would have been a conviction for aggravated assault, which carries a maximum prison term of two years and could have been reduced by parole, U.S. Attorney Stephen Rapp said.

Rapp called the federal law “an effective tool to stop the escalation of violence which sometimes follows the first domestic abuse incident.”

In 1994, Smith was convicted of assaulting his wife, then his girlfriend, by grabbing her neck and throwing her to the ground.