Criminal Defense Lawyers

Can I Get Bail on Federal Gun Charges

The short answer is probably not. The honest answer is that federal gun charges trigger some of the harshest pretrial detention rules in the entire federal system. If you’re charged under 18 USC 924(c) – using or carrying a firearm during a drug crime or crime of violence – there’s a presumption that you should be detained until trial. More than 80% of defendants facing that presumption never make it out.

Welcome to Spodek Law Group. Our goal is to give you the real information about federal gun charges and bail that you won’t find anywhere else. We put this on our website because most people have no idea how devastating a federal firearms charge can be – not just for sentencing, but for whether you’ll spend the next two or three years sitting in detention waiting for your day in court.

The statistics are brutal. In fiscal year 2024, over 2,500 people were convicted under 18 USC 924(c). The average sentence was 150 months – that’s 12 and a half years. And here’s what makes federal gun charges different from everything else: the gun sentence runs consecutive to whatever else you’re charged with. It’s automatic extra time. No exceptions. And getting bail while you’re facing those stakes is nearly impossible.

The Two Federal Gun Laws That Determine Everything

Theres two main federal gun statutes you need to understand. Everything flows from which one your charged under.

18 USC 924(c) is the big one. This is for using or carrying a firearm during a crime of violence or drug trafficking crime. The mandatory minimums are brutal:

• 5 years just for possessing the gun during the crime
• 7 years if you brandished it
• 10 years if you discharged it

These arent maximums. These are minimums. The judge has no discretion to go lower.

18 USC 922(g) is felon in possession. If you have a prior felony conviction and your caught with a firearm, this is what your charged with. Maximum penalty is 10 years, but it can go much higher with the Armed Career Criminal Act enhancement.

Heres the hidden connection most people dont understand. 88% of defendants convicted under 924(c) are also convicted of another offense. The gun charge is almost never standalone. Its a tack-on. Prosecutors add it to drug cases, robbery cases, any case were a gun was present. And becuase it runs consecutive, its devastating.

Think about what that means. You get 10 years for a drug conspiracy. Then you get another 5-10 years for the gun, running after the drug time. Thats 15-20 years instead of 10. The gun charge basicly doubles your exposure.

The Presumption Nobody Overcomes

OK so heres were bail comes in. Under 18 USC 3142(e)(3), theres a rebuttable presumption of detention for anyone charged with a firearms offense under 924(c). The word “rebuttable” sounds hopeful. It sounds like you can fight it. Technicaly you can.

But look at the numbers. Defendants facing the presumption of detention are held at rates exceeding 80%. That means less then 20% – probably closer to 15% – actualy get released. The presumption is “rebuttable” in theory. In practice, its an automatic detention order.

If your charged with 924(c), you should assume your not getting bail. Prepare for that reality. Plan your defense accordingly. Hope for release but dont count on it.

The presumption works like this. Normaly, the government has to prove you should be detained by clear and convincing evidence. But when the presumption applies, everything flips. Now YOU have to prove you should be released. You have to show your not a flight risk and your not dangerous. And your doing this while charged with a crime that by definition involves a firearm and violence or drugs.

At Spodek Law Group, Todd Spodek has fought these detention hearings for years. Hes watched the presumption crush defendants who had every reason to expect release. Stable jobs. Families. No criminal history. Dosent matter. The presumption is that powerful.

Consecutive Sentences – The Real Punishment

Heres something that separates federal gun charges from almost everything else in the criminal justice system. The 924(c) sentence runs consecutive to any other term of imprisonment. Not concurrent. Consecutive.

In most federal cases, if your convicted of multiple charges, the sentences can run at the same time. Your serving them concurrently. 10 years for this, 5 years for that – if there concurrent, you serve 10 years total.

924(c) dosent work like that. By statute, the gun sentence runs AFTER your other sentence. So its 10 years for the drug charge, THEN 5 years for the gun. 15 years total. No discretion. No exceptions. Congress designed it this way specificaly to maximize punishment.

And heres the other thing nobody explains. The federal system abolished parole in 1984. When a federal judge says 15 years, thats what you serve. The only reduction available is “good time” credit – about 54 days per year, which works out to roughly 15%. So your 15-year sentence becomes about 12.75 years with perfect behavior.

Compare this to state court. In many state systems, you can get parole after serving a fraction of your sentence. A 15-year state sentence might mean 7 years actualy served. A 15-year federal sentence means 12+ years minimum. Federal time is real time.

The Crime of Violence Debate

Heres were federal gun law gets complicated and were your specific situation might create opportunities.

To trigger the presumption of detention under 924(c), the firearm has to be connected to either a drug trafficking crime or a “crime of violence.” The drug trafficking part is clear. The “crime of violence” part has been fought over in courts for years.

The legal question is whether certain offenses qualify as crimes of violence. The definition requires that the offense either has physical force as an element, or by its nature involves a substantial risk that physical force will be used. Courts have struggled with this.

For example, is simple felon in possession – 922(g) – itself a crime of violence? Many courts have said no. Mere possession of a weapon, without more, isnt inherently violent. The Supreme Court addressed related issues in Delligatti v. United States in 2025, but circuit splits remain on various questions.

Why does this matter for your detention hearing? If your charged under 922(g) alone – felon in possession without a connected violent crime or drug crime – the 924(c) presumption might not apply. You might face a diferant legal landscape. Your defense attorney needs to analyze exactly what your charged with and wheather the presumption actualy applies to your specific situation.

How Prosecutors Use Gun Charges Against You

Heres an uncomfortable truth. Prosecutors use 924(c) charges as leverage. They know how devastating the mandatory minimums are. They know the consecutive sentencing rule. They use that knowledge to force plea deals.

The pattern looks like this. Your charged with a drug offense. The government adds a 924(c) count becuase there was a gun somewhere in the picture. Now your looking at your drug time plus mandatory minimum gun time. The prosecutor offers to drop the 924(c) count if you plead guilty to the drug charge.

Suddenly the math changes. Plead guilty to the drugs, get maybe 5-10 years. Go to trial, risk the gun charge too, and your looking at 15-20 years. The 924(c) charge isnt really about the gun. Its about making you afraid to go to trial.

Todd has seen this play out hundreds of times. The gun charge is the hammer. The plea offer is the escape hatch. Prosecutors know exactly what there doing.

What Actualy Works at the Detention Hearing

If your facing federal gun charges and you want to fight for bail, heres what you need to understand.

The presumption shifts the burden to you. You have to produce evidence that your not a danger to the community and your not a flight risk. This is almost impossible when the charge itself involves a firearm, but “almost impossible” isnt the same as impossible.

First, you need overwhelming evidence of community ties. Employment. Family. Property. Long residence in the area. The more stable your life looks, the less you seem like someone who would flee.

Second, you need a comprehensive release proposal. GPS monitoring. Home detention. Daily check-ins. Drug testing. Third-party custodian who takes responsibility for you. Property bond. Surrender of passport. Show the judge that every possible condition has been addressed.

Third – and this is critical – your attorney needs to challenge the government’s proffer. At detention hearings, prosecutors often just describe the evidence without actualy presenting witnesses. You can demand live testimony. You can cross-examine the case agent. Almost nobody does this. Those who do sometimes get diferent results.

Fourth, the legal issues matter. Is the presumption actualy applicable to your specific charges? Is the underlying offense really a “crime of violence”? These arguments dont always win, but they can shift the calculus.

At Spodek Law Group, weve won detention hearings in gun cases. Not often – becuase the presumption is that powerful – but it happens. The key is preparation, evidence, and knowing which arguments move federal magistrates.

The Armed Career Criminal Nightmare

If you have prior convictions, federal gun charges get even worse. The Armed Career Criminal Act – ACCA – creates a 15-year mandatory minimum for anyone convicted of felon in possession who has three or more prior convictions for violent felonies or serious drug offenses.

Read that again. 15 years minimum. For possessing a firearm. If you have the wrong criminal history.

The ACCA has been called one of the harshest sentencing enhancements in federal law. It turns a 10-year maximum offense into a 15-year minimum offense. And those 15 years are federal years – no parole, minimal good time credit.

For detention purposes, the ACCA makes everything harder. If the government can show you qualify for ACCA enhancement, your already painted as a career criminal. The argument that your not dangerous becomes almost impossible to make. Judges see the criminal history, they see the mandatory minimum, and they assume your exactly the kind of person the presumption was designed for.

First Step Act – Does It Help Gun Defendants?

In 2018, Congress passed the First Step Act, which was supposed to reform federal sentencing. If your facing gun charges, you might wonder if it helps.

The honest answer is: not much.

The First Step Act did change one important rule about 924(c). Before 2018, prosecutors could “stack” 924(c) charges in the same case. First 924(c) count: 5 years. Second 924(c) count in the same case: 25 years. This stacking could result in decades of mandatory time even for a single incident.

The First Step Act changed this. Now, the 25-year enhancement only applies if you have a PRIOR 924(c) conviction – not just another count in the same case. This was a significant reform for some defendants.

But for most people facing federal gun charges for the first time, the First Step Act dosent change much. The mandatory minimums are still there. The consecutive sentencing rule is still there. The presumption of detention is still there. The basic structure of federal gun law remains intact.

The Geography Problem

Heres something that will make you angry if you think about it too hard. Your detention outcome can depend partly on were your charged.

Federal circuits – the regional appeals courts – dont always agree on how to interpret the law. Questions like “is this offense a crime of violence” get answered diferently in diferent circuits. The same facts, the same charges, can produce diferent results depending on wheather your in the Second Circuit or the Ninth Circuit.

This isnt fair. Its just reality. Federal law is supposed to be uniform across the country, but interpretation varies. If your detention hearing turns on a contested legal question, geography matters.

Your defense attorney needs to know the specific precedents in your circuit. What arguments work in your district? What have magistrate judges in your courthouse responded to? These local factors can be decisive.

The Appeal Option After Losing

If you loose your detention hearing – and the numbers say most defendants do – your not necessariy stuck. You can appeal to the district court judge.

The appeal works like this. The magistrate judge ordered you detained. You file an appeal. The district judge reviews everything de novo – meaning they look at it fresh, as if making the decision for the first time. No deference to the magistrate. New evidence can be presented. New arguments can be made.

Some defendants win on appeal after loosing there initial hearing. Maybe more evidence became available. Maybe an employer stepped forward who wasnt ready before. Maybe your family gathered support letters. Maybe the district judge just sees things diferently.

But understand the limitations. Most appeals fail. The presumption still applies. The burden is still on you. And your sitting in detention while the appeal process plays out, which can take weeks. The appeal is a second chance, not a guarantee.

At Spodek Law Group, weve handled detention appeals were the district judge released clients the magistrate had detained. It happens. But it requires preparation, new evidence, and arguments that go beyond what was presented the first time.

What Detention Actualy Means For Your Case

Heres the part nobody talks about. Being detained on federal gun charges dosent just affect were you sleep at night. It affects your entire case.

Detained defendants plead guilty at higher rates. The pressure is immense. Your sitting in a federal facility, seperated from your family, watching your life fall apart. Prosecutors know this. They offer plea deals designed to tempt detained defendants – “plead guilty and you get credit for time served, you could be home in a year.”

After six months of detention? After a year? That offer starts to look good even if you have defenses. Even if you might win at trial. The psychological toll of pretrial incarceration is devastating, and prosecutors exploit it.

Detained defendants also cant help there lawyers prepare there defense. You cant go look at locations. You cant help find witnesses. You cant sit with your attorney in a normal office going through discovery. Every conversation happens in a jail visiting room with guards watching. The quality of your defense suffers.

And heres the cascade. Detained → harder to prepare defense → more pressure to plead guilty → worse plea outcomes. The detention hearing dosent just decide were you wait for trial. It shapes the entire trajectory of your case.

The Sentencing Reality If Your Convicted

Let me give you the full picture of what federal gun convictions actualy mean.

For 924(c) – gun during crime of violence or drug trafficking:

• 5 years minimum just for possessing the gun
• 7 years minimum if you brandished it
• 10 years minimum if you discharged it
• 10 years minimum if its a short-barreled rifle, shotgun, or semiautomatic assault weapon
• All of these run CONSECUTIVE to your other sentence

For 922(g) – felon in possession:

• Up to 10 years maximum
• 15 years MINIMUM if you qualify under ACCA (three prior violent or drug felonies)

The average sentence for 924(c) convictions in 2024 was 150 months – thats 12.5 years. And remember, federal time is real time. No parole. Maximum good time credit of about 15%.

This is why bail matters so much. Your not just fighting for the next few months of freedom. Your fighting to prepare for a case that could put you away for over a decade. Detained defendants facing those stakes make diferent decisions then defendants who can fight from home.

Common Mistakes At The Detention Hearing

Ive watched defendants and there attorneys make the same mistakes at gun charge detention hearings. Heres what not to do.

Dont walk in unprepared. The hearing happens fast – often within days of arrest. Some attorneys treat it like a formality. Its not. Every piece of evidence, every witness, every argument needs to be ready. You dont get a second shot at the initial hearing.

Dont just accept the government’s proffer. At detention hearings, prosecutors often describe what witnesses would say without actualy calling them. You can demand live testimony. You can cross-examine agents. Almost nobody does this. Sometimes it makes a diferent.

Dont focus only on the facts. The legal question of wheather the presumption applies is critical. Is your underlying offense actualy a “crime of violence”? Does the circuit law support your argument? These technical issues can be decisive.

Dont underestimate the importance of a release proposal. Judges want to know what conditions would address there concerns. GPS? Home detention? Third-party custody? Surrender of passport? Come with a comprehensive package. Show the court your taking this seriously.

What To Do Right Now

If your facing federal gun charges, the detention hearing is critical. You need to prepare for it like its the most important moment in your case – becuase it might be.

Gather every piece of evidence that shows community ties. Employment letters. Family support letters. Property records. Evidence of how long youve lived in the area. Anything that makes you look stable and rooted.

Prepare a comprehensive release proposal. List every condition you’d accept. GPS monitoring, home detention, third-party custody, drug testing, travel restrictions, passport surrender – all of it. Show the court your serious.

Understand the legal landscape. Does the presumption actualy apply to your charges? Are there arguments about wheather your underlying offense qualifies as a crime of violence? What do the circuits say?

And most importantly – dont wait. The detention hearing happens within days of arrest. Every hour matters. Evidence you dont have ready for the hearing might not help you at all.

Call Spodek Law Group at 212-300-5196. The consultation is free. The consequences of losing your detention hearing are years of pretrial incarceration. Federal gun charges are among the most serious in the system. You need representation that understands exactly what your facing.