United States v. Erik C. Schmidt

Ripple, Circuit Judge.

Erik Schmidt and his girlfriend were camping in a national forest in Wisconsin when a United States Forest Service Officer approached their campsite. The officer discovered that Mr. Schmidt, who had three prior felony convictions, had a handgun in his tent. A grand jury indicted Mr. Schmidt for, and he pleaded guilty to, one count of possession of a firearm as a convicted felon, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922 (g)(1). During a presentence interview with his probation officer, Mr. Schmidt communicated to the officer his belief in white supremacy, his hatred for minority…