Saginaw County Firearms Case Provides Major Property Rights Victory

For Immediate Release | June 20, 2025
https://olcplc.com/public/media?1750454608

Local law firm Outside Legal Counsel PLC achieved a significant victory today before the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, representing two Michiganders in their years-long case against Saginaw County Sheriff William Federspiel. The civil rights lawsuit, Novak v. Federspiel (Case No. 24-1278), involves a protracted legal battle over the non-return of firearms seized by sheriff's deputies in 2017. The court's decision issued on June 20, 2025 partially vacates the district court's prior dismissal of the lawsuit, allowing the three largest and most critical claims to proceed forward and reinforces the notion of private property rights under the US Constitution. A prior appeal reversed the same local federal judge's earlier decision to freeze the case.

In 2017, the Saginaw County Sheriff's Office seized fourteen firearms during a domestic-dispute investigation in Merrill, Michigan. Gerald Novak and Adam Wenzel, innocent owners claiming twelve and two of the firearms respectively, alleged that Sheriff Federspiel's deputies unlawfully retained the firearms after the related criminal case involving a family member concluded in 2019. Represented by Outside Legal Counsel PLC attorney Philip L. Ellison, the two men filed a federal lawsuit asserting violations of their Fifth Amendment (takings) and Second Amendment rights, along with other federal and state claims. The lawsuit was necessary after the Sheriff's office took the position that the longer we keep the guns, the better.

The district court in Bay City initially ruled in favor of Sheriff Federspiel on all the claims. Today, the Sixth Circuit vacated the ruling in part, permitting the innocent firearms' owners to proceed with their federal Fifth Amendment takings claims, Second Amendment claims, and state-law claim-and-delivery action.

This lawsuit is the first of its kind to hold law enforcement accountable for failing to return private property seized from innocent owners during routine police investigations. As a published decision, this opinion binds future federal district courts regarding the application of the Fifth Amendment Takings Clause, Second Amendment, and Michigan’s claim-and-delivery statute in cases involving property retention after criminal investigations.

"This victory at the Sixth Circuit ensures that all citizens can demand the return of their property and hold public officials accountable when they fail to do so," stated Ellison.

The Sixth Circuit's decision underscores the critical new role the Fifth Amendment plays in protecting property rights beyond real estate. It also advances novel arguments under the Second Amendment to safeguard the right to keep arms. By remanding the case to the federal court in Bay City, the federal appeals court paved the way for further discovery and proceedings to protect firearm ownership and challenge Sheriff Federspiel's inaction and indifference.

A copy of the Sixth Circuit's decision can be downloaded here.

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