Cite as: 504 U. S. 505 (1992)
Stevens, J., dissenting
can circumvent the NFA by offering a collection of parts that can be made either into a "firearm" or an unregulated rifle. I respectfully dissent.
Justice Stevens, dissenting.
If this were a criminal case in which the defendant did not have adequate notice of the Government's interpretation of an ambiguous statute, then it would be entirely appropriate to apply the rule of lenity.1 I am persuaded, however, that the Court has misapplied that rule to this quite different case.
I agree with Justice White, see ante, at 523-524, and also with the plurality, see ante, at 511, that respondent has made a firearm even though it has not assembled its constituent parts. I also agree with Justice White that that should be the end of the case, see ante, at 524, and therefore, I join his opinion. I add this comment, however, because I am persuaded that the Government should prevail even if the statute were ambiguous.
The main function of the rule of lenity is to protect citizens from the unfair application of ambiguous punitive statutes. Obviously, citizens should not be subject to punishment without fair notice that their conduct is prohibited by law.2 The
1 See, e. g., Crandon v. United States, 494 U. S. 152, 168 (1990) ("Finally, as we have already observed, we are construing a criminal statute and are therefore bound to consider application of the rule of lenity. To the extent that any ambiguity over the temporal scope of [18 U. S. C.] § 209(a) remains, it should be resolved in petitioners' favor unless and until Congress plainly states that we have misconstrued its intent"); Commissioner v. Acker, 361 U. S. 87, 91 (1959) ("The law is settled that 'penal statutes are to be construed strictly,' . . . and that one 'is not to be subjected to a penalty unless the words of the statute plainly impose it' ") (citations omitted).
2 Ambiguity in a criminal statute is resolved in favor of the defendant because " 'a fair warning should be given to the world in language that the common world will understand, of what the law intends to do if a certain line is passed' " and because "of the seriousness of criminal penalties, and because criminal punishment usually represents the moral con-
525
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