ROXANA HEGEMAN, Associated Press

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A federal judge has spared from prison two Kansas men convicted of federal firearms violations after taking into account their mistaken belief that a Kansas law can shield from federal prosecution anyone owning firearms made, sold and kept in the state.

The sentence handed down Monday by U.S. District Judge J. Thomas Marten still leaves intact the federal felony convictions against Shane Cox and Jeremy Kettler.

Jurors in November found Cox, owner of Tough Guys gun store in Chanute, guilty of making and marketing unregistered firearms, and found Ketter guilty of having an unregistered gun silencer.

Both men thanked the judge in courtroom statements for not sending them to prison.

The Kansas Second Amendment Protection Act says firearms, accessories and ammunition manufactured and kept within the borders of Kansas are exempt from federal gun control laws.