Living with a convicted felon

[ftncityfatboy]

not sure where to post this, but i decided to post it here. say someone is legal to own a firearm however they live with someone who is a convicted felon. knowing that the convicted felon cannot own a firearm, what's the rule on having firearms in the house of the felon? can the felon shoot a firearm if its on his/her property (in county where shooting is legal)????? Can someone give me some guidance??? Thanks

[Rightwinger]

Ms. Liddy owns all the firearms in G. Gordon Liddy's home. I'll let the lawyers step in for the facts though. I just heard it on the radio.

[Guest Revelator]

A felon should not live in a house where there are guns. They could be found to be in constructive possession, which legally is just as liable as actual possession. (Felons can't just not own guns, they can't possess them either.) As for them shooting the gun, even on their own property, that is definitely a big no-no.

[Guest JLowe]

A felon should not live in a house where there are guns. They could be found to be in constructive possession, which legally is just as liable as actual possession. (Felons can't just not own guns, they can't possess them either.) As for them shooting the gun, even on their own property, that is definitely a big no-no.

What he said. Plus the ammunition too. If something occurred where even a bullet was found to be in the felons possession, a conviction would get them 5 years for each bullet 1 day at a time. You may want to look it up, but I don't believe that it would even be a defense in court if the felon used the firearm in self-defense inside the home or on the property. Once again, don't quote me on that, look it up.

[BryanP]

Ms. Liddy owns all the firearms in G. Gordon Liddy's home. I'll let the lawyers step in for the facts though. I just heard it on the radio.

I've always suspected that story Liddy tells is utter BS.

[Mike.357]

so in the OPs scenario who is in violation?

Just the felon for being in a home with guns, or the home owner as well for allowing the felon to be there?

[BryanP]

If I were in a position where I had no choice but to live with a convicted felon I would do two things:

1) Drop a few bucks on an hour of a lawyer's time. Find out what the law says, not what an internet gun board thinks.

2) Assuming he still has to see one, get a letter from the felon's parole officer explaining what they think has to be done.

Barring either of these, I wouldn't bring my firearms into a home with a felon. Store them somewhere else.

[Fallguy]

FWIW

Post 3 was from a lawyer...

Post 4 was from a LEO....

Granted neither know the details other than what is in the post, but their thoughts may carry more weight than some.

Edited June 8, 2009 by Fallguy

[Guest JLowe]

FWIW

Post 3 was from a lawyer...

Post 4 was from a LEO....

Granted neither now the details other than what is in the post, but there thoughts may carry more weight than some.

Thanks man, I appreciate that.

Mike, I don't believe that the gun owner would have any issues as they are just exercising their rights and are not the one barred from owning or using a firearm. Its up to the felon to make the proper choices and know when they may or may not be in violation.

Most lawyers will provide the information for free. The DAs office will too, but that might be kinda like calling the Police and telling them someone stole some of your marijuana plants.

Absolutely contact or have the felon contact their parole officer, if they are still on parole. If they have flattened their sentence, they are no longer "being guided" by anyone other than themselves.

Oh yeah, BTW I have successfully prosecuted several felons who wished to exercise their "rights" that they no longer have by possessing firearms and ammunition. State level is not that bad as far as time given, Federal level is quite a different story though. Lots of time to think about it.

[BryanP]

FWIW

Post 3 was from a lawyer...

Post 4 was from a LEO....

Granted neither now the details other than what is in the post, but there thoughts may carry more weight than some.

True, and I'm not disparaging them or their information at all. I'm saying that if I were in his situation I wouldn't go forward without proof that I had consulted (paid for an official opinion) a lawyer, and ideally got a letter from the parole officer.

[Fallguy]

True, and I'm not disparaging them or their information at all. I'm saying that if I were in his situation I wouldn't go forward without proof that I had consulted (paid for an official opinion) a lawyer, and ideally got a letter from the parole officer.

I can't argue with that....

[Guest JLowe]

True, and I'm not disparaging them or their information at all. I'm saying that if I were in his situation I wouldn't go forward without proof that I had consulted (paid for an official opinion) a lawyer, and ideally got a letter from the parole officer.

I agree completely. The only person who you can get an "papered opinion" that is going to count though is the DA's office in the area in which you live. Like I said before, the parole officer can only be helpful if the felon is still on parole and they can't give a more legal opinion than the DA's office. I would personally call or write a letter to the States Attorney General and the U.S. District Attorney General and ask for an opinion as well, due to the fact that the crime could be prosecuted in either court.

[ftncityfatboy]

A felon should not live in a house where there are guns. They could be found to be in constructive possession, which legally is just as liable as actual possession. (Felons can't just not own guns, they can't possess them either.) As for them shooting the gun, even on their own property, that is definitely a big no-no.

What he said. Plus the ammunition too. If something occurred where even a bullet was found to be in the felons possession, a conviction would get them 5 years for each bullet 1 day at a time. You may want to look it up, but I don't believe that it would even be a defense in court if the felon used the firearm in self-defense inside the home or on the property. Once again, don't quote me on that, look it up.

Not completely knowing the in's and out's of the law, but are there time limitations on felony convictions? Say, if someone was convicted of a felony drug charge 10 - 15 years ago, does that follow them for the rest of their lives and therefore can never own, operated, handle, or be around firearms? I ask this question because someone I was having a discussion with the other day stated they might move in with someone who has a felony conviction from back when, and they might want to take a firearm because they live in BFE and they feel they need protection. I noted they should first check to see what the law states, and in the meantime i would throw it out here and see what returned. Thanks for all replies.

[Guest FroggyOne2]

Tell your friend, the best thing is not to move in with the ex-con.

[Guest JLowe]

Not completely knowing the in's and out's of the law, but are there time limitations on felony convictions? Say, if someone was convicted of a felony drug charge 10 - 15 years ago, does that follow them for the rest of their lives and therefore can never own, operated, handle, or be around firearms? I ask this question because someone I was having a discussion with the other day stated they might move in with someone who has a felony conviction from back when, and they might want to take a firearm because they live in BFE and they feel they need protection. I noted they should first check to see what the law states, and in the meantime i would throw it out here and see what returned. Thanks for all replies.

I believe that most all Felony Narcotics Convictions bar the person from owning, possessing, operating, or sleeping with a firearm or ammunition. Their conviction papers will inform that person of the rights they have lost. They can petition the courts for restoration of their rights, but its rare that they get returned nowadays. They can possess, shoot, and own black powder guns though.

[Fallguy]

Not completely knowing the in's and out's of the law, but are there time limitations on felony convictions? Say, if someone was convicted of a felony drug charge 10 - 15 years ago, does that follow them for the rest of their lives and therefore can never own, operated, handle, or be around firearms? I ask this question because someone I was having a discussion with the other day stated they might move in with someone who has a felony conviction from back when, and they might want to take a firearm because they live in BFE and they feel they need protection. I noted they should first check to see what the law states, and in the meantime i would throw it out here and see what returned. Thanks for all replies.

I work with a guy that has a felony conviction from over 30 years ago....it still comes up causes him problems from time to time.

[Guest FroggyOne2]

I believe that most all Felony Narcotics Convictions bar the person from owning, possessing, operating. They can petition the courts for restoration of their rights, but its rare that they get returned nowadays.

Brother, all ex-con's must petition the Gov's office. But, I personally have never heard of one getting them restored, except in the case of wrongfull conviction.

[Guest Revelator]

Brother, all ex-con's must petition the Gov's office. But, I personally have never heard of one getting them restored, except in the case of wrongfull conviction.

J is right, restoration of rights petitions go through the courts (as per TCA Title 40, Chap. 29). Now pardons--those I'd think would go through the governor. Either way I'm sure that, with a felony conviction, it is very difficult to get your gun rights back even if you've had your citizenship rights restored. The process is governed by a very confusing mixture of state and federal law. Here in Tennessee it used to be that non-violent and non-drug felons, at least theoretically, could get their gun rights restored, but the law changed last year to flat out disqualify any felon. There was actually a proposed bill this year that would have put the law back to what it used to be, giving non-violent and non-drug felons a chance, but I don't know what its status is. But felony drug offenders can't, never could, and probably never will be able to get their gun rights back.

[Guest JLowe]

J is right, restoration of rights petitions go through the courts (as per TCA Title 40, Chap. 29). Now pardons--those I'd think would go through the governor. Either way I'm sure that, with a felony conviction, it is very difficult to get your gun rights back even if you've had your citizenship rights restored. The process is governed by a very confusing mixture of state and federal law. Here in Tennessee it used to be that non-violent and non-drug felons, at least theoretically, could get their gun rights restored, but the law changed last year to flat out disqualify any felon. There was actually a proposed bill this year that would have put the law back to what it used to be, giving non-violent and non-drug felons a chance, but I don't know what its status is. But felony drug offenders can't, never could, and probably never will be able to get their gun rights back.

I've seen persons with their citizenship rights restored (voting, public office, etc..), but their guns rights were not. I believe that some persons make poor decisions in life and after they are punished will be model citizens, the other 97.5% will not change. I think that the bill is actually dead right now, but I'm not for sure. The problem has always been that even with their rights restored by the state, if they were not in that state, the other state may not recognize the restoration. Also, if its a Federal crime, no state can restore the rights, only a district court or appeals court. The entire process is confusing and difficult to understand. The best idea is not to commit felonies (or get caught ) and you don't have to worry about the entire process.

[Guest FroggyOne2]

It may have been changed, but I do remember at one time that a ex-con, could petition the gov's office and only the gov's office for permission to have a firearm, but only for the sole purpose of hunting and then it could only be the hunting season.. It has been a while since I have read that in TCA, but at one time it was there..

[ftncityfatboy]

thanks guys, this has been a great help, I will inform all parties involved. I didn't realize there's no forgiveness for felony sins. Wow, we had all better behave boys & girls!!!