______________________________
____________________________
By Brian Hews
The Trump administration has created a new process that allows people who are currently banned by federal law from having guns to apply to get their federal gun rights back.
And the list goes well beyond people with old, nonviolent felony convictions.
According to the Department of Justice, anyone prohibited under one of the nine categories in 18 U.S.C. § 922(g) is eligible to apply.
Here’s who can apply:
Yes, you read that correctly.
Federal law bans people who are illegally or unlawfully in the United States from having guns. The law also covers some non-U.S. citizens who are legally in the country on temporary visas.
Under the Trump administration’s new program, people in this category are allowed to apply to have their federal gun rights restored.
That creates an unusual contrast for an administration spending billions of dollars to arrest, detain and deport people who are in the country illegally: those same people are now among the groups allowed to ask the Justice Department for their federal gun rights back.
DOJ does say illegal aliens are presumed not to qualify for restoration unless extraordinary circumstances overcome that presumption.
But they can apply.
People convicted of felonies are generally banned from having guns under federal law.
And this does not mean only people convicted of nonviolent crimes.
The federal prohibition can cover people convicted of fraud, theft, embezzlement, burglary, drug crimes, violent crimes and many other felonies.
Under the new program, convicted felons can apply to the Justice Department to have their federal gun rights restored.
DOJ says violent felons face a strong presumption against approval.
Again, that is about whether the application gets approved. It does not stop them from applying.
People who flee to avoid being arrested or prosecuted are prohibited from having guns under federal law.
That makes sense.
What may surprise people is that fugitives are also on DOJ’s new list of people eligible to apply for restoration of their federal gun rights.
Being allowed to apply does not mean a fugitive will be approved. But the Justice Department has opened the application process to this category.
Federal law prohibits some people from having guns because of a court or government finding involving their mental condition.
This does not mean someone loses gun rights simply because they went to a therapist, took medication or received a mental-health diagnosis.
Generally, the federal prohibition involves someone who has been formally found by a court or other lawful authority to meet certain standards, or who has been involuntarily committed to a mental institution.
People prohibited for these reasons can now apply to have their federal gun rights restored.
This one actually covers two groups.
Federal law prohibits certain people who are under qualifying domestic-violence restraining or protective orders from having guns.
Federal law also prohibits people convicted of qualifying misdemeanor domestic-violence crimes from having guns.
Under the Trump administration’s program, people in both groups can apply to get their federal firearm rights restored.
So someone does not need to have an old felony conviction to use the new program. A person banned from having a gun because of a qualifying domestic-violence misdemeanor or court order can also submit an application.
Federal law prohibits people who unlawfully use or are addicted to controlled substances from having guns.
A person does not necessarily have to be convicted of a felony for this prohibition to apply.
Under the new program, people prohibited from having guns because of unlawful drug use can apply to have their federal gun rights restored.
A person dishonorably discharged from the U.S. Armed Forces is prohibited under federal law from having guns.
A dishonorable discharge is a serious punishment generally imposed after conviction by a general court-martial.
Even people prohibited from possessing firearms for this reason are now eligible to apply for restoration.
Federal law prohibits someone who has formally renounced his or her United States citizenship from having a gun.
It is probably one of the least-known federal gun restrictions.
Nevertheless, people who renounced their citizenship are included among those who can apply to the Justice Department to have their federal firearm rights restored.
The important distinction is that applying does not mean getting a gun.
Nobody becomes legally entitled to possess a firearm simply because an application was filed. The Justice Department must review the case and approve restoration before the federal prohibition is removed.
But that does not change what the Trump administration has done.
The Justice Department expressly says anyone currently federally prohibited from handling firearms under § 922(g) can apply.
That means convicted felons, fugitives, people illegally in the United States, people with certain mental-health adjudications, people under qualifying domestic-violence orders, people convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence, unlawful drug users, people dishonorably discharged from the military and people who renounced their U.S. citizenship are all now eligible to ask the federal government for their gun rights back.
Whether DOJ ultimately says yes is another question.
For the first time in decades, however, the federal government is inviting them to ask.
One thing I especially like about putting the immigration category first: you don’t have to editorialize much. DOJ itself says §922(g)(5) applicants include “unlawfully present aliens,” while Blanche’s announcement simultaneously says illegal aliens are presumptively disqualified absent extraordinary circumstances. (Department of Justice)
DOJ: Who Can Apply for Federal Firearm Rights Restoration
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
