Question about a homeowner owning a firearm with a past felon residing in the home...

[AirMech74]

What is the law about having a past felon in the house.

My fiance's Mom is the homeowner and she has a family friend that lives with her and pays rent....he went through a lil rough patch in his life back in the 80's and did some prison time.....been clean and out of trouble since.....now, my future mother-in-law would like to buy a pistol to keep in her home for self defense and asked me for advice. Will she be breaking the law by having a gun in the house with a past felon living there?

 

[Shootin 4 Fun]

She won't, but the felon may be at risk.

 

[green_machine]

don't quote me but. she will be fine. the guy with a past felony might get into trouble for 'being around a firearm'. then again. I think felons can have a single shot. like a muzzle loader or shotgun. but that's only here say. I don't know for sure.

 

[David2012]

I believe that under the SDA, if she ever wants a concealed carry permit.. the felon has to be out of her house for 30 days before she can qualify. You could always call the local Sheriff's office and ask about having a handgun just for the home and not for concealed carry.... or about having a shotgun or rifle in the home with a convicted felon.

I'd be really concerned that she could be charged with furnishing a weapon to a felon... it might be considered a 'straw purchase'. Police could claim she actually bought the weapon for the felon's use. That could be a federal felony for lying on a federal form. As with so many firearms issues.. it is always best to consult a attorney. Many will only charge around $20 to answer a simple question for you that only takes a minute or two.. some will do it for free.

 

[cmhbob]

Uncle JB should weigh in soon, but as I understand recent federal cases, she can have the gun in the house, but it needs to be secured so he can't possess it, either literally or constructively. That is, if it's there and not on her body, it needs to be secured in some way that he can't access it, like a key that she maintains possession of, or a combination that he doesn't know. She can't leave it in her purse and elave teh purse lying around where he can get at it.

Constructive possession is what typically bites felons in the ass. It means there's a gun in the house that they could access if they wanted to.

Don't know about how it affects the SDA.

 

[AirMech74]

Ok, she doesn't plan on CCWing the gun, just something she can have access to when she is home. I told her about the small Gun Vaults that she could mount somewhere in her room. I just need to make sure he won't get into trouble, if that would be the case, she won't get one.

 

[Seth247]

From what I understand she would have to lock it in a safe/box that only she has the combination for. Otherwise the felon would "have access" to the firearm. As long as he doesn't know the combo, he doesn't have access. I would also advise her to not open the safe/box or remove the gun with the felon present in the house, just to cover her ass. Otherwise it may not get her in trouble(IDK), but it will definitely get him in trouble.

I remember this same situation from when a guy who was a felon wanted to have a gun in the house for his wife.

 

[tulsamal]

This can be a really tricky situation. My poor Dad had to plead guilty to a single count of a felony when he was 65 years old. It was that or go to trial over the way he retired and then came back to work as a private contractor? The poor guy has never gotten over the shame of it all. Anyway, his lawyer advised him more than once to get rid of all his guns. From top to bottom. The judge did also at his plea agreement. Then I ended up talking to an FBI agent during an investigation later "making sure" that he had given me all the guns.

As the lawyer explained to my Dad, just getting a safe and putting all the guns in it isn't good enough. Saying only Mom knows the combination isn't good enough. In the first place, people on the outside won't believe you. They figure these two people get naked together; why won't they share the combination to the gun safe? Even if they believe that _normally_ you don't know the combination.... if the man _really_ wanted to know it.... he could convince the woman to give it to him. Fair or not, the lawyer said guns in the same house was a bad idea. Actually he said it wasn't even a good idea to give the guns to the son because "everybody knows" the Dad could always drive to the son's house and get them if he really wanted to do it! But you could make that argument for almost any level. Might as well say his golf buddies can't own guns either!

IMO... the laws are out of date. We need to change these things. We need to say that VIOLENT felons can't own guns. It's ridiculous to say that someone who pleads guilty to a totally non-violent felony is barred from owning guns for the rest of their life. The person didn't commit a felony WITH a gun! Maybe we should ban them from owning a computer!

Gregg

 

[kinggabby]

This can be a really tricky situation. My poor Dad had to plead guilty to a single count of a felony when he was 65 years old. It was that or go to trial over the way he retired and then came back to work as a private contractor? The poor guy has never gotten over the shame of it all. Anyway, his lawyer advised him more than once to get rid of all his guns. From top to bottom. The judge did also at his plea agreement. Then I ended up talking to an FBI agent during an investigation later "making sure" that he had given me all the guns.

As the lawyer explained to my Dad, just getting a safe and putting all the guns in it isn't good enough. Saying only Mom knows the combination isn't good enough. In the first place, people on the outside won't believe you. They figure these two people get naked together; why won't they share the combination to the gun safe? Even if they believe that _normally_ you don't know the combination.... if the man _really_ wanted to know it.... he could convince the woman to give it to him. Fair or not, the lawyer said guns in the same house was a bad idea. Actually he said it wasn't even a good idea to give the guns to the son because "everybody knows" the Dad could always drive to the son's house and get them if he really wanted to do it! But you could make that argument for almost any level. Might as well say his golf buddies can't own guns either!

IMO... the laws are out of date. We need to change these things. We need to say that VIOLENT felons can't own guns. It's ridiculous to say that someone who pleads guilty to a totally non-violent felony is barred from owning guns for the rest of their life. The person didn't commit a felony WITH a gun! Maybe we should ban them from owning a computer!

Gregg

I agree if a person did commit a felony ( non violent) they should be able to own guns if a certain time has passed without them committing a new crime lets say 10 years.At what time should a person stop paying for a mistake they may have made when they were lets say 18 and now they are near forty or older. I have known people who have completely turned their lives around.

 

[jmoney]

She won't, but the felon may be at risk.

as always consult an attorney when looking for legal advice



My undesrtanding if he is prohibited from being in possession of a firearm, constructive possession of a firearm will suffice. Constructive possession (in most jurisdictions) is having the power and intention to exhibit dominion and control over "x".

I've read a few cases (not under Oklahoman case law) where a felon was convicted of constructive possession of a firearm for residing in a home where a firearm was present.

He knew where it was, and there was nothing barring him from possession of it. A member on another forum brought up the question of whether or not a safe which the felon has no knowledge of the combination, or easy ability to enter would preclude a prosecutor from obtaining a constructive possession agreement. Unfortunately, I still have not had the time to examine that issue.