Should ex-felons be able to possess guns? If so, when? I examined these questions in my new Spotlight report.
The issues are timely after the the recent NC Supreme Court case, Britt. v. North Carolina, in which the Court held that a state statute that restricted an ex-felon from possessing a firearm was unconstitutional as it applied to the plaintiff.
The North Carolina legislature should place no restrictions on the possession of firearms by non-violent ex-felons. Before 1995, North Carolina generally placed no such restrictions on non-violent ex-felons.
Unlike with a violent ex-felon, there is no objective act that demonstrates that the non-violent ex-felon may be a threat. It is unreasonable to restrict gun rights to protect the public safety from someone who has never presented a threat to the public safety.
Right now, under current law, many citizens are having their right to bear arms violated. Therefore, the legislature needs to take corrective action in next year’s short legislative session.
