Silly Question, but I'd like it clarified, about illegal gun buyers

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possom813

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I've never been to prison, just a daycamp in my youth for public intoxication.

My question is about felons, it doesn't seem to make sense?

If they were a convicted felon, they've done their time and are now free men again, why do they lose the right to defend themselves or hunt because of a mistake in their past?

Just curious because I keep seeing 'illegal gun owners' pop up in arguments.

I can understand non-citizens, but why free men?

For that matter, how come I can't carry my ccw into any state I want to, aren't all the states part of the United States and follow the same Guaranteed Rights?




Again, just curious :eek:
 
My question is about felons, it doesn't seem to make sense?

If they were a convicted felon, they've done their time and are now free men again, why do they lose the right to defend themselves or hunt because of a mistake in their past?
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because courts love to release repeat violent offenders early because "prison does them no good".....

many here have argued that if a person cant be trusted with a gun, then they shouldnt be allowed out of prison.......i tend to agree with that sentiment.
 
Just curious because I keep seeing 'illegal gun owners' pop up in arguments.

I can understand non-citizens, but why free men?
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Except that it is legal for non-citizens to own guns. For instance, I own 2.
 
As long as you're here legally, you may own guns.

Currently I'm a Permanent Resident Alien, but I'll be a citizen within the next year or two.
 
I work with a number of felons, and some of them have completed the terms of their parole and are getting their 2A rights back. They are the good ones, and shot bow for ten years to work that part out of their system. The other ones get their firearms by illicit means and usually get away with it. I always pray these men have the intellect and maturity to handle themselves correctly.
 
possom813 said:
If they were a convicted felon, they've done their time and are now free men again, why do they lose the right to defend themselves or hunt because of a mistake in their past?

Just curious because I keep seeing 'illegal gun owners' pop up in arguments.
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Because our penal (derived from the same root word as penalty) isn't about rehabilitation as much as it is about punishment. That punishment includes the lost of certain rights, some for a limited time, among which is the right to vote and the right to possess firearms

For that matter, how come I can't carry my ccw into any state I want to, aren't all the states part of the United States and follow the same Guaranteed Rights?
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Because states have the right to make their own laws and regulations governing people within their borders...pending conflict with Federal Law
 
People aren't released from prison because they are ready to come back to society. Quite the opposite. When they are in prison, they learn to be BETTER criminals. They get released from prison because the administration decides that there are more dangerous people that need to be inside, and they are out of space.

The Constitution states that no man shall be deprived of freedoms without "due process of law". Convicted felons, have, by definition, had their day in court. I don't feel like working to let felons have guns is a good plan for us. I will be more willing to work towards fixing the process for felons to get their records expunged, which is currently broken.
 
I don't want felons carrying guns, and I don't want child molesters babysitting my grandkids. It's really as simple as that.

They have proven to be criminals, going to prison is a punishment and really does next to nothing as far as rehabilitation goes. And many seem to be professional criminals, it's what they do, never even though of doing anything else.
 
What about the 'felons' whom have never seen the inside of a prison, just placed on felony probation, because they committed a felony, but it obviously wasn't that big of a deal because they never went to prison?

Just thoughts.
 
In many states the loss of right to have a gun is for a certain number of years, often 10 years.
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While many states have those rules. The federal law does not have a time limit.
 
A felony is a big deal, by definition. Remember, most cases are pled out. They don't get the maximum charge to begin with. To get a felony you have to do something significant.

I would certainly entertain the idea of changing the law to read VIOLENT felony. Right now Martha Stewart and Bill Clinton are convicted felons. I don't necessarily agree that they are too dangerous to possess guns.
 
What about the 'felons' whom have never seen the inside of a prison, just placed on felony probation, because they committed a felony, but it obviously wasn't that big of a deal because they never went to prison?
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The only thing excluded are business and trade felons. If your convicted it doesn't matter if you spent the time behind bars or not.
 
possom813 said:
What about the 'felons' whom have never seen the inside of a prison, just placed on felony probation, because they committed a felony, but it obviously wasn't that big of a deal because they never went to prison?

Just thoughts.
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They were afforded the same due process which deprived them of their tights...it isn't as if they weren't afforded a chance to contest the charges
 
Felons can hunt in the State of Illinois. As long as they use a bow and arrow.
Felons convicted of non violent crimes can petition the court to expunge the record of their felony after a period of ten years and provided no further convictions for misdemenor or felony crimes have been added to their record.
If the felony is expunged by the courts all rights of citizenship are restored.
 
I also have a problem with the "court order restraining order" (h) on the 4473. It may be valid in a lot of cases, but there are thousands of divorce lawyers who automatically request a restraining order without the target spouse even knowing about it until after the court has approved it.

There are also some felonies that are only felonies because some person or group got a bee in it's bonnet and got a legislature to turn a miner infraction into a felony. Not to mention violations of laws that may be a miner infraction in one jurisdiction but a felony in the adjacent one. Example: Carry of a concealed weapon in many places is a misdemeanor... Just try that in New York , Chicago, or Los Angeles.
 
Part of the issue is that way too many things are felonies that really ought to be misdemeanors. But that's a big can of worms.
As mentioned, a felon has a demonstrated capacity for bad judgment. As such he ought to be barred from firearms, at least until he can demonstrate good judgment. Currently there is no way to get firearms rights restored. That is another great failing of our system.
 
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