It has become increasingly difficult over the past few years to restore the right to possess firearms following a misdemeanor domestic assault conviction. The State of Minnesota prohibits any person convicted of a misdemeanor domestic assault from possessing a firearm for three years following the date of conviction. But federally, a person convicted of a domestic assault has a lifetime prohibition on possessing firearms under what is known as the Lautenberg Amendment. Once three years has elapsed and the state no longer prohibits someone, it usually doesn’t matter because the federal prohibition is for life.
The federal statutes also state that if someone receives an expungement of the offense, it will no longer be considered a conviction for purposes of the firearms prohibition and federal firearms rights are considered restored. It used to be that attorneys in Minnesota would recommend a client seek an expungement of their conviction. If successfully granted, sheriffs and police departments would usually then issue permits to carry a concealed weapon and permits to purchase a weapon. This has now changed. The federal government will no longer recognize Minnesota’s expungement as a way to fix this prohibition. The federal government now defines an expungement to require the conviction to be vacated in order for firearms rights to be restored under federal law. Minnesota’s expungement does not reverse or vacate a conviction. Instead, an expungement in Minnesota only removes the records from public databases, searchable when a private party is running a background check. People who were even previously told their firearms rights were restored under federal law after successfully receiving an expungement are now being told that their rights have not in fact been restored. Imagine applying for a permit to carry a concealed weapon five years ago and being granted that permit, only to go renew it and be told you are legally prohibited from even possessing firearms!
There are several ways to try to deal with this situation. For a consultation about your specific situation, please contact Brandt Kettwick Defense at 763.421.6366.