Drizzt
Member
Loophole allows felons to have firearms
By: Daniel Dunkle April 10, 2003
State law is clear that if you have been convicted of a felony, you cannot legally own firearms, but the state has waived that restriction for many Maine felons who use black powder firearms.
A felon who meets certain standards can apply to the Maine Department of Public Safety for a permit to carry non-concealed firearms. The rules regulating these weapon permits are not based on the crime the felon committed, so even someone who has been convicted of murder could, theoretically, receive a permit, according to Lt. John Dyer of the Maine State Police.
The state has given permits to 11 local felons since the early 1980s, including individuals from Rockland, Tenants Harbor, Thomaston, Union, Vinalhaven, Waldoboro, Warren and Washington. Among them are people convicted of burglary, drug trafficking, theft, assault on an officer and even possession of a firearm by a felon.
For a felon, getting a gun permit is not a simple process. A felon cannot receive the permit unless five years have passed since the felon completed his or her sentence, according to Dyer. That means a person who was sentenced to probation must complete that probation and wait five years before applying for a permit.
Letters are sent to the felon's judge, prosecutor and local police department stating that the felon has applied for the weapon permit, Dyer said. If any of these people object to it, the felon will not receive the permit, he added.
Even if a felon receives the permit, the only weapon he or she can carry is a black powder firearm, Dyer said. Black powder guns are sometimes referred to as muzzle-loaders because the powder and the bullet must be loaded into the gun through the barrel.
There is a $25 fee for the permit. The permit is not limited to hunting season and the felon is allowed to possess a black powder gun year round.
Dyer said one reason for the waiver process is that the federal government does not define black powder weapons as firearms. In Maine, they are considered firearms.
Rockland Police Chief Alfred Ockenfels said he was surprised that any felon is given a permit to carry a firearm.
Ockenfels said when he receives a letter from the state regarding a felon's application, he always objects to the felon receiving the permit.
"Once a felon, always a felon," Ockenfels said. "It's a scarlet letter."
He said he has had six requests for weapon permits and that was six too many. He said the firearm prohibition serves as a deterrent to would-be felons. He said he will be asking the state Legislature to revisit the issue in hopes that the permit process will be abolished.
Ockenfels added that he is a gun enthusiast, a hunter, a hunter safety instructor and a member of the National Rifle Association.
"I'm certainly no shrinking violet when it comes to legal firearm ownership," he said, but added, "If you want to hunt or own a firearm, you need to be a lawful citizen."
Thomaston Police Chief Kevin Haj said the permit process is probably a good system if it is not abused, but he still has some reservations about it. He said some felons are just people who made a stupid decision when they were 17 or 18 years old.
Dyer said the only other way a felon can receive the right to carry firearms is if the felon receives a pardon from the governor. He said one felon who received such a pardon in the past later used a gun to kill his wife.
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=7659406&BRD=1464&PAG=461&dept_id=179644&rfi=6
By: Daniel Dunkle April 10, 2003
State law is clear that if you have been convicted of a felony, you cannot legally own firearms, but the state has waived that restriction for many Maine felons who use black powder firearms.
A felon who meets certain standards can apply to the Maine Department of Public Safety for a permit to carry non-concealed firearms. The rules regulating these weapon permits are not based on the crime the felon committed, so even someone who has been convicted of murder could, theoretically, receive a permit, according to Lt. John Dyer of the Maine State Police.
The state has given permits to 11 local felons since the early 1980s, including individuals from Rockland, Tenants Harbor, Thomaston, Union, Vinalhaven, Waldoboro, Warren and Washington. Among them are people convicted of burglary, drug trafficking, theft, assault on an officer and even possession of a firearm by a felon.
For a felon, getting a gun permit is not a simple process. A felon cannot receive the permit unless five years have passed since the felon completed his or her sentence, according to Dyer. That means a person who was sentenced to probation must complete that probation and wait five years before applying for a permit.
Letters are sent to the felon's judge, prosecutor and local police department stating that the felon has applied for the weapon permit, Dyer said. If any of these people object to it, the felon will not receive the permit, he added.
Even if a felon receives the permit, the only weapon he or she can carry is a black powder firearm, Dyer said. Black powder guns are sometimes referred to as muzzle-loaders because the powder and the bullet must be loaded into the gun through the barrel.
There is a $25 fee for the permit. The permit is not limited to hunting season and the felon is allowed to possess a black powder gun year round.
Dyer said one reason for the waiver process is that the federal government does not define black powder weapons as firearms. In Maine, they are considered firearms.
Rockland Police Chief Alfred Ockenfels said he was surprised that any felon is given a permit to carry a firearm.
Ockenfels said when he receives a letter from the state regarding a felon's application, he always objects to the felon receiving the permit.
"Once a felon, always a felon," Ockenfels said. "It's a scarlet letter."
He said he has had six requests for weapon permits and that was six too many. He said the firearm prohibition serves as a deterrent to would-be felons. He said he will be asking the state Legislature to revisit the issue in hopes that the permit process will be abolished.
Ockenfels added that he is a gun enthusiast, a hunter, a hunter safety instructor and a member of the National Rifle Association.
"I'm certainly no shrinking violet when it comes to legal firearm ownership," he said, but added, "If you want to hunt or own a firearm, you need to be a lawful citizen."
Thomaston Police Chief Kevin Haj said the permit process is probably a good system if it is not abused, but he still has some reservations about it. He said some felons are just people who made a stupid decision when they were 17 or 18 years old.
Dyer said the only other way a felon can receive the right to carry firearms is if the felon receives a pardon from the governor. He said one felon who received such a pardon in the past later used a gun to kill his wife.
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=7659406&BRD=1464&PAG=461&dept_id=179644&rfi=6
