Felon Married to Non Felon and Gun Possession.

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USAFNoDak

New member
Not that this affects me, but I have often wondered what the laws are regarding a felon married to a non felon and whether the non felon spouse can "legally" possess a firearm in their home, since the felon is not allowed to be "in possession" of a firearm. I'm assuming some states may have laws which address that situation. How about Federal law? Does anyone have any knowledge of the law which would cover such a scenario? Just curiosity on my part. Honest!
 
As I understand it, it would be wrong to have a gun in the same house, and this is regardless of the squeaky clean criminal record of the gun owner.
 
"Constructive Possession" is the legal test.
If the felon can lay his/her hands on the gun => big trouble

There are a number of ways to work this problem, but I'd suggest a conversation w/ the Commonwealth (or whatever) attorney.
 
The subject has come up here a few times. The upshot is that the guns have to be secured in a way the felon cannot easily access them. That would usually entail a safe to which only the non-felon has access.

The closest we have to a guiding decision is US v. Huet.

Our own Frank Ettin posted similar guidance regarding a housemate who uses marijuana.
 
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