Covington VA –-(Ammoland.com)- Defense attorney Richard Gardiner, who amongst other things is VCDL’s corporate attorney, just had an important victory in the Virginia Supreme Court.
For the last few years, because of a bad legal opinion by a Fairfax judge, felons who have had their civil rights restored by the Governor have been unable to get their firearms rights restored. The judge came up with a “unique” legal theory that he did not have the constitutional power to restore firearm rights.
Other judges in other jurisdictions deferred to that opinion claiming that they, too, didn’t have the power. That left the citizen in a hopeless position with no way to get his gun rights restored.
Richard appealed one such case all the way to the Supreme Court and won. The Supreme Court ruled 7 to 0 that Circuit Court judges most certainly do have the power to restore the firearm rights of a felon who has had his civil rights restored by the Governor.
This is important to all of us. With more and more laws on the books and more and more felonies to “get tough on crime,” any of us could become an inadvertent felon. I’ve said it before and will say it again: we need to reverse this trend. Felonies should be for very serious crimes, not for killing the wrong frog, having bolt cutters in the trunk of our car, or inadvertently stepping onto school property while carrying.
State Supreme Court says Virginia courts have say in restoring felons’ firearm rights
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS September 14, 2012 – 6:50 pm EDT
RICHMOND, Va. — The state Supreme Court ruled Friday the courts have the sole discretion in Virginia whether felons who have served their time can have their firearm rights restored.
The justices ruled in the case of two felons who had their political rights separately restored by former Gov. Tim Kaine and current Gov. Bob McDonnell. In both instances, the governors restored the former felons’ rights to vote, hold office and sit on a jury.
Both former felons, however, were not granted the right to ship, transport, possess or receive firearms. The two appealed to circuit courts in Fairfax and Buchanan counties and both courts denied the appeals.
The justices wrote that Kaine and McDonnell correctly exercised their constitutional authority in restoring political rights, and properly referred the question about the rights on firearms to circuit courts.
“The jurisdiction to restore firearm rights lost in those circumstances is vested solely in the circuit court,” they wrote.
The justices added, “A person convicted of a felony in Virginia must first obtain an order from the governor removing his political disabilities as a condition precedent to his right to petition the circuit court for restoration of his firearm rights.”
Such decisions, the court wrote, involve local concerns about public safety and should provide an opportunity for local prosecutors to have a say in the proceedings.
The justices said the lower courts erred in concluding that the governors’ actions precluded them from acting on rights involving firearms.
The Supreme Court returned both appeals to the lower courts for further review.
About VCDL
Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc. (VCDL). VCDL is an all-volunteer, non-partisan grassroots organization dedicated to defending the human rights of all Virginians. The Right to Keep and Bear Arms is a fundamental human right. Visit: www.vcdl.org
I WOULD KIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT SUCCESS WITH FEDERAL FIREARM RIGHTS RESTORATION.MY CONVICTION IS FEDERAL– I ALREADY HAVE VIRGINIA CIVIL & FIREARM RIGHTS,SINCE 2008
Hi everyone this is a great blog, did anyone ever get a sample of what the order would look like, I would like to file this wek and that is all I need to complete my paperwork. Thanks in advance for any assistance.
Good Morning!! Quick update for ya’ll….had court this morning, and I now have all my rights back! I have to say, that was the oddest court hearing I have ever had. Apparently the Commonwealth Attorney didn’t have tome in hos busy schedule, so my lawyer represented both sides, lol. the only objection the commonwealth had was the number of priors on my record, however, they are all from the same thing. I barely had to speak, my lawyer did most of that. The whole process of getting into court took a hell of a lot longer than the hearing! I… Read more »
Good info!!! I am as prepared as one can be, character letters in hand and fingers crossed! Proper grammar is a huge pet peeve so no worries there! As much as I HATE to use the “weaker sex” B.S., I have that as one of my points. I will let you all know the outcome on Friday. It’s crazy, I never, NEVER thought about owning a firearm until the last year or so, but the world is a crazy, crazy place these days, and unfortunately not a safe one for a female traveling alone at night (night time delivery driver).… Read more »
Charlie, You are right. My charges were class 6 felonies. It probably makes a difference as to what you were charged with. Just because something worked for me, in no way means it works for someone else. I had no clue about a extra 2 year waiting period. I again had 0 problems doing it myself so I didn’t run into that. I also spent days at the library looking up cases and law which I see I didn’t write. It also makes a difference what Court you are going to. In Virginia, you can go to the Court where… Read more »
Joshua, You are coerect in saying it is an easy process, however I don’t think that telling people to just go for it is the best path. If they do this wrong ad get denied, I believe there would be a 2 year waiting g period to try again. That’s a big gamble to take when it could easily been avoided by horn an attorney Yes, it costs money, but speaking as an ex-felon, [you] made a mistake and we all know that people are not generally so forgiving. As I stated before, hiring an attorney in [your] area is… Read more »
It is so simple you don’t need to ask. Write a Petition,. a letter, stating that you are seeking restoration of your Gun rights. Add that your Civil rights have been restored. Write about your progress, why you want your Gun Rights, they like hearing for Hunting and Defending Home only if necessary. It is almost as easy as getting Civil Rights Restored, except you write a letter and pay a small fee and talk to the Judge. Attach copies of your restoration of Civil Rights, and anything you feel looks beneficial to your ‘recovery’. Honestly, it is the easiest… Read more »
Hello I was convicted of 2 felonies in January of 2006 possession of schedule 2 drugs meth and coke. I have had my rights restored by the governor for 3 or 4 years now and really would like my gun rights restored. I like to shoot guns for fun and hunt. I live on Social Security Disability and can’t afford a lawyer. I called the Circuit Ct where I live and they told me it was $110 to file a petition but there aren’t any forms to fill out. I guess I have to draft the petition myself. Not really… Read more »
Hello,
I preparing to draft a petition to get my gun rights back and i need to know how the court Order is worded. the additional piece of petetion that follows that actual petition.
Thanks,
Stacey
The VA Supreme Court just threw out the Governor’s blanket restoration of rights orders, so you would still need to apply for your own individual removal of political disabilities before you could petition the Circuit Court for restoration of gun/ammo privileges. Even if you receive a restoration, the federal government does not recognize its validity, so if you get caught on federal property or by federal law enforcement, you are still a going to be charged and convicted. I heard a rumor that the VA State Police is also stonewalling removing people who have been restored from the database.