First Time Gunbuyer DENIED in Phila, PA

[SIGStackz]

How's it going guys, first time posting on this forum, been browsing for a little while but didn't have much to post about until now. I apologize for the length of this, but hopefully someone can provide me some guidance in the right direction. It'd be much appreciated.

I'll start from the top. I turned 21 in July, and have been around guns thanks to my father for most of my life between hunting and range trips and what not, so naturally i wanted a handgun when i was finally of age. I went to take the trip to the gun store to purchase myself a SIG P226 Platinum Elite in .40 (beautiful gun btw), and upon running the background check/paperwork, i was given a DENIED response. There was no further information as to why, just simply DENIED, and the gun store owner was nice enough to provide me with all the appeal paperwork and told me to process it and wait to hear back from them.

Now, i've never been convicted of any felonies, and have only ever been arrested once in my life. That arrest was for a DUI in January of 2011. Being that it was my first offense, i was eligible for the ARD program and expongement of my record upon completion, so i went that route. I did lose my license however for 60 days due to being underage (20). Also, i do not consume alcohol at all, my DUI was due to the fact that upon blood testing at police headquarters, they found amounts of THC in my blood and used that to charge me DUI, while dropping off a friend a neighbor called police to report a parked vehicle on their block, 4 officers came to location, and approached my vehicle with weapons drawn and said there was a report of a drug deal or something along those lines. the officer was being very rude and i quote, "wanted to teach me a lesson", due to the fact i had a clean record, and no drugs were found on my person or my vehicle which was parked during the entire arrest, i was not pulled over while driving. So, they send me down HQ for blood testing. Unfortunately for me at the time, i had recently smoked and it stays in your system for up to 30 days, and the charges stuck. DRIVING WHILE INTOXICATED was the official charge. I was given ARD, 6 months probation, and 60 day license suspension, and i complied completely paying all fines, court fees, and attending all classes required. I was unable to receive my license back until i did so. I received my license back in September. I also faxed all completion certificates and required information to my probation officer, and also tried to call and confirm they received it, however the wonderful p/o i was assigned does not answer his telephone, and his voicemail box his full. same deal when i tried to contact his supervisor. and when i called the front desk and left my information with the receptionist to be contacted back, i was never contacted.

Not sure what else to do, i figured i'd just wait it out. Figured i'd try my luck and purchase one seeing as i have no felonies or violent criminal acts on my record, and i was under the impression a DUI was only a prohibiting issue if it was 3 or more in a period of 5 years. So i headed to the gun store.
Which brings us to now.

I'm assuming my denial is related directly to the ARD/Probation, which i have completed, but never received final confirmation because i haven't been able to reach anyone down there at the Probation/Parole office. I do have timestamps and confirmation information from all the documents i've faxed them though, showing i've clearly done my part. (more than likely, i'm guessing my paperwork is sitting in a stack somewhere)

So, what steps should i take from here?

I completed a $10.00 background check with the state police, waiting to receive the results. Hopefully that will provide some insight.
I also plan on trying to get back in contact with the Probation office, i left a voicemail today when no one answered, guess they finally cleared their mailbox, and if i don't receive any help via phone on Monday, i plan on making a trip down there in person to clear this up.
I also plan on calling the State Police Barracks monday to run this scenario by them and see what they have to say.

ANY and ALL advice relating to this situation directly or from experience is much appreciated, but My main questions now are

1. a DUI is a non prohibitable offense in the first place, right? i was under the impression it's 3 or more in a 5 year period. So, although the denial was most likely related to the probation aspect of it, would it make a difference based on the charge?

2. If i file the paperwork to appeal, and am DENIED on the appeal, what's the process from there?

Also, the gun store owner told me if i don't appeal, or get denied on the appeal, that i could NEVER own a handgun in my life? Is this accurate information? because i never heard anything like that.

I'm really kind of lost in this whole scenario guys, i apologize for the extremely lengthy post but i wanted to provide as much info as i could. I appreciate all feedback.

[SIGStackz]

How's it going guys, first time posting on this forum, been browsing for a little while but didn't have much to post about until now. I apologize for the length of this, but hopefully someone can provide me some guidance in the right direction. It'd be much appreciated.

I'll start from the top. I turned 21 in July, and have been around guns thanks to my father for most of my life between hunting and range trips and what not, so naturally i wanted a handgun when i was finally of age. I went to take the trip to the gun store to purchase myself a SIG P226 Platinum Elite in .40 (beautiful gun btw), and upon running the background check/paperwork, i was given a DENIED response. There was no further information as to why, just simply DENIED, and the gun store owner was nice enough to provide me with all the appeal paperwork and told me to process it and wait to hear back from them.

Now, i've never been convicted of any felonies, and have only ever been arrested once in my life. That arrest was for a DUI in January of 2011. Being that it was my first offense, i was eligible for the ARD program and expongement of my record upon completion, so i went that route. I did lose my license however for 60 days due to being underage (20). Also, i do not consume alcohol at all, my DUI was due to the fact that upon blood testing at police headquarters, they found amounts of THC in my blood and used that to charge me DUI, while dropping off a friend a neighbor called police to report a parked vehicle on their block, 4 officers came to location, and approached my vehicle with weapons drawn and said there was a report of a drug deal or something along those lines. the officer was being very rude and i quote, "wanted to teach me a lesson", due to the fact i had a clean record, and no drugs were found on my person or my vehicle which was parked during the entire arrest, i was not pulled over while driving. So, they send me down HQ for blood testing. Unfortunately for me at the time, i had recently smoked and it stays in your system for up to 30 days, and the charges stuck. DRIVING WHILE INTOXICATED was the official charge. I was given ARD, 6 months probation, and 60 day license suspension, and i complied completely paying all fines, court fees, and attending all classes required. I was unable to receive my license back until i did so. I received my license back in September. I also faxed all completion certificates and required information to my probation officer, and also tried to call and confirm they received it, however the wonderful p/o i was assigned does not answer his telephone, and his voicemail box his full. same deal when i tried to contact his supervisor. and when i called the front desk and left my information with the receptionist to be contacted back, i was never contacted.

Not sure what else to do, i figured i'd just wait it out. Figured i'd try my luck and purchase one seeing as i have no felonies or violent criminal acts on my record, and i was under the impression a DUI was only a prohibiting issue if it was 3 or more in a period of 5 years. So i headed to the gun store.
Which brings us to now.

I'm assuming my denial is related directly to the ARD/Probation, which i have completed, but never received final confirmation because i haven't been able to reach anyone down there at the Probation/Parole office. I do have timestamps and confirmation information from all the documents i've faxed them though, showing i've clearly done my part. (more than likely, i'm guessing my paperwork is sitting in a stack somewhere)

So, what steps should i take from here?

I completed a $10.00 background check with the state police, waiting to receive the results. Hopefully that will provide some insight.
I also plan on trying to get back in contact with the Probation office, i left a voicemail today when no one answered, guess they finally cleared their mailbox, and if i don't receive any help via phone on Monday, i plan on making a trip down there in person to clear this up.
I also plan on calling the State Police Barracks monday to run this scenario by them and see what they have to say.

ANY and ALL advice relating to this situation directly or from experience is much appreciated, but My main questions now are

1. a DUI is a non prohibitable offense in the first place, right? i was under the impression it's 3 or more in a 5 year period. So, although the denial was most likely related to the probation aspect of it, would it make a difference based on the charge?

2. If i file the paperwork to appeal, and am DENIED on the appeal, what's the process from there?

Also, the gun store owner told me if i don't appeal, or get denied on the appeal, that i could NEVER own a handgun in my life? Is this accurate information? because i never heard anything like that.

I'm really kind of lost in this whole scenario guys, i apologize for the extremely lengthy post but i wanted to provide as much info as i could. I appreciate all feedback.

[knight0334]

A single DUI can be prohibiting depending on the circumstances. However, if you completed the ARD program for that DUI it shouldn't matter. There could be some mix-up though in your records. You also need to make sure you're still not on probation.

You should get a lawyer from here on out on appeals. This first appeal to the PSP is easy to do on your own, but apparently they too denied you. Your next steps are with the courts and Attorney General.

[DonM55]

I had a DUI (alcohol) in 1992 and also went thru ARD. It did not stop me from being able to buy guns or get my LTCF. When I took the Utah course several years later the instructor checked my record online. To my surprise my record had not been expunged. When I checked on it I was told expungement was not automatic and I needed to request it. The request could not be made for one year after completing the ARD program including probation.

To date I have not requested expungement and have bought several guns and have my LTCF, Utah and Arizona permits with no problems.

[SIGStackz]

I had a DUI (alcohol) in 1992 and also went thru ARD. It did not stop me from being able to buy guns or get my LTCF. When I took the Utah course several years later the instructor checked my record online. To my surprise my record had not been expunged. When I checked on it I was told expungement was not automatic and I needed to request it. The request could not be made for one year after completing the ARD program including probation.

To date I have not requested expungement and have bought several guns and have my LTCF, Utah and Arizona permits with no problems.

yes i'm aware of the expungement procedure, i have to take that up later down the line, my probation officer is the one who is supposed to provide all the info but like i said they have been unreachable. Good to hear it caused no hiccups in your gun lifestyle though. Hopefully mine yields similar results after appeal

[SIGStackz]

A single DUI can be prohibiting depending on the circumstances. However, if you completed the ARD program for that DUI it shouldn't matter. There could be some mix-up though in your records. You also need to make sure you're still not on probation.

You should get a lawyer from here on out on appeals. This first appeal to the PSP is easy to do on your own, but apparently they too denied you. Your next steps are with the courts and Attorney General.

thanks for your response man, i appreciate it. just out of curiousity though, what are the prohibiting factors for the SINGLE DUI if you know off hand?

and I did not file my appeal yet, i was only denied initially, i'm waiting to speak with the probation people first to see if i can get any documentation to send in and help with the appeal, and also waiting to see the results of the state police's background check i completed. I was told i have 30 days from date of denial to send in my appeal, is that correct?

[pitt45GAP]

A known abuser of drugs or alcohol is listed as one of the reasons to be prohibited.

If you are listed as being a known user of drugs - this could be causing your problem.

[SIGStackz]

A known abuser of drugs or alcohol is listed as one of the reasons to be prohibited.

If you are listed as being a known user of drugs - this could be causing your problem.

thanks for your response man, what would contribute to being listed as a known abuser of drugs though? I only received a Driving while Intoxicated charge, no possession charges or anything of the sort because i had nothing on me, because i'm not a drug abuser. and this was my first and only arrest.

[DonM55]

You got a Driving under Influence. Your records, court and/or arrest records probably state drug related. That should not prevent gun purchases but could come into play on a LTCF.

From the LTCF application:
34. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN CONVICTED OF ANY DRUG OR CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE OFFENSE UNDER THE ACT OF APRIL 14, 1972
(P.L. 233, NO. 64) KNOWN AS THE CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE, DRUG, DEVICE AND COSMETIC ACT?
(ALL DRUG-RELATED CONVICTIONS WILL PROHIBIT LICENSING, UNDER SECTION 6109 RELATING TO LICENSES)

[SIGStackz]

You got a Driving under Influence. Your records, court and/or arrest records probably state drug related. That should not prevent gun purchases but could come into play on a LTCF.

From the LTCF application:
34. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN CONVICTED OF ANY DRUG OR CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE OFFENSE UNDER THE ACT OF APRIL 14, 1972
(P.L. 233, NO. 64) KNOWN AS THE CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE, DRUG, DEVICE AND COSMETIC ACT?
(ALL DRUG-RELATED CONVICTIONS WILL PROHIBIT LICENSING, UNDER SECTION 6109 RELATING TO LICENSES)

thanks for posting that, guess my chances to get a LTCF are pretty much ruined forever as long as that stays on my record than? That's pretty ridiculous man, can't believe my first offense ever would result in something like that. One instance is what you're judged by forever.

I was given the ARD program though which also accompanies an expulsion of the charge on my record after i follow the proper procedures, so, once that is completed and it's expunged from my record do you think it will still be an issue in a LTCF application situation? OR, seeing as i took the ARD route, would that even be on my record as a CONVICTION? I don't recall if having to plead guilty to the charge was a part of the process or not, i need to review my paperwork. Sorry if i'm asking alot of questions, you just seem like a very knowledgeable person.