Are firearms community property in PA?

[blueeyedbyrd]

As in.....

I have some friends thinking of moving to PA from California - she has a clean record, he has a felony......if you are married to a felon, would that "felon" be considered to be in possession of firearms even if they belong to their significant other? Or does a gun owning citizen forfeit their own gun rights if they are hitched to a felon?

I believe that California law says its ok if the guns are locked in a safe and the person convicted of the felony is not in possession of the key to the safe, but I can't seem to figure out PA's law.

[ChuckS]

...if you are married to a felon, would that "felon" be considered to be in possession of firearms even if they belong to their significant other? Or does a gun owning citizen forfeit their own gun rights if they are hitched to a felon?.. .

No go: I got into this on another forum...
The term is constructive possession. Google-wiki it. The difficulty comes in trying to prove that the felon does not have the combo or key or whatever to get at the gun. Even though the firearm is not in his actual possession you have to prove he cannot access them somehow. It sucks, so pick your partner well....

No I am not a lawyer yada yada yada

[mikepro8]

I agree... I am not a lawyer either, but deal with this particular matter on a regular basis. Constructive possession is correct, if he wants to remain out of trouble, it should not be in the house, in a vehicle he is travelling in, on his person, or any curtilage they own.

[ChuckS]

...I believe that California law says its ok if the guns are locked in a safe and the person convicted of the felony is not in possession of the key to the safe, but I can't seem to figure out PA's law.

You'd be wrong according to this: CA link

If you are found to be ineligible to either possess or purchase firearms as a result of the PFEC, you must relinquish any firearms you may have in your possession to a law enforcement agency or designate a power of attorney to take control and possession of them for you. Furthermore, firearms may not stay in the constructive possession of a prohibited person (e.g. you may not transfer possession to a person sharing the same household).

or this: another link

Moreover, a defendant may be deemed to be in constructive possession of contraband where he owns or exercises dominion and control over the premises in which the contraband is concealed. United States v. Molina, 443 F.3d 824, 829 (11th Cir. 2006).

This applies to all prohibited persons not just felons.

I'm still not a lawyer BTW, just passing on info I have. YMMV

[blueeyedbyrd]

gotcha, TY for the info.

[ungawa]

I know a person in NJ who had this problem and transferred firearm to significant other in the same house - on lawyer's advice and under the supervision of both the convicting court and the parole office. For whatever that is worth in NJ.

[rwilson452]

The short answer no go. A longer answer is she would need some sort of off site storage that the spouse can't get to. a friend or relative. I don't think a storage space will do as the keys could had. Best bet is get a lawyer.

[blueeyedbyrd]

ha, and in NJ none the less. Crazy. I know none of this convo has any legal weight and it's all hypothetical for the time being but for the sake of bringing it up - having a thumbprint recognition safe would seem like an ideal circumstance if he could put his thumb on there and have it not open. I dunno....FWIW.

ETA: Love hurts....especially when you can't defend yourself because of something that your significant other did 20some years ago.

[ungawa]

ha, and in NJ none the less. Crazy.

I don't know the law in this circumstance, but I do know that the court, lawyer, and parole office will not be the ones going to jail if there was a mistake.