Pennsylvania Firearm Owners Association
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  1. #1
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    Default Am I going to tell him the right thing?

    A co-worker of mine has been picking my brain lately about firearms and wanting to get one. There's one hang up, when he went to buy one he noticed that Corruption of Minors is a prohibiting charge. Needless to say, he didn't follow through filling out the application.

    Now I've read through some other similar threads but still am a little unclear. This Corruption of Minor charge was an ARD offense and everything I've read about ARD is along the lines of "ARD stands for Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition and is a court program, typically given to first offenders who are unlikely to commit another crime. If the person successfully completes ARD then the case is dismissed and the person is considered not convicted of the crime."

    If he is not considered "convicted" for a prohibiting offense, does he still have his 2A rights? I'd feel bad if I told him I thought he was good to go just to find out my research was wrong.
    Home brewing; because Jeeps and ammunition aren't cheap. WILL WORK FOR AMMO & FIREARMS!

  2. #2
    Join Date
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    New Britain Township, Pennsylvania
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    Default Re: Am I going to tell him the right thing?

    Quote Originally Posted by MrBear13 View Post
    A co-worker of mine has been picking my brain lately about firearms and wanting to get one. There's one hang up, when he went to buy one he noticed that Corruption of Minors is a prohibiting charge. Needless to say, he didn't follow through filling out the application.

    Now I've read through some other similar threads but still am a little unclear. This Corruption of Minor charge was an ARD offense and everything I've read about ARD is along the lines of "ARD stands for Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition and is a court program, typically given to first offenders who are unlikely to commit another crime. If the person successfully completes ARD then the case is dismissed and the person is considered not convicted of the crime."

    If he is not considered "convicted" for a prohibiting offense, does he still have his 2A rights? I'd feel bad if I told him I thought he was good to go just to find out my research was wrong.
    If a year passed since getting ARD, it should be removed from his record. ARD is basically a "second chance" program, and the idea is to have all your rights restored and have a clean record. In some ARD cases, there is no conviction on the person's record to begin with, so there would be nothing to expunge at the end of the year.

    ETA: That means he still has his 2A rights if a year passed.

    IANAL
    Last edited by bac0nfat; November 17th, 2011 at 01:38 PM.

  3. #3
    Join Date
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    Default Re: Am I going to tell him the right thing?

    Quote Originally Posted by bac0nfat View Post
    If a year passed since getting ARD, it should be removed from his record. ARD is basically a "second chance" program, and the idea is to have all your rights restored and have a clean record. In some ARD cases, there is no conviction on the person's record to begin with, so there would be nothing to expunge at the end of the year.

    ETA: That means he still has his 2A rights if a year passed.

    IANAL
    Well, it's not removed from his record. I even went and pulled it up on the Unified Judicial System, with his permission, to make sure he wasn't missing anything. I assume if it's still there for the average Joe to see, big brother can see it as well. Does that need to be addressed before he goes to purchase his rifle?
    Home brewing; because Jeeps and ammunition aren't cheap. WILL WORK FOR AMMO & FIREARMS!

  4. #4
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    New Britain Township, Pennsylvania
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    Default Re: Am I going to tell him the right thing?

    Quote Originally Posted by MrBear13 View Post
    Well, it's not removed from his record. I even went and pulled it up on the Unified Judicial System, with his permission, to make sure he wasn't missing anything. I assume if it's still there for the average Joe to see, big brother can see it as well. Does that need to be addressed before he goes to purchase his rifle?
    That will probably be a problem. It should be removed after the one year probationary period as long as he stayed out of trouble. If it was not removed then he should contact a lawyer.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
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    Irwin, Pennsylvania
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    Default Re: Am I going to tell him the right thing?

    NOT a lawyer here, but from what I know from others who had an ARD:

    Even after the one year has passed, sometimes you still must personally go to the court house and pay a 'clerks/clerical/paperwork processing' fee to have your record expunged. Usually about $10 0r $20. Don't assume the bureaucrats will automatically do it for you, unless you make the effort. This is especially true in Westmoreland County.

    Make sure you get the signed papers of expungement, in case you also want to apply for a LTCF. I know someone who had ARD for a DUI, and was told no LTCF for 3 years. Surely there are lots of different scenarios.
    LUKE 11:21 == Proverbs 29:2 = Proverbs 25:28

  6. #6
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    Default Re: Am I going to tell him the right thing?

    If he is on the UJS, look at what the charge says. If he completed ARD it should say dismissed or Nolle Prossed, if not it will say guilty. He needs to find an attorney (Public Defender will work), and have them fix it.


    -Chaz
    I like guns... And boobs...

  7. #7
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    Default Re: Am I going to tell him the right thing?

    Quote Originally Posted by Chazman321 View Post
    If he is on the UJS, look at what the charge says. If he completed ARD it should say dismissed or Nolle Prossed, if not it will say guilty. He needs to find an attorney (Public Defender will work), and have them fix it.


    -Chaz
    Can you get a public defender after the fact?

  8. #8
    Join Date
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    New Castle, Pennsylvania
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    Default Re: Am I going to tell him the right thing?

    Yeah, I've gotten help through them for a couple of my clients. I had a client who had a warrant out for his arrest for 5 years. He maxed out of his jail time, paid off probation and all of his fines, but he missed a court hearing that he was never told about. I called them, gave them his name and the docket number, they called back 20 minutes later with a trial date, showed up, and the judge rescinded it... Judge said it was the stupidest warrant and he was at his PO's office every month for 2 years after the warrant was issued, they just never got around to doing the paperwork...


    -Chaz
    I like guns... And boobs...

  9. #9
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    Default Re: Am I going to tell him the right thing?

    It seems every county handles these a little different, my buddy had a dui in Tionesta a couple years ago and after he completed his probation for ARD the record was automatically expunged. I had ARD in Beaver county about 20 years ago and there was still a record of it up until a few years ago, I had to go to the courthouse and fill out all the paperwork for the expungement. Gunlawyer said that in other counties you pretty much need a lawyer.

    If he got ARD then it shouldn't be a problem because there shouldn't have been a conviction but we all know how that works, should not does not mean is not. Either way if I were him I would have the expungement done even if he needs a lawyer in his county. Tell him to call the Clerk of Courts, they might be able to tell him what he needs to do though they may consider it legal advice and not tell him anything. Worth a shot though.

    BTW, he can expect it to take 6-8 months to clear the PSP even though it says on the judges order that they will expunge the records within 30 days.

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