PT4M43S
“now this is a sticky area because under the second amendment we are allowed to have guns if we don't have any felonies and we're u.s citizens we're allowed to carry guns however if you are charged with an act of domestic violence in the state of colorado you do not have that second amendment right it is taken from you because you are charged now the question is whether or not that will stick or whether you'll be prevented from having your weapons for the entirety of your life the short unfortunately painful answer is if you have a conviction for domestic violence under the current laws in colorado you can never own a gun again”
“that's it it doesn't matter what level of charge it is it can be the most minor domestic violence charge and by minor i mean like texting someone nasty things or texting them repeatedly if you get a conviction for that domestic violence charge you cannot own guns”
“now the reason that this is so crucially important here in colorado is with the number of military bases that we have this is impacting not only someone's second amendment rights but their livelihood”
“so when you have an open charge of domestic violence a couple of things happen we've talked in previous videos about how that protection order mandatory enters against you and a component of a domestic violence protection order a criminal protection order is that they have to the defendant has to state that they do not own or possess weapons there was an amendment to this law in 2001 which required everyone to file an affidavit if they are charged with an act of domestic violence stating affirmatively that either one they don't own weapons or two if they do own weapons that they have gotten rid of them they no longer possess them”
“and there are a number of different things and steps you have to go through to prove that you no longer possess those weapons but that's just for a charge not even a conviction if you are charged with an act of domestic violence you cannot have weapons and weapons includes longer knives as well anything that could be thought of as a weapon has to be nowhere near you you cannot be in a house with them you cannot in any way be found to be in a possession of a weapon”
“now the question is do you get your guns back truthfully the only way that you get your guns but your gun rights back after you've been charged with an act of domestic violence is one to beat the charge in other words don't have a conviction enter or if you enter into something like a deferred sentence where the case remains open but the conviction doesn't enter against you after the period of time that you've gone through probation done everything for your deferred sentence then you can get your guns back but the only way you get your guns back when you're charged with domestic violence is to not have a domestic violence conviction enter”
“that's why it's so vitally important to have a criminal defense lawyer backing you when you're charged with domestic violence in colorado because even though you could be charged with a misdemeanor level offense you're still getting felony level penalties with the removal of your gun rights”
“now it doesn't affect your voting rights so if you get a misdemeanor charge and conviction for domestic violence you can still vote so it's not quite to the level of a felony conviction however domestic violence cases convictions equal no guns”
“and domestic violence charges or convictions cannot be sealed in colorado so there is a reasonable way that someone could be charged with let's say a class six felony it's not an act of domestic violence they're a felon they lose their voting rights they lose their gun rights but under the laws that we have in colorado they can ask to seal their case later down the road if they've lived crime free that's for a felony that doesn't involve a domestic violence charge if another person gets a misdemeanor conviction for criminal a criminal misdemeanor conviction for domestic violence they lose their gun rights and they can never get them back they can't seal a domestic violence charge”
“the big thing to remember is during the dependency of the case in other words during the time that the case is open you cannot own or possess guns at all you can't own a possession ammunition either so for the entire time the case is open no guns if you have a conviction that lasts for the rest of your life”
“the short unfortunately painful answer is if you have a conviction for domestic violence under the current laws in colorado you can never own a gun again”
“now the reason that this is so crucially important here in colorado is with the number of military bases that we have this is impacting not only someone's second amendment rights but their livelihood”
“even though you could be charged with a misdemeanor level offense you're still getting felony level penalties with the removal of your gun rights”
“during the time that the case is open you cannot own or possess guns at all you can't own a possession ammunition either so for the entire time the case is open no guns if you have a conviction that lasts for the rest of your life”
“so it's vitally important that you are able to defend yourself against these domestic violence charges and have some lawyer represent you to make sure that this conviction doesn't enter otherwise you lose your gun rights you lose your second amendment rights but you also if you're involved in any capacity with security or the military you lose your livelihood as well”
“the only way you get your guns back when you're charged with domestic violence is to not have a domestic violence conviction enter”