Iowa Gun Owners is opposed to this bill.

This bill deals with those who have domestic violence convictions and their gun rights, and is the brain child of Iowa Attorney Tom Miller. It is exceedingly hostile towards your right to keep and bear arms. For the following reasons we are opposed to this bill:

1. 724.26.2. “A person who is subject to a protective order under 18 U.S.C. } 922(g)(8) or who has been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence under 18 U.S.C. } 922(g)(9), and who knowingly sells, disposes of, possesses, ships, transports, or receives a firearm or offensive weapon, is guilty of a class “D” felony. Such a person shall not be eligible to obtain a permit under this chapter and any permits issued to such a person are deemed revoked.”

While it has long been the case that a person under the restriction of a protective order may not possess firearms this proposal goes way beyond that and mandates that anyone with a conviction for misdemeanor domestic violence may NEVER POSSESS A FIREARM AGAIN! And if he/she does acquire a firearm for self-defense he/she is guilty of a felony and may spend up to five years in jail and pay fines of up to $7,500!

Additionally, a person falling under this statute may not even give the weapon away to a friend or family member!

As this is a major step backwards regarding gun rights we are opposed to this provision.

2. 724.26.3. “Except as provided in section 809A.17, subsection 5, paragraph “b”, a firearm or offensive weapon seized under this section shall be disposed of in any of the following ways:…B. Transferred to the custody of a qualified person in this state, as determined by the court. The qualified person shall not reside in the home of a person found guilty of an offense under this section and must be able to lawfully possess a firearm or offensive weapon in this state.”

Did you catch that? The firearms have to be transferred into the custody of a qualified person “as determined by the court.” What is that standard going to be? What is the appeals process if the accused disagrees with the court’s decision? None of this in mentioned because there is no appeal and there is no standard. The courts will have unlimited authority to deny you the right of self-defense against violent criminal attack.

Additionally, under this proposal, this individual may not even give his/her weapons to his/her own spouse! They simply forfeit their claim to their own property. What happens to this family then if, at any time during the rest of their lives, they are the victims of a violent criminal attack? How are they supposed to protect themselves then?

As this provision is confiscates weapons and denies the right of self-defense to people for the entirety of their lives, we are opposed to this provision.

3. 724.26.3. “Except as provided in section 809A.17, subsection 5, paragraph “b”, a firearm or offensive weapon seized under this section shall be disposed of in any of the following ways:…C. Stored by the county sheriff. The court shall assess the defendant, in addition to any penalty, a fee of fifty dollars plus the cost of any other expenses for storing the firearm or offensive weapon, payable to the county sheriff’s office.”

What this provision states is that if you can not find a “qualified person” to take your firearms in time the Sheriff’s office will seize the weapons! And you have to pay $50 PER FIREARM as a handling fee! Also, note the fact that all money comes even before the sheriff assigns you “any other expenses” that he deems appropriate. There is no mention of what these additional fees could be.

Also, what happens if the sheriff’s department damages or destroys your firearms through their careless or reckless handling of your property? To whom to you appeal - the sheriff? This proposal is silent on this.

4. Lastly, this bill does not say when the sheriff has to return your property to you. In fact, it does not say that the sheriff has to return your firearms to you at all! It’s possible that you may not get your weapons back ever.

Summary:

To be clear, Iowa Gun Owners believes that domestic violence is wrong. In fact, two of the board members of Iowa Gun Owners are former peace officers and dealt with hundreds of domestic violence situations in their careers. We know the devastating effects of domestic violence upon a family.

However, we also know that few areas of the criminal code are more easily manipulated than the domestic violence laws. In most cases discretion is taken away from the officers on the scene and they are required to make arrests even though other options would be more appropriate. These laws can easily be abused.

Iowa Gun Owners simply does not believe that a simple misdemeanor conviction should make that individual, and, if this law gets passed, the entire family, devoid of the means of self-defense in the face of a violent criminal attack for the rest of their lives.

For all these reason, Iowa Gun Owners is opposed to House Study Bill 46.