The New York City Police Department (NYPD) is reportedly about to revoke former President Donald Trump’s concealed carry permit after his conviction in the Manhattan trial.
Trump’s license was suspended in April 2023 after he was indicted for falsifying business records, according to a senior NYPD official. The former president turned over two of his three pistols to the police department on March 31, 2023. His third firearm “was lawfully moved to Florida,” the official explained.
After Trump was convicted of 34 felonies on May 30, 2024, he could be in violation of multiple state and federal laws if he still possesses that third gun in Florida. CNN has reached out to representatives of Trump to determine whether he still has a gun in Florida.
Possession of a firearm by a convicted felon is a federal crime.
The NYPD’s Legal Bureau will complete its investigation “that will likely lead to revocation of his license,” the senior police official said. Trump could seek a hearing challenging the revocation.
Trump has had a license from the NYPD to carry a concealed firearm for more than a decade, according to multiple law enforcement sources, but because Trump’s application came with a request for confidentiality, they are exempt from public records requests, according to the NYPD’s guidelines and New York state law.
The suspension and pending revocation of his carry license suggests that he maintained his license the entire time of his presidency and after, until he was charged with multiple felonies for falsifying business records in March 2023.
Under New York and federal law, convicted felons are barred from owning firearms. The former president could still be targeted by the federal government if he keeps the firearm he owns in Florida. Convicted felons are allowed to transfer ownership of their guns to a local police precinct or another individual.
However, Trump could regain his gun rights by having the ban reversed.
But Trump — who in 2012 told the Washington Times he had a concealed-carry permit and owned several guns — could eventually get that ban reversed.
“He could seek to have that right restored, since his conviction was for a lower level non-violent felony,” Cheryl Bader, a professor at Fordham Law, told ABC News.
In New York, one can file for a Certificate of Relief from Disabilities, which is typically used for non-violent offenses. After going through this process, the state will decide whether one is eligible to carry are firearm. At the federal level, the process can be far more complex and costly. After regaining gun rights at the state level, the individual has to go through the Bureau for Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). If the ATF denies the request, one can challenge the decision in court.
For someone in Trump’s position, navigating the process for regaining gun rights might be time-consuming but doable. However, for the average person, the complex web might be too costly to navigate because it would most likely require the assistance of an attorney, a reality that further highlights America’s two-tiered justice system.
Fortunately, there are indications that laws barring felons from owning firearms might be on borrowed time. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled in favor of a nonviolent felon who had lost his gun rights and been convicted for possessing a firearm. Decisions such as these, along with the Supreme Court’s ruling in Bruen, could pave the way for a fairer approach to gun rights.
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