Credit: Oleg Fastovsky, Esq., Price Benowitz LLP
One of the big, of course topics that we have a lot now are firearms. Some things are pretty straightforward. If you're a convicted felon, don't have a gun. It's quite frankly, I mean, the problem is with that charge, the sanction is so severe. Individuals from other states, Virginia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, where you can have a loaded firearm in your glove box for years. You take a wrong term across Maryland and get pulled over by a cop, you're going to jail. No concealed permit carries over. If you have one another state, no permissive use. It doesn't matter if you a long term still thought you were in Virginia or another state. If you're in Maryland with a loaded firearm in your car, not following the proper protocol, you're going to be arrested and face court and least three years in jail. At a minimum. If you are under 21, by virtue of you being under 21, you cannot possess a firearm in Maryland.
Laws about having Firearm
You can't hold one, you can't handle it. You can't fire it. You can't be going anywhere with it. And if you have it, you could be charged accordingly. But even the average person, no record, no history, no prohibitions, still cannot have a gun in their car. Just driving around the law is if you have a firearm in the vehicle, it has to be unloaded in a case in the trunk, separate from ammo, and you can only have it in the car while you're transporting the gun from point A to point B. If you're going to, or from a range to or from a show to or from cleaning it. If you go to a range fire, come home in the case, get home, decide you're hungry, and go to McDonald's, you could be arrested for that trip to McDonald's. That's how restrictive Maryland is. And that's for the average person with no record.
Prohibition from having firearm in Maryland
Now, if you have an act of protective order, if you're convicted of a crime that carries a few years in jail or more, those are also prohibitive from having a firearm in Maryland. And if you are found with a firearm, you are in illegal possession of a firearm. It's still a misdemeanor, but it now carries to five years in jail as opposed to three, which is the lower level misdemeanor. But if you are a felon or have been convicted of a crime of violence, that's a big one. Not only does it now carry 15 years in jail potentially and be a felony, but you can be facing a mandatory minimum five-year, non parolable prison sentence. You're the greatest person in the world. The judge doesn't care who you are. If the judge can say to you, you're a good individual, got a good head on your shoulders, got a bright future, I'll do the best possible result for you.
In Prison
So I'm going to give you five years in prison to serve. That's the minimum I have to, I have no choice. My hands are tied guilty of that crime. I want to do better for you can't, sorry, but we'll see you in a few years when you get out of prison. And by the way, you can't be paroled out at two and a half years in. You'll serve more than that. You'll serve most of that five years, if not all of it, just by being guilty, just by having a prior felony. A second degree assault is a misdemeanor, not a felony, but it is deemed a crime of violence. So if you have a prior assault, even if you didn't serve a single day in jail, just probation for it, then you cannot own a firearm if you're found guilty of that crime. And so what happens is, 10 years earlier, you have a little domestic situation. It goes to court, you plead guilty. No jail, probation, do a domestic violence class, fine. Nine years later you go to a shooting range, 15 years in prison, potentially five years mandatory minimum is what you're facing for that.