Firearms and Protective Orders: The Deadline People Miss

A person can be a lawful firearm owner on Monday and a prohibited person on Tuesday, purely because a protective order was issued. This is the single most commonly missed obligation after a release, and the consequences of missing it are criminal rather than administrative.

What changes when an order issues

California law requires a person subject to a qualifying protective order to relinquish firearms, and possessing them while subject to such an order is a separate offence. Courts require proof that relinquishment happened. It applies regardless of whether the firearms were lawfully acquired and lawfully owned.

Protective orders arrive quickly in domestic violence matters — often at or before arraignment, and sometimes as an emergency order before that. See protective orders and EPOs and conditions of release.

The mistakes that create a second case

• Doing nothing, on the assumption the order only prohibits contact.
• Handing firearms to a relative or friend informally. California regulates firearm transfers, and an informal handover can create a further offence rather than solving anything.
• Going home to collect them when the order prohibits being at the address — which breaches the stay-away condition. See violating a court order, and ask about a civil standby instead.
• Assuming the order will be dropped because the protected person wants it dropped. Only the issuing court can change an order.

Why this matters so much for bail

A firearm offence discovered after release is a new case with its own bail amount, and Penal Code 1269b(g) means the existing bond does nothing for it. It can also trigger a court to revoke release or raise bail under Penal Code 1289 — see bail revocation — and if the person was out on bail on a felony, the PC 12022.1 enhancement may come into play. See also weapons charges.

The right move

Ask the defence lawyer how to comply, on day one. There is a correct procedure, courts expect proof of it, and doing it properly costs nothing compared with a second prosecution. If counsel has not been appointed yet, see how to get a public defender.

Related

Local guides: Anaheim, Brea, La Habra, Fullerton, Buena Park, Yorba Linda and Tustin.

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Please note: American Freedom Bail Bonds is a licensed bail bond agency, not a law firm. Nothing here is legal advice and we cannot predict how any case will proceed. California bail license 1841014.