FILED SENATE
Apr 7, 2021
GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
S.B. 687
SESSION 2021 PRINCIPAL CLERK
S D
SENATE BILL DRS45390-MLf-92B
Short Title: Second Amendment Freedoms. (Public)
Sponsors: Senators Britt, Perry, and Johnson (Primary Sponsors).
Referred to:
1 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
2 AN ACT TO REVISE THE CRITERIA FOR RESTORATION OF FIREARMS RIGHTS TO
3 ALLOW RESTORATION IF THE PETITIONER WAS CONVICTED OF A CRIME OF
4 VIOLENCE CONSTITUTING A MISDEMEANOR SO LONG AS TEN YEARS HAVE
5 PASSED SINCE THE DATE OF CONVICTION OR THE DATE WHEN ANY ACTIVE
6 SENTENCE, PERIOD OF PROBATION, OR POST-RELEASE SUPERVISION HAS
7 BEEN SERVED FOR THE OFFENSE; TO ALLOW THE FILING AND GRANTING OF
8 A PETITION BY A PERSON WHO WAS CONVICTED OF A NONVIOLENT FELONY
9 IN A JURISDICTION OTHER THAN NORTH CAROLINA IF TEN YEARS HAVE
10 PASSED SINCE THE DATE THE PERSON BECAME ELIGIBLE TO HAVE THE
11 PERSON'S CIVIL RIGHTS AUTOMATICALLY RESTORED; AND TO ALLOW THE
12 PURCHASE OF A HANDGUN WITHOUT A PISTOL PURCHASE PERMIT.
13 The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
14
15 PART I. FIREARMS RIGHTS RESTORATION REVISIONS
16 SECTION 1.1. G.S. 14-415.4 reads as rewritten:
17 "§ 14-415.4. Restoration of firearms rights.
18 …
19 (c) Petition for Restoration of Firearms Rights. – A person who was convicted of a
20 nonviolent felony in North Carolina but whose civil rights have been restored pursuant to Chapter
21 13 of the General Statutes for a period of at least 20 10 years may petition the district court in the
22 district where the person resides to restore the person's firearms rights pursuant to this section. A
23 person who was convicted of a nonviolent felony in a jurisdiction other than North Carolina may
24 petition the district court in the district where the person resides to restore the person's firearms
25 rights pursuant to this section only if a period of 10 years have passed since (i) the person's civil
26 rights, including the right to possess a firearm, have been restored, pursuant to the law of the
27 jurisdiction where the conviction occurred, for a period of at least 20 years. or (ii) the person
28 became eligible under G.S. 13-1 to have the person's civil rights automatically restored. The court
29 may restore a petitioner's firearms rights after a hearing in court if the court determines that the
30 petitioner meets the criteria set out in this section and is not otherwise disqualified to have that
31 right restored.
32 (d) Criteria. – The court may grant a petition to restore a person's firearms rights under
33 this section if the petitioner satisfies all of the following criteria and is not otherwise disqualified
34 to have that right restored:
35 …
*DRS45390-MLf-92B*
 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2021
1 (3) The petitioner's rights of citizenship have been restored pursuant to Chapter
2 13 of the General Statutes or, if the conviction was in a jurisdiction other than
3 North Carolina, have been restored, pursuant to the laws of the jurisdiction
4 where the conviction occurred, for a period of at least 20 years before the date
5 of the filing of the petition.petitioner satisfied the applicable 10-year
6 requirement set forth in subsection (c) of this section.
7 (4) The petitioner has not been convicted under the laws of the United States, the
8 laws of this State, or the laws of any other state of any misdemeanor as
9 described in subdivision (6) of subsection (e) of this section since the
10 conviction of the nonviolent felony.
11 …
12 (e) Disqualifiers Requiring Denial of Petition. – The court shall deny the petition to
13 restore the firearms rights of any petitioner if the court finds any of the following:
14 …
15 (6) The petitioner is or has been adjudicated guilty of or received a prayer for
16 judgment continued or suspended sentence for one or more crimes of violence
17 constituting a misdemeanor, including a misdemeanor under Article 8 of
18 Chapter 14 of the General Statutes, Statutes other than a misdemeanor under
19 G.S. 14-33, or a misdemeanor under G.S. 14-225.2, 14-226.1, 14-258.1,
20 14-269.2, 14-269.3, 14-269.4, 14-269.6, 14-276.1, 14-277, 14-277.1,
21 14-277.2, 14-277.3, 14-281.1, 14-283, 14-288.2, 14-288.4(a)(1) or (2),
22 14-288.6, 14-288.9, former 14-288.12, former 14-288.13, former 14-288.14,
23 14-288.20A, 14-318.2, 14-415.21(b), or 14-415.26(d), or a substantially
24 similar out-of-state or federal offense.
25 …."
26 SECTION 1.2. This Part becomes effective October 1, 2021, and applies to petitions
27 filed on or after that date.
28
29 PART II. REPEAL PISTOL PURCHASE PERMIT
30 SECTION 2.1. G.S. 14-402 through G.S. 14-405 and G.S. 14-407.1 are repealed.
31 SECTION 2.2. G.S. 14-315(b1)(1) is repealed.
32 SECTION 2.3. G.S. 122C-54(d2) is repealed.
33 SECTION 2.4. Prosecutions for offenses committed before the effective date of this
34 act are not abated or affected by this act, and the statutes that would be applicable but for this act
35 remain applicable to those prosecutions.
36 SECTION 2.5. This Part is effective when it becomes law and applies to pistols sold,
37 given away, transferred, purchased, or received on or after that date.
38
39 PART III. EFFECTIVE DATE
40 SECTION 3. Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes
41 law.
Page 2 DRS45390-MLf-92B


Statutes affected:
Filed: 14-415.4, 14-315, 122C-54
Edition 1: 14-415.4, 14-315, 122C-54