Key Takeaways
- Felonies Equal a Lifetime Ban: In North Carolina, if you are convicted of any felony, you lose your right to own or hold a gun forever. There is a very strict 20-year waiting rule just to try to get them back.
- A DVPO Means Temporary Loss: If someone takes out a Chapter 50B Domestic Violence Protective Order against you, the judge will order you to hand over all your guns to the sheriff.
- The Police Take This Seriously: In Guilford County, gun crimes are a huge focus. If you are caught with a gun when you are not allowed to have one, you face massive prison time.
- You Cannot Even Be in the Same Room: “Constructive possession” means you can go to jail just for riding in a car where a gun is hidden, if the police think you knew it was there.
- We Fight for Your Rights: At Huggins Law Firm, P.C., we handle both criminal cases and family law. We know how to fight the charges and protect your Second Amendment rights from being stripped away.
Guns are a big part of life for many people in North Carolina. You might hunt. You might like going to the shooting range. Or, you might just keep a firearm in your home to protect your family.
But what happens when you get into legal trouble? One of the very first things the government tries to take away is your right to bear arms.
Hello, my name is Attorney Micah Huggins. I am the founder of Huggins Law Firm, P.C.. We have been serving folks in our community for over a decade. We are highly rated, and we have won multiple awards. But those trophies do not matter as much as the families we help. We proudly represent the accused in Greensboro, Graham, Burlington, Asheboro, High Point, Kernersville, and Winston-Salem.
Our firm was built on a simple, powerful slogan: Justice with Integrity. Representation with Heart. At Huggins Law Firm, we believe that great representation goes beyond knowing the law. It is about standing up for people when the stakes are high, when the odds are heavy, and when the system feels totally overwhelming.
Founded by Attorney Micah E. Huggins, our firm was built on a simple conviction: every single client deserves clarity, compassion, and a champion in their corner. Whether it is a criminal defense case, a Family Law matter, Estate Planning, or a Personal Injury dispute, we bring the exact same level of preparation, precision, and purpose to every case we handle.
We don’t just file motions or show up in court. We fight with strategy, we counsel with empathy, and we work to restore what’s been lost — your dignity, your stability, or your peace of mind.
Today, we are talking about a topic that scares a lot of people. If you get a felony conviction, or if an angry ex-partner takes out a domestic violence order against you, what happens to your guns? Let’s break it down into plain English so you know exactly where you stand.
Why Are Judges and Police So Strict About Guns in Guilford County?
Before we talk about the laws, we need to look at the facts. Why do judges in Greensboro and High Point come down so hard on gun cases? The answer is in the numbers.
Very few people talk about the local crime statistics, but they paint a clear picture. According to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety (NC DPS), Guilford County deals with a massive amount of violent crime. In recent years, the county reported over 2,500 violent crimes in a single year.
But here is the statistic that changes everything: Over the last ten years, 81% of all homicides in Guilford County involved a firearm. Also, when it comes to domestic violence, the numbers are heartbreaking. About 1 in 3 female homicide victims in our area died because of intimate partner violence. Guilford County often ranks near the very top of the state for domestic violence-related deaths.
Because of these numbers, the police and the judges at the Guilford County Courthouse are not messing around. They want guns off the streets. If you break the rules, they will use the full power of the law to put you behind bars.
What Happens to My Gun Rights After a Felony Conviction?
If you are convicted of a felony in North Carolina, the hammer drops. It does not matter if the felony was violent or not. It does not matter if you went to prison or just got probation.
Under both state law and federal law, a felony conviction means you lose your right to buy, own, or hold a firearm. You are completely banned. This rule kicks in the exact moment the judge signs your guilty judgment.
If you try to buy a gun at a store, the store will run your name through the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). The computer will flash red. You will be denied. And worse, the store might call the police on you just for trying to buy it.
What is “Possession of a Firearm by a Felon”?
If you already have a felony on your record and the police catch you with a gun, you will be charged with a new crime called “Possession of a Firearm by a Felon.”
This is a Class G felony in North Carolina. It carries serious, active prison time. The United States Department of Justice for the Middle District of NC prosecutes hundreds of these cases every year. The federal government loves to take these cases because federal prison time is much harsher than state prison time. If the federal agents from the ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) get involved, you could go away for a very long time.
Can I Just Hold a Gun for a Friend if I Am a Felon?
No! This is the biggest mistake people make.
The law uses a tricky concept called “constructive possession.” You do not actually have to hold the gun in your hands to go to prison. If you are riding in the passenger seat of a car, and there is a gun sitting in the center console, the police can charge you with possessing it.
If the police raid your house and find a gun under the mattress, even if it belongs to your roommate or your spouse, they will arrest you. If the police believe you knew the gun was there and you had the power to grab it, you are guilty in their eyes.
If you live with someone who owns a gun, they must keep it locked in a safe that you do not have the code or key to open. If you have access to it, you are breaking the law.
Can I Ever Get My Gun Rights Back After a Felony?
This is a hard question. For a long time, the answer was no. Today, the answer is “maybe, but it takes a very long time.”
North Carolina law has a special process for restoring gun rights, but the rules are incredibly strict:
- You can only apply if your felony was non-violent. If your felony involved an assault, a robbery, or a weapon, you can never get your rights back.
- You have to wait 20 full years after you finish your entire sentence (including probation and paying all your fines).
- You must have a perfectly clean record during those 20 years. Not even a serious traffic ticket.
If you meet all those rules, a lawyer can help you file a petition in civil court. But for most people, a felony conviction means saying goodbye to firearms forever. This is why you need a champion to fight the original felony charge before it ruins your life.
What Happens to My Gun Rights During a Domestic Violence Protective Order (DVPO)?
We do a lot of work in Family Law. We see angry divorces and bad breakups every single week. Sometimes, an angry ex-partner will go to the courthouse and take out a “Chapter 50B Domestic Violence Protective Order” (also called a DVPO or a restraining order) against you.
When a judge signs a 50B order, your Second Amendment rights are paused immediately.
The judge will usually check a box on the paper that orders you to surrender all your firearms to the local Sheriff’s Office. You cannot just give them to your brother to hold. You have to literally drive to the police station and hand your guns to the cops.
Why Does the Judge Take My Guns for a 50B?
Remember the statistics we talked about earlier? In Guilford County, 35% of homicides start from a simple argument. When a couple is breaking up or fighting, emotions are through the roof. The law takes away the guns to let everyone cool down and to stop a tragedy from happening.
What Happens if I Do Not Hand Over My Guns?
If you hide your hunting rifle in the closet and tell the sheriff you do not have any guns, you are playing a dangerous game. If the police find out, you will be charged with a crime for violating the protective order. You will be put in jail.
Also, it is a federal crime to buy or possess a gun while an active domestic violence restraining order is filed against you.
Do I Get My Guns Back When the 50B Order Ends?
Yes, usually. A 50B order is not forever. It usually lasts for one year.
When the one-year mark passes and the order expires, your gun rights automatically come back. However, the sheriff will not just mail your guns to your house. You have to file special paperwork to ask the sheriff to give them back. The sheriff will run a new background check to make sure you did not get any new criminal charges while the order was active.
If your background check is clean, you can go pick up your property.
What if I Get Convicted of a Misdemeanor Domestic Violence Crime?
This is where things get really bad.
Let’s say you get into a fight with your spouse. The police show up and arrest you for “Simple Assault” or “Assault on a Female.” These are misdemeanors, not felonies. You might think, Oh, it is just a misdemeanor, I get to keep my guns.
You are wrong.
The federal government has a law called the Lautenberg Amendment. This law says that if you are convicted of any misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, you lose your gun rights forever across the entire United States.
You cannot hunt. You cannot protect your home. You cannot go to the shooting range. Even worse, if you are in the military or you are a police officer, you will lose your job because you are no longer allowed to carry a service weapon.
This is why you must never just plead guilty to a domestic violence charge just to “get it over with.” The hidden punishments will haunt you for the rest of your life.
How Can Attorney Micah Huggins Help Protect Your Rights?
When the system is trying to take your rights, your property, and your freedom, you cannot afford to fight alone. The odds are too heavy.
At Huggins Law Firm, we are a unique team. Because we handle both criminal defense and family law, we know how these two worlds crash into each other. If your spouse takes out a 50B protective order to get the upper hand in a divorce, we know how to fight the 50B in family court. If you are charged with an assault, we know how to defend you in criminal court.
We sit down with you and explain the plan. We do not use confusing legal words. We provide clarity.
- We investigate the facts. Did the police have the right to search your car and find that gun?
- We talk to the witnesses. Was the domestic violence claim exaggerated?
- We negotiate with the prosecutor. Can we get the charges dropped or changed to a non-domestic charge so you keep your gun rights?
We fight with strategy. We counsel with empathy. And we work to restore what’s been lost.
10 of the Most Common Questions Asked About Gun Rights and the Law in NC
When folks call our office, they have a lot of questions about their rights. Here are the top ten questions people ask us, and the simple answers you need.
1. Does a misdemeanor drug charge take away my gun rights?
Not forever, but it can pause them. Under federal law, if you are an “unlawful user of a controlled substance,” you cannot buy a gun. A recent drug conviction can cause you to fail the background check at the gun store.
2. Can the police take my guns without a warrant?
Usually no, unless there is an emergency or a judge signs a 50B protective order. However, if they have probable cause to search your car or your house, they can seize any illegal items they find.
3. What is a “felony firearm hold” in Guilford County?
If you are arrested for a violent crime or a gun crime, the local magistrate might put a “firearm hold” on your bond. This means the judge will not let you out of jail until a higher judge reviews your case to see if you are too dangerous to release.
4. Can I hunt with a bow and arrow if I am a felon?
Yes. In North Carolina, the ban only applies to firearms (weapons that use gunpowder). Felons are generally allowed to own and hunt with archery equipment like bows and crossbows.
5. Do black powder guns count as firearms for felons?
Yes. Even though black powder rifles and muzzleloaders are older technology, North Carolina law still considers them “firearms.” A felon cannot own or use them.
6. Can my wife keep her guns in the house if I am a felon?
It is very risky. If she keeps them, they must be locked in a heavy safe that you absolutely cannot open. If you know the combination or have the key, the police will say you are in “constructive possession” of the guns and arrest you.
7. What happens if I forget to turn in my guns for a 50B order?
The judge will issue a warrant for your arrest for “Contempt of Court” or violating the protective order. The police will come to your house, take you to jail, and search your property for the weapons.
8. Does an expungement restore my gun rights?
Yes! If we can successfully get your old felony completely erased (expunged) from your criminal record, it is legally like the crime never happened. Your gun rights are fully restored.
9. Can I carry a concealed weapon if I have a pending charge?
If you have an active, pending felony charge, your concealed carry permit will be suspended. You cannot carry a hidden gun while you are out on bond waiting for your trial.
10. How much does it cost to fight a gun charge?
Every single case is different. A simple mistake costs much less than a massive federal drug and gun conspiracy. At Huggins Law Firm, we are always honest about our prices. We will tell you the exact cost upfront so there are no surprises.
Do Not Let the System Strip Your Rights Away
Your Second Amendment rights are fundamental. But the government can and will take them away if you do not fight back.
Do not try to handle a felony charge or a 50B order on your own. The prosecutors have an army of police officers on their side. You need a champion on yours.
At Huggins Law Firm, P.C., we stand ready to defend you. We will listen to your story, explain your options clearly, and work tirelessly to protect your freedom and your future.
If you are facing legal trouble in Greensboro, High Point, Graham, Burlington, Asheboro, Kernersville, or Winston-Salem, reach out to us today.
Visit our home page to learn more about how we can help you. Justice with Integrity. Representation with Heart. We are in your corner. Let’s start building your defense.
