Are there firearms restrictions for persons who have committed domestic violence?
Two separate federal firearms laws relate to domestic violence: the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 (VAWA) and the Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act of 1997, which amends the Federal Gun Control Act of 1968. The Violence Against Women Act of 1994 contains a provision that prohibits the subject of a domestic violence restraining order from possessing firearms and ammunition. Under 18 U.S.C. ยง 922(g)(8), anyone subject to a qualifying restraining order cannot possess a firearm or ammunition. Intimate partners include spouses, former spouses, or significant others, but do not include significant others with whom the defendant has NOT cohabited. A qualifying misdemeanor crime of domestic violence (MCDV) is a federal, state, or local offense that is a misdemeanor under federal or state law and has an element of use or attempted use of physical force, or the threatened use of a deadly weapon. At the time the MCDV was committed, the defendant was a current or former spouse, parent, o
