Lautenberg Law

Question
Hello Doug.  I read a previous answer to a gentleman who was asking if he had a conviction for domestic violence set aside in Arizona would he be able to posess a firearm.  You stated that he would never be able to.  It clearly states on the ATF website that the Lautenberg law does not apply to persons convicted of DV if they have had that conviction set aside or expunged.  Arizona does not have expungement so being set aside is equal.  I was in the exact situation,  DV conviction and had it set aside.  The police department themselves did a background check on me in order to return a stolen weapon of mine, and I doubt they made a mistake.  So what I am asking is that you could possibly clarify what is correct and what is not.  

Thank you very much for your time in reading this.

Answer

Brian,

Lautenberg clearly states that is does not apply in cases where a DV conviction has been expunged or set aside and the right to own a firearm has been explicitly restored as part of the expungement. 營n Arizona, there is no legal mechanism by which firearm rights can be restored for a misdemeanor conviction. 營 checked 爓ith an attorney I consider knowledgeable on this and unless there has been some change in Arizona law that I am not aware of, my answer stands. 燨ther states may have a mechanism to do this but it is my understanding that Arizona does not. 燱as your conviction and subsequent expungement in another state?

Based on your experiences, I will look into this further. Not to be rude about it, but federal and local law enforcement agencies are notorious for inaccurate application of statutes. 燭hat fact keeps a lot of lawyers and judges very busy. 營 will find out what I can and try and get back to you. 燘e grateful that you seem to have dodged any issues on this. ?br>
Regards,

Doug Little