Legal Question in Criminal Law in Minnesota
acquiring a permit to purchase firearms in MN
If a background check is done on me it will come back clean. Any misdemeanors were from the 1970's and have been pardoned or expunged. A felony 'Trafficking in Cannibas' charge became a withheld adjudication and is no longer on file; this was from the mid-80's. NCIC has all arrests from fingerprinting, but fingerprints aren't required for the permit to purchase. The arrests were in states other than MN. When submitting an application for permit to purchase firearms, should I admit to past convictions if there is no record of them?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: acquiring a permit to purchase firearms in MN
An expungement would seal the record inmost instances except for state licensing or if the person requires security clearance or is looking for a position in law enforcement. A pardon does not seal the file and any pardon should be followed up with an expungement.
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Re: acquiring a permit to purchase firearms in MN
A person should accurately and honestly complete the application. False statements on the application could be prosecuted as a crime. However, most people have a poor understanding of what a "conviction" is. For example, a stay of adjudication, once successfully completed in Minnesota state court, should result in a dismissal of the criminal charge without conviction -- not a "conviction." The best plan is to get records from each court of each case including dispostion and final outcome. Then determine which are "convictions" and which are not. If you need a lawyers help doing so, that would be better than making a false statement, even innocently out of ignorance, and end up being charged with a crime of submitting a false gun application.
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