Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
The US Justice Department on Monday finalised a rule that will allow people barred from owning firearms because of criminal convictions to apply to have their gun rights restored. The move, launched by newly confirmed Attorney General Todd Blanche, is being seen as a win for Second Amendment advocates who have long argued that non-violent people with felony convictions should have a way to regain their legal right to own firearms.
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Blanche said the new process would balance constitutional rights and public safety. “The Second Amendment is not a second-class right, and the federal government should not permanently deprive Americans of a constitutional right without regard to whether they pose a danger to public safety,” he said in a statement. He added that the process would protect “public safety while giving deserving Americans a real path to restoration”.
The rule is the latest step by President Donald Trump’s administration to ease firearms restrictions. Earlier this year, the Justice Department moved to roll back and modify a set of gun regulations. Separately, the department recently chose not to challenge a court ruling that struck down regulations on firearm suppressors and certain guns.
Under federal law, people who lost their gun rights because of felony convictions have long been allowed to petition the government to own firearms again. But since 1992, Congress has effectively stopped the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives from processing such applications.
The Trump administration’s new rule seeks to work around that by creating a fresh application system through an online portal. The Justice Department said requests for restoration would be decided on a case-by-case basis, with officials examining a person’s record and reputation to assess whether they are likely to pose a threat to public safety.
Officials said people convicted of violent crimes, registered sex offenders, people living in the country illegally, and others believed to pose a danger to society would be denied restoration “absent extraordinary circumstances”. The new rule opens a pathway for some people with criminal convictions to seek the return of their gun rights, while leaving exclusions in place for those seen as a risk to public safety.
With PTI Inputs
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
