Maryland 2024 Regular Session

Maryland House Bill HB41 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2
3	3	EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
4	4	[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
5	5	hb0041
6	6
7	7	HOUSE BILL 41
8	8	E2 EMERGENCY BILL 4lr0539
9	9	HB 952/23 – JUD (PRE–FILED)
10	10	By: Delegate Mangione
11	11	Requested: August 28, 2023
12	12	Introduced and read first time: January 10, 2024
13	13	Assigned to: Judiciary
14	14
15	15	A BILL ENTITLED
16	16
17	17	AN ACT concerning 1
18	18
19	19	Crimes – Firearms – Penalties and Procedures 2
20	20	(Violent Firearms Offender Act of 2024) 3
21	21
22	22	FOR the purpose of establishing, altering, and clarifying penalties for and elements of 4
23	23	certain firearm–related crimes; prohibiting a District Court commissioner from 5
24	24	authorizing the pretrial release of a certain defendant charged with a certain 6
25	25	firearm–related crime under certain circumstances; prohibiting a dealer or other 7
26	26	person from selling, renting, loaning, or transferring a regulated firearm to a 8
27	27	purchaser, lessee, borrower, or transferee if the dealer or other person has actual 9
28	28	knowledge that the purchaser, lessee, borrower, or transferee was previously 10
29	29	convicted of a certain crime or intends to use the regulated firearm for a certain 11
30	30	purpose; altering a certain definition of “technical violation” applicable to parole and 12
31	31	probation provisions; and generally relating to firearms. 13
32	32
33	33	BY renumbering 14
34	34	Article – Criminal Law 15
35	35	Section 7–104(h) through (j) 16
36	36	to be Section 7–104(i) through (k), respectively 17
37	37	Annotated Code of Maryland 18
38	38	(2021 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 19
39	39
40	40	BY renumbering 20
41	41	Article – Public Safety 21
42	42	Section 5–134(c) and (d) 22
43	43	to be Section 5–134(d) and (e), respectively 23
44	44	Annotated Code of Maryland 24
45	45	(2022 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 25
46	46
47	47	BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 26
48	48	Article – Correctional Services 27 2 HOUSE BILL 41
49	49
50	50
51	51	Section 6–101(a) 1
52	52	Annotated Code of Maryland 2
53	53	(2017 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 3
54	54
55	55	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 4
56	56	Article – Correctional Services 5
57	57	Section 6–101(m) 6
58	58	Annotated Code of Maryland 7
59	59	(2017 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 8
60	60
61	61	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 9
62	62	Article – Criminal Law 10
63	63	Section 4–204, 4–306(b), 4–404, and 7–104(g) 11
64	64	Annotated Code of Maryland 12
65	65	(2021 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 13
66	66
67	67	BY adding to 14
68	68	Article – Criminal Law 15
69	69	Section 7–104(h) 16
70	70	Annotated Code of Maryland 17
71	71	(2021 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 18
72	72
73	73	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 19
74	74	Article – Criminal Law 20
75	75	Section 7–104(j) 21
76	76	Annotated Code of Maryland 22
77	77	(2021 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 23
78	78	(As enacted by Section 1 of this Act) 24
79	79
80	80	BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 25
81	81	Article – Criminal Procedure 26
82	82	Section 5–202(c)(1) and (d)(1) 27
83	83	Annotated Code of Maryland 28
84	84	(2018 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 29
85	85
86	86	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 30
87	87	Article – Criminal Procedure 31
88	88	Section 5–202(f) 32
89	89	Annotated Code of Maryland 33
90	90	(2018 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 34
91	91
92	92	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 35
93	93	Article – Public Safety 36
94	94	Section 5–133(b), (b–1), (c), and (g), 5–134(b), 5–138, 5–141, 5–142, and 5–144 37
95	95	Annotated Code of Maryland 38
96	96	(2022 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 39
97	97	HOUSE BILL 41 3
98	98
99	99
100	100	BY adding to 1
101	101	Article – Public Safety 2
102	102	Section 5–134(c) 3
103	103	Annotated Code of Maryland 4
104	104	(2022 Replacement Volume and 2023 Supplement) 5
105	105
106	106	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 6
107	107	That Section(s) 7–104(h) through (j) of Article – Criminal Law of the Annotated Code of 7
108	108	Maryland be renumbered to be Section(s) 7–104(i) through (k), respectively. 8
109	109
110	110	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That Section(s) 5 –134(c) and (d) of 9
111	111	Article – Public Safety of the Annotated Code of Maryland be renumbered to be Section(s) 10
112	112	5–134(d) and (e), respectively. 11
113	113
114	114	SECTION 3. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That the Laws of Maryland read 12
115	115	as follows: 13
116	116
117	117	Article – Correctional Services 14
118	118
119	119	6–101. 15
120	120
121	121	(a) In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated. 16
122	122
123	123	(m) “Technical violation” means a violation of a condition of probation, parole, or 17
124	124	mandatory supervision that does not involve: 18
125	125
126	126	(1) an arrest or a summons issued by a commissioner on a statement of 19
127	127	charges filed by a law enforcement officer; 20
128	128
129	129	(2) a violation of a criminal prohibition other than a minor traffic offense; 21
130	130
131	131	(3) a violation of a no–contact or stay–away order; [or] 22
132	132
133	133	(4) absconding; OR 23
134	134
135	135	(5) USE OR POSSESSION OF A FIREARM. 24
136	136
137	137	Article – Criminal Law 25
138	138
139	139	4–204. 26
140	140
141	141	(a) (1) In this section, “firearm” means: 27
142	142
143	143	(i) a weapon that expels, is designed to expel, or may readily be 28
144	144	converted to expel a projectile by the action of an explosive; or 29
145	145
146	146	(ii) the frame or receiver of such a weapon. 30 4 HOUSE BILL 41
147	147
148	148
149	149
150	150	(2) “Firearm” includes an antique firearm, handgun, rifle, shotgun, 1
151	151	short–barreled rifle, short–barreled shotgun, starter gun, or any other firearm, whether 2
152	152	loaded or unloaded. 3
153	153
154	154	(b) A person may not use a firearm in the commission of a crime of violence, as 4
155	155	defined in § 5–101 of the Public Safety Article, or any felony, whether the firearm is 5
156	156	operable or inoperable at the time of the crime. 6
157	157
158	158	(c) (1) (i) A person who violates this section is guilty of a [misdemeanor] 7
159	159	FELONY and, in addition to any other penalty imposed for the crime of violence or felony, 8
160	160	shall be sentenced: 9
161	161
162	162	1. FOR A FIRST OFFENSE , to imprisonment for not less than 10
163	163	5 years and not exceeding 20 years; AND 11
164	164
165	165	2. FOR A SECOND OR SUBS EQUENT OFFENSE , TO 12
166	166	IMPRISONMENT FOR NOT LESS THAN 10 YEARS AND NOT EXCEED ING 20 YEARS. 13
167	167
168	168	(ii) [The] NOTWITHSTANDING § 14–102 OF THIS ARTICLE: 14
169	169
170	170	1. THE court may not impose less than the MANDATORY 15
171	171	minimum sentence of 5 years [and, except] FOR A SENTENCE IMPOS ED UNDER 16
172	172	SUBPARAGRAPH (I)1 OF THIS PARAGRAPH ; AND 17
173	173
174	174	2. THE COURT MAY NOT IM POSE LESS THAN THE 18
175	175	MANDATORY MINIMUM SE NTENCE OF 10 YEARS FOR A SENTENCE IMPOSED UNDER 19
176	176	SUBPARAGRAPH (I)2 OF THIS PARAGRAPH . 20
177	177
178	178	(III) THE MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCE REQUIRED UN DER 21
179	179	SUBPARAG RAPH (I) OF THIS PARAGRAPH MA Y NOT BE SUSPENDED . 22
180	180
181	181	(IV) EXCEPT as otherwise provided in § 4–305 of the Correctional 23
182	182	Services Article, the person is not eligible for parole in less than [5 years] THE 24
183	183	MANDATORY MINIMUM SE NTENCE. 25
184	184
185	185	(2) [For each subsequent violation, the] THE sentence shall be consecutive 26
186	186	to and not concurrent with any other sentence imposed for the crime of violence or felony. 27
187	187
188	188	4–306. 28
189	189
190	190	(b) (1) A person who uses an assault weapon, a rapid fire trigger activator, or 29
191	191	a magazine that has a capacity of more than 10 rounds of ammunition, in the commission 30
192	192	of a felony or a crime of violence as defined in § 5–101 of the Public Safety Article is guilty 31
193	193	of a [misdemeanor] FELONY and on conviction, in addition to any other sentence imposed 32 HOUSE BILL 41 5
194	194
195	195
196	196	for the felony or crime of violence, shall be sentenced under this subsection. 1
197	197
198	198	(2) (i) For a first violation, the person shall be sentenced to 2
199	199	imprisonment for not less than 5 years and not exceeding 20 years. 3
200	200
201	201	(ii) [The] NOTWITHSTANDING § 14–102 OF THIS ARTICLE , THE 4
202	202	court may not impose less than the minimum sentence of 5 years. 5
203	203
204	204	(iii) The mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years may not be 6
205	205	suspended. 7
206	206
207	207	(iv) Except as otherwise provided in § 4–305 of the Correctional 8
208	208	Services Article, the person is not eligible for parole in less than 5 years. 9
209	209
210	210	(3) (i) For each subsequent violation, the person shall be sentenced to 10
211	211	imprisonment for not less than 10 years and not exceeding 20 years. 11
212	212
213	213	(ii) [The] NOTWITHSTANDING § 14–102 OF THIS ARTICLE , THE 12
214	214	court may not impose less than the minimum sentence of 10 years. 13
215	215
216	216	(III) THE MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCE OF 10 YEARS MAY 14
217	217	NOT BE SUSPENDED . 15
218	218
219	219	(IV) EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE P ROVIDED IN § 4–305 OF THE 16
220	220	CORRECTIONAL SERVICES ARTICLE, THE PERSON IS NOT EL IGIBLE FOR PAROLE IN 17
221	221	LESS THAN 10 YEARS. 18
222	222
223	223	[(iii)] (4) A sentence imposed under this [paragraph] SUBSECTION 19
224	224	shall be consecutive to and not concurrent with any other sentence imposed for the felony 20
225	225	or crime of violence. 21
226	226
227	227	4–404. 22
228	228
229	229	(a) A person may not use or possess a machine gun in the commission or 23
230	230	attempted commission of a FELONY OR crime of violence. 24
231	231
232	232	(b) (1) A person who violates this section is guilty of a felony and on conviction, 25
233	233	IN ADDITION TO ANY O THER PENALTY IMPOSED FOR THE CRIME OF VIO LENCE OR 26
234	234	FELONY, is subject to [imprisonment not exceeding 20 years]: 27
235	235
236	236	(I) FOR A FIRST OFFENSE , IMPRISONMENT FOR NOT LESS THAN 28
237	237	5 YEARS AND NOT EXCEED ING 20 YEARS; AND 29
238	238
239	239	(II) FOR A SECOND OR SUBSEQUENT OFFENSE, IMPRISONMENT 30
240	240	FOR NOT LESS THAN 10 YEARS AND NOT EXCEED ING 20 YEARS. 31 6 HOUSE BILL 41
241	241
242	242
243	243
244	244	(2) (I) NOTWITHSTANDING § 14–102 OF THIS ARTICLE, THE COURT 1
245	245	MAY NOT IMPOSE LESS THAN THE MANDATORY M INIMUM SENTENCE OF 5 YEARS FOR 2
246	246	A SENTENCE IMPOSED U NDER PARAGRAPH (1)(I) OF THIS SUBSECTION . 3
247	247
248	248	(II) NOTWITHSTANDING § 14–102 OF THIS ARTICLE, THE COURT 4
249	249	MAY NOT IMPOSE LESS THAN THE MANDATORY M INIMUM SENTENCE OF 10 YEARS 5
250	250	FOR A SENTENCE IMPOS ED UNDER PARAGRAPH (1)(II) OF THIS SUBSECTION . 6
251	251
252	252	(3) A MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCE UND ER PARAGRAPH (1) OF 7
253	253	THIS SUBSECTION MAY NOT BE SUSPENDED . 8
254	254
255	255	(4) EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE P ROVIDED IN § 4–305 OF THE 9
256	256	CORRECTIONAL SERVICES ARTICLE, THE PERSON IS NOT EL IGIBLE FOR PAROLE IN 10
257	257	LESS THAN THE MANDAT ORY MINIMUM SENTENCE . 11
258	258
259	259	(5) THE SENTENCE SHALL BE CONSECUTIVE TO AND N OT 12
260	260	CONCURRENT WITH ANY OTHER SENTENCE IMPOS ED FOR THE CRIME OF VIOLENCE 13
261	261	OR FELONY. 14
262	262
263	263	7–104. 15
264	264
265	265	(g) (1) THIS SUBSECTION DOES NOT APPLY TO THEFT O F A FIREARM. 16
266	266
267	267	(2) A person convicted of theft of property or services with a value of: 17
268	268
269	269	(i) at least $1,500 but less than $25,000 is guilty of a felony and: 18
270	270
271	271	1. is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 5 years or a fine 19
272	272	not exceeding $10,000 or both; and 20
273	273
274	274	2. shall restore the property taken to the owner or pay the 21
275	275	owner the value of the property or services; 22
276	276
277	277	(ii) at least $25,000 but less than $100,000 is guilty of a felony and: 23
278	278
279	279	1. is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 10 years or a fine 24
280	280	not exceeding $15,000 or both; and 25
281	281
282	282	2. shall restore the property taken to the owner or pay the 26
283	283	owner the value of the property or services; or 27
284	284
285	285	(iii) $100,000 or more is guilty of a felony and: 28
286	286
287	287	1. is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 20 years or a fine 29 HOUSE BILL 41 7
288	288
289	289
290	290	not exceeding $25,000 or both; and 1
291	291
292	292	2. shall restore the property taken to the owner or pay the 2
293	293	owner the value of the property or services. 3
294	294
295	295	[(2)] (3) Except as provided in paragraph [(3)] (4) of this subsection, a 4
296	296	person convicted of theft of property or services with a value of at least $100 but less than 5
297	297	$1,500, is guilty of a misdemeanor and: 6
298	298
299	299	(i) is subject to: 7
300	300
301	301	1. for a first conviction, imprisonment not exceeding 6 8
302	302	months or a fine not exceeding $500 or both; and 9
303	303
304	304	2. for a second or subsequent conviction, imprisonment not 10
305	305	exceeding 1 year or a fine not exceeding $500 or both; and 11
306	306
307	307	(ii) shall restore the property taken to the owner or pay the owner 12
308	308	the value of the property or services. 13
309	309
310	310	[(3)] (4) A person convicted of theft of property or services with a value of 14
311	311	less than $100 is guilty of a misdemeanor and: 15
312	312
313	313	(i) is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 90 days or a fine not 16
314	314	exceeding $500 or both; and 17
315	315
316	316	(ii) shall restore the property taken to the owner or pay the owner 18
317	317	the value of the property or services. 19
318	318
319	319	[(4)] (5) Subject to paragraph [(5)] (6) of this subsection, a person who 20
320	320	has four or more prior convictions under this subtitle and who is convicted of theft of 21
321	321	property or services with a value of less than $1,500 under paragraph [(2)] (3) of this 22
322	322	subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor and: 23
323	323
324	324	(i) is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 5 years or a fine not 24
325	325	exceeding $5,000 or both; and 25
326	326
327	327	(ii) shall restore the property taken to the owner or pay the owner 26
328	328	the value of the property or services. 27
329	329
330	330	[(5)] (6) The court may not impose the penalties under paragraph [(4)] 28
331	331	(5) of this subsection unless the State’s Attorney serves notice on the defendant or the 29
332	332	defendant’s counsel before the acceptance of a plea of guilty or nolo contendere or at least 30
333	333	15 days before trial that: 31
334	334
335	335	(i) the State will seek the penalties under paragraph [(4)] (5) of this 32 8 HOUSE BILL 41
336	336
337	337
338	338	subsection; and 1
339	339
340	340	(ii) lists the alleged prior convictions. 2
341	341
342	342	(H) (1) A PERSON CONVICTED OF THEFT OF A FIREARM , INCLUDING AN 3
343	343	ANTIQUE FIREARM OR A REPLICA OF AN ANTIQU E FIREARM, IS GUILTY OF A FELONY 4
344	344	AND: 5
345	345
346	346	(I) 1. FOR A FIRST CONVICTI ON, IS SUBJECT TO 6
347	347	IMPRISONMENT FOR NOT LESS THAN 2 YEARS AND NOT EXCEED ING 10 YEARS AND A 7
348	348	FINE NOT EXCEEDING $2,500; AND 8
349	349
350	350	2. FOR A SECOND OR SUBS EQUENT CONVICTION , IS 9
351	351	SUBJECT TO IMPRISONM ENT FOR NOT LESS THA N 5 YEARS AND NOT EXCEED ING 15 10
352	352	YEARS AND A FINE NOT EXCEEDING $10,000; AND 11
353	353
354	354	(II) SHALL RESTORE THE FI REARM TO THE OWNER O R PAY THE 12
355	355	OWNER THE VALUE OF T HE FIREARM. 13
356	356
357	357	(2) NOTWITHSTANDING § 14–102 OF THIS ARTICLE, THE COURT MAY 14
358	358	NOT IMPOSE LESS THAN THE MANDATORY MINIMUM SENT ENCE OF: 15
359	359
360	360	(I) FOR A FIRST CONVICTI ON, 2 YEARS; AND 16
361	361
362	362	(II) FOR A SECOND OR SUBS EQUENT CONVICTION , 5 YEARS. 17
363	363
364	364	(3) THE COURT MAY NOT SUS PEND ANY PART OF THE MANDATORY 18
365	365	MINIMUM SENTENCE OF : 19
366	366
367	367	(I) FOR A FIRST CONVICTI ON, 2 YEARS; AND 20
368	368
369	369	(II) FOR A SECOND OR SUBS EQUENT CONVICTION , 5 YEARS. 21
370	370
371	371	(4) A SENTENCE IMPOSED UND ER PARAGRAPH (1) OF THIS 22
372	372	SUBSECTION SHALL BE SEPARATE FROM AND CO NSECUTIVE TO A SENTE NCE FOR 23
373	373	ANY OTHER OFFENSE . 24
374	374
375	375	(j) An action or prosecution for a violation of subsection [(g)(2) or (3)] (G)(3) OR 25
376	376	(4) of this section shall be commenced within 2 years after the commission of the crime. 26
377	377
378	378	Article – Criminal Procedure 27
379	379
380	380	5–202. 28
381	381	HOUSE BILL 41 9
382	382
383	383
384	384	(c) (1) A District Court commissioner may not authorize the pretrial release of 1
385	385	a defendant charged with a crime of violence if the defendant has been previously convicted: 2
386	386
387	387	(i) in this State of a crime of violence; 3
388	388
389	389	(ii) in any other jurisdiction of a crime that would be a crime of 4
390	390	violence if committed in this State; or 5
391	391
392	392	(iii) of an offense listed in subsection (f)(1) of this section. 6
393	393
394	394	(d) (1) A District Court commissioner may not authorize the pretrial release of 7
395	395	a defendant charged with committing one of the following crimes while the defendant was 8
396	396	released on bail or personal recognizance for a pending prior charge of committing one of 9
397	397	the following crimes: 10
398	398
399	399	(i) aiding, counseling, or procuring arson in the first degree under § 11
400	400	6–102 of the Criminal Law Article; 12
401	401
402	402	(ii) arson in the second degree or attempting, aiding, counseling, or 13
403	403	procuring arson in the second degree under § 6–103 of the Criminal Law Article; 14
404	404
405	405	(iii) burglary in the first degree under § 6–202 of the Criminal Law 15
406	406	Article; 16
407	407
408	408	(iv) burglary in the second degree under § 6–203 of the Criminal Law 17
409	409	Article; 18
410	410
411	411	(v) burglary in the third degree under § 6–204 of the Criminal Law 19
412	412	Article; 20
413	413
414	414	(vi) causing abuse to a child under § 3–601 or § 3–602 of the Criminal 21
415	415	Law Article; 22
416	416
417	417	(vii) a crime that relates to a destructive device under § 4–503 of the 23
418	418	Criminal Law Article; 24
419	419
420	420	(viii) a crime that relates to a controlled dangerous substance under 25
421	421	§§ 5–602 through 5–609 or § 5–612 or § 5–613 of the Criminal Law Article; 26
422	422
423	423	(ix) manslaughter by vehicle or vessel under § 2–209 of the Criminal 27
424	424	Law Article; and 28
425	425
426	426	(x) a crime of violence. 29
427	427
428	428	(f) (1) (I) A District Court commissioner may not authorize the pretrial 30
429	429	release of a defendant charged with [one of the following crimes] A CRIME LISTED IN 31
430	430	SUBPARAGRAPH (II) OF THIS PARAGRAPH if the defendant: 32 10 HOUSE BILL 41
431	431
432	432
433	433
434	434	1. has previously been convicted of a crime of violence or [one 1
435	435	of the following crimes:] A CRIME LISTED IN SU BPARAGRAPH (II) OF THIS PARAGRAPH ; 2
436	436	OR 3
437	437
438	438	2. IS ON PRETRIAL RELEA SE FOR A CRIME OF VI OLENCE 4
439	439	OR A CRIME LISTED IN SUBPARAGRAPH (II) OF THIS PARAGRAPH . 5
440	440
441	441	(II) THIS SUBSECTION APPLI ES TO THE FOLLOWING CRIMES: 6
442	442
443	443	[(i)] 1. wearing, carrying, or transporting a handgun under § 7
444	444	4–203 of the Criminal Law Article; 8
445	445
446	446	[(ii)] 2. use of a handgun or an antique firearm in commission of a 9
447	447	crime under § 4–204 of the Criminal Law Article; 10
448	448
449	449	[(iii)] 3. violating prohibitions relating to assault weapons under § 11
450	450	4–303 of the Criminal Law Article; 12
451	451
452	452	[(iv)] 4. use of a machine gun in a crime of violence under § 4–404 13
453	453	of the Criminal Law Article; 14
454	454
455	455	[(v)] 5. use of a machine gun for an aggressive purpose under § 15
456	456	4–405 of the Criminal Law Article; 16
457	457
458	458	[(vi)] 6. use of a weapon as a separate crime under § 5–621 of the 17
459	459	Criminal Law Article; 18
460	460
461	461	7. POSSESSING, USING, OWNING, CARRYING, OR 19
462	462	TRANSPORTING A FIREA RM BY A PERSON WITH A PRIOR DRUG CONVICT ION UNDER 20
463	463	§ 5–622 OF THE CRIMINAL LAW ARTICLE; 21
464	464
465	465	[(vii)] 8. possession of a regulated firearm under § 5–133 of the 22
466	466	Public Safety Article; 23
467	467
468	468	9. SALE, RENTAL, OR TRANSFER OF A REG ULATED 24
469	469	FIREARM UNDER § 5–134 OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY ARTICLE; 25
470	470
471	471	10. STRAW PURCHASE OF A REGULATED FIREARM UN DER 26
472	472	§ 5–136 OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY ARTICLE; 27
473	473
474	474	11. SALE, TRANSFER, OR DISPOSAL OF A STO LEN 28
475	475	REGULATED FIREARM UN DER § 5–138 OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY ARTICLE; 29
476	476
477	477	[(viii)] 12. transporting a regulated firearm for unlawful sale or 30 HOUSE BILL 41 11
478	478
479	479
480	480	trafficking under § 5–140 of the Public Safety Article; [or] 1
481	481
482	482	13. KNOWING PARTICIPATIO N IN A STRAW PURCHAS E OF 2
483	483	A REGULATED FIREARM UNDER § 5–141 OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY ARTICLE; 3
484	484
485	485	14. REMOVAL OR ALTERATION OF THE MANUFACTURER ’S 4
486	486	IDENTIFICATION MARK OR NUMBER ON A FIREA RM UNDER § 5–142 OF THE PUBLIC 5
487	487	SAFETY ARTICLE; 6
488	488
489	489	[(ix)] 15. possession of a rifle or shotgun by a person with a mental 7
490	490	disorder under § 5–205 of the Public Safety Article; 8
491	491
492	492	16. POSSESSION OF A RIFL E OR SHOTGUN BY A PE RSON 9
493	493	WITH A PRIOR CONVICT ION UNDER § 5–206 OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY ARTICLE; OR 10
494	494
495	495	17. A CRIME IN ANY OTHER JURISDICTION THAT WO ULD 11
496	496	BE A CRIME UNDER ITE MS 1 THROUGH 16 OF THIS SUBPARAGRAPH IF COMMITTED 12
497	497	IN THIS STATE. 13
498	498
499	499	(2) (i) A judge may authorize the pretrial release of a defendant 14
500	500	described in paragraph (1) of this subsection on: 15
501	501
502	502	1. suitable bail; 16
503	503
504	504	2. any other conditions that will reasonably ensure that the 17
505	505	defendant will not flee or pose a danger to another person or the community; or 18
506	506
507	507	3. both bail and other conditions described under item 2 of 19
508	508	this subparagraph. 20
509	509
510	510	(ii) When a defendant described in paragraph (1) of this subsection 21
511	511	is presented to the court under Maryland Rule 4–216(f), the judge shall order the continued 22
512	512	detention of the defendant if the judge determines that neither suitable bail nor any 23
513	513	condition or combination of conditions will reasonably ensure that the defendant will not 24
514	514	flee or pose a danger to another person or the community before the trial. 25
515	515
516	516	(3) There is a rebuttable presumption that a defendant described in 26
517	517	paragraph (1) of this subsection will flee and pose a danger to another person or the 27
518	518	community. 28
519	519
520	520	Article – Public Safety 29
521	521
522	522	5–133. 30
523	523
524	524	(b) (1) Subject to § 5–133.3 of this subtitle, a person may not possess a 31
525	525	regulated firearm if the person: 32 12 HOUSE BILL 41
526	526
527	527
528	528
529	529	[(1)] (I) has been convicted of a disqualifying crime; 1
530	530
531	531	[(2)] (II) has been convicted of a violation classified as a common law 2
532	532	crime and received a term of imprisonment of more than 2 years; 3
533	533
534	534	[(3) (i)] (III) 1. has been convicted on or after October 1, 2023, of a 4
535	535	second or subsequent violation of § 4–104 of the Criminal Law Article; or 5
536	536
537	537	[(ii)] 2. has been convicted on or after October 1, 2023, of a 6
538	538	violation of § 4–104 of the Criminal Law Article if the violation resulted in the use of a 7
539	539	loaded firearm by a minor causing death or serious bodily injury to the minor or another 8
540	540	person; 9
541	541
542	542	[(4)] (IV) subject to subsection (b–1) of this section, is on supervised 10
543	543	probation after being convicted: 11
544	544
545	545	[(i)] 1. of a crime punishable by imprisonment for 1 year or more; 12
546	546
547	547	[(ii)] 2. for a violation of § 21–902(b) or (c) of the Transportation 13
548	548	Article; or 14
549	549
550	550	[(iii)] 3. for a violating a protective order under § 4–509 of the 15
551	551	Family Law Article; 16
552	552
553	553	[(5)] (V) is a fugitive from justice; 17
554	554
555	555	[(6)] (VI) is a habitual drunkard; 18
556	556
557	557	[(7)] (VII) is addicted to a controlled dangerous substance or is a habitual 19
558	558	user; 20
559	559
560	560	[(8)] (VIII) suffers from a mental disorder as defined in § 10–101(i)(2) of the 21
561	561	Health – General Article and has a history of violent behavior against the person or 22
562	562	another; 23
563	563
564	564	[(9)] (IX) has been found incompetent to stand trial under § 3–106 of the 24
565	565	Criminal Procedure Article; 25
566	566
567	567	[(10)] (X) has been found not criminally responsible under § 3–110 of the 26
568	568	Criminal Procedure Article; 27
569	569
570	570	[(11)] (XI) has been voluntarily admitted for more than 30 consecutive days 28
571	571	to a facility as defined in § 10–101 of the Health – General Article; 29
572	572
573	573	[(12)] (XII) has been involuntarily committed to a facility as defined in § 30 HOUSE BILL 41 13
574	574
575	575
576	576	10–101 of the Health – General Article; 1
577	577
578	578	[(13)] (XIII) is under the protection of a guardian appointed by a court under 2
579	579	§ 13–201(c) or § 13–705 of the Estates and Trusts Article, except for cases in which the 3
580	580	appointment of a guardian is solely a result of a physical disability; 4
581	581
582	582	[(14)] (XIV) except as provided in subsection (e) of this section, is a 5
583	583	respondent against whom: 6
584	584
585	585	[(i)] 1. a current non ex parte civil protective order has been 7
586	586	entered under § 4–506 of the Family Law Article; or 8
587	587
588	588	[(ii)] 2. an order for protection, as defined in § 4–508.1 of the 9
589	589	Family Law Article, has been issued by a court of another state or a Native American tribe 10
590	590	and is in effect; or 11
591	591
592	592	[(15)] (XV) if under the age of 30 years at the time of possession, has been 12
593	593	adjudicated delinquent by a juvenile court for an act that would be a disqualifying crime if 13
594	594	committed by an adult. 14
595	595
596	596	(2) (I) EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN SUBSECTION (C) OF THIS SECTION, 15
597	597	A PERSON WHO VI OLATES THIS SUBSECTI ON IS GUILTY OF A MI SDEMEANOR AND ON 16
598	598	CONVICTION IS SUBJEC T TO: 17
599	599
600	600	1. FOR A FIRST OFFENSE , IMPRISONMENT NOT 18
601	601	EXCEEDING 5 YEARS OR A FINE NOT EXCEEDING $10,000 OR BOTH; AND 19
602	602
603	603	2. FOR A SECOND OR SUBS EQUENT OFFENSE , 20
604	604	IMPRISONMENT NOT EXC EEDING 10 YEARS OR A FINE NOT EXCEEDING $10,000 OR 21
605	605	BOTH. 22
606	606
607	607	(II) EACH VIOLATION OF THI S SUBSECTION IS A SE PARATE 23
608	608	CRIME. 24
609	609
610	610	(III) A PERSON CONVICTED UND ER THIS SUBSECTION I S NOT 25
611	611	PROHIBITED FROM PART ICIPATING IN A DRUG TREATMENT PROGRAM UN DER § 26
612	612	8–507 OF THE HEALTH – GENERAL ARTICLE BECAUSE OF TH E LENGTH OF THE 27
613	613	SENTENCE. 28
614	614
615	615	(b–1) Subsection [(b)(4)] (B)(1)(IV) of this section may not be construed to prohibit 29
616	616	possession of a regulated firearm by a person who was not convicted of but received only 30
617	617	probation before judgment for an offense listed in subsection [(b)(4)] (B)(1)(IV) of this 31
618	618	section. 32
619	619
620	620	(c) (1) A person may not possess a regulated firearm if the person was 33 14 HOUSE BILL 41
621	621
622	622
623	623	previously convicted of: 1
624	624
625	625	(i) a crime of violence; 2
626	626
627	627	(ii) a violation of § 5–602, § 5–603, § 5–604, § 5–605, § 5–612, § 3
628	628	5–613, § 5–614, § 5–621, [or] § 5–622, § 9–803, § 9–804, OR § 9–805 of the Criminal Law 4
629	629	Article; or 5
630	630
631	631	(iii) an offense under the laws of another state or the United States 6
632	632	that would constitute one of the crimes listed in item (i) or (ii) of this paragraph if committed 7
633	633	in this State. 8
634	634
635	635	(2) (i) Subject to paragraph (3) of this subsection, a person who violates 9
636	636	this subsection is guilty of a felony and on conviction is subject to imprisonment for not less 10
637	637	than 5 years and not exceeding 15 years. 11
638	638
639	639	(ii) The court may not suspend any part of the mandatory minimum 12
640	640	sentence of 5 years. 13
641	641
642	642	(iii) Except as otherwise provided in § 4–305 of the Correctional 14
643	643	Services Article, the person is not eligible for parole during the mandatory minimum 15
644	644	sentence. 16
645	645
646	646	(3) At the time of the commission of the offense, if a period of more than 5 17
647	647	years has elapsed since the person completed serving the sentence for the most recent 18
648	648	conviction under paragraph (1)(i) or (ii) of this subsection, including all imprisonment, 19
649	649	mandatory supervision, probation, and parole: 20
650	650
651	651	(i) the imposition of the mandatory minimum sentence is within the 21
652	652	discretion of the court; and 22
653	653
654	654	(ii) the mandatory minimum sentence may not be imposed unless 23
655	655	the State’s Attorney notifies the person in writing at least 30 days before trial of the State’s 24
656	656	intention to seek the mandatory minimum sentence. 25
657	657
658	658	(4) Each violation of this subsection is a separate crime. 26
659	659
660	660	(5) A person convicted under this subsection is not prohibited from 27
661	661	participating in a drug treatment program under § 8–507 of the Health – General Article 28
662	662	because of the length of the sentence. 29
663	663
664	664	(g) Subject to subsection [(b)(3)] (B)(1)(III) of this section, a person who has been 30
665	665	convicted on or after October 1, 2023, of a violation of § 4–104 of the Criminal Law Article 31
666	666	may not possess a regulated firearm for 5 years following the date of the conviction. 32
667	667
668	668	5–134. 33
669	669	HOUSE BILL 41 15
670	670
671	671
672	672	(b) A dealer or other person may not sell, rent, loan, or transfer a regulated 1
673	673	firearm to a purchaser, lessee, borrower, or transferee who the dealer or other person knows 2
674	674	or has reasonable cause to believe: 3
675	675
676	676	(1) is under the age of 21 years, unless the regulated firearm is loaned to a 4
677	677	borrower who may possess the regulated firearm under § 5–133(d) of this subtitle; 5
678	678
679	679	(2) has been convicted of a disqualifying crime; 6
680	680
681	681	(3) has been convicted of a conspiracy to commit a felony; 7
682	682
683	683	(4) has been convicted of a violation classified as a common law crime and 8
684	684	received a term of imprisonment of more than 2 years; 9
685	685
686	686	(5) is a fugitive from justice; 10
687	687
688	688	(6) is a habitual drunkard; 11
689	689
690	690	(7) is addicted to a controlled dangerous substance or is a habitual user; 12
691	691
692	692	(8) suffers from a mental disorder as defined in § 10–101(i)(2) of the Health 13
693	693	– General Article, and has a history of violent behavior against the purchaser, lessee, 14
694	694	borrower, or transferee or another, unless the purchaser, lessee, borrower, or transferee 15
695	695	possesses a physician’s certificate that the recipient is capable of possessing a regulated 16
696	696	firearm without undue danger to the purchaser, lessee, borrower, or transferee or to 17
697	697	another; 18
698	698
699	699	(9) has been confined for more than 30 consecutive days to a facility as 19
700	700	defined in § 10–101 of the Health – General Article, unless the purchaser, lessee, borrower, 20
701	701	or transferee possesses a physician’s certificate that the recipient is capable of possessing 21
702	702	a regulated firearm without undue danger to the purchaser, lessee, borrower, or transferee 22
703	703	or to another; 23
704	704
705	705	(10) is a respondent against whom a current non ex parte civil protective 24
706	706	order has been entered under § 4–506 of the Family Law Article; 25
707	707
708	708	(11) if under the age of 30 years at the time of the transaction, has been 26
709	709	adjudicated delinquent by a juvenile court for an act that would be a disqualifying crime if 27
710	710	committed by an adult; 28
711	711
712	712	(12) is visibly under the influence of alcohol or drugs; 29
713	713
714	714	(13) is a participant in a straw purchase; 30
715	715
716	716	(14) subject to subsection [(c)] (D) of this section for a transaction under this 31
717	717	subsection that is made on or after January 1, 2002, has not completed a certified firearms 32
718	718	safety training course conducted free of charge by the Maryland Police Training and 33 16 HOUSE BILL 41
719	719
720	720
721	721	Standards Commission or that meets standards established by the Maryland Police 1
722	722	Training and Standards Commission under § 3–207 of this article; or 2
723	723
724	724	(15) intends to use the regulated firearm to: 3
725	725
726	726	(i) commit a crime; or 4
727	727
728	728	(ii) cause harm to the purchaser, lessee, transferee, or recipient or 5
729	729	another person. 6
730	730
731	731	(C) (1) A DEALER OR OTHER PERS ON MAY NOT SELL , RENT, LOAN, OR 7
732	732	TRANSFER A REGULATED FIREARM TO A PURCHAS ER, LESSEE, BORROWER , OR 8
733	733	TRANSFEREE IF THE DE ALER OR OTHER PERSON HAS ACTUAL KNOWLEDGE THA T 9
734	734	THE PURCHASER , LESSEE, BORROWER , OR TRANSFEREE : 10
735	735
736	736	(I) WAS PREVIOUSLY CONVI CTED OF: 11
737	737
738	738	1. A CRIME OF VIOLENCE ; 12
739	739
740	740	2. A VIOLATION OF § 5–602, § 5–603, § 5–604, § 5–605, § 13
741	741	5–612, § 5–613, § 5–614, § 5–621, § 5–622, § 9–803, § 9–804, OR § 9–805 OF THE 14
742	742	CRIMINAL LAW ARTICLE; OR 15
743	743
744	744	3. AN OFFENSE UNDER THE LAWS OF ANOTHER STAT E 16
745	745	OR THE UNITED STATES THAT WOULD CON STITUTE ONE OF THE C RIMES LISTED IN 17
746	746	ITEM 1 OR 2 OF THIS ITEM IF COMM ITTED IN THIS STATE; OR 18
747	747
748	748	(II) INTENDS TO USE THE REGULATED FIREARM TO : 19
749	749
750	750	1. COMMIT A CRIME ; OR 20
751	751
752	752	2. CAUSE HARM TO THE PU RCHASER, LESSEE, 21
753	753	TRANSFEREE , OR RECIPIENT OR ANOT HER PERSON. 22
754	754
755	755	(2) A PERSON WHO VIOLATES THIS SUBSECTION IS G UILTY OF A 23
756	756	FELONY AND ON CONVIC TION IS SUBJECT TO I MPRISONMENT NOT EX CEEDING 15 24
757	757	YEARS. 25
758	758
759	759	(3) EACH VIOLATION OF THI S SUBSECTION IS A SE PARATE CRIME . 26
760	760
761	761	(4) A PERSON CONVICTED UND ER THIS SUBSECTION I S NOT 27
762	762	PROHIBITED FROM PART ICIPATING IN A DRUG TREATMENT PROGRAM UN DER § 28
763	763	8–507 OF THE HEALTH – GENERAL ARTICLE BECAUSE OF TH E LENGTH OF THE 29
764	764	SENTENCE. 30 HOUSE BILL 41 17
765	765
766	766
767	767
768	768	(5) A CHARGE OF VIOLATING THIS SUBSECTION ALSO CHARGES A 1
769	769	DEFENDANT WITH VIOLA TING SUBSECTION (B) OF THIS SECTION. 2
770	770
771	771	5–138. 3
772	772
773	773	(A) A person may not possess, sell, transfer, or otherwise dispose of a stolen 4
774	774	regulated firearm if the person knows or has reasonable cause to believe that the regulated 5
775	775	firearm has been stolen. 6
776	776
777	777	(B) A PERSON WHO VIOLATES THIS SECTION IS GUIL TY OF A FELONY AND : 7
778	778
779	779	(1) (I) FOR A FIRST CONVICTI ON, IS SUBJECT TO IMPRIS ONMENT 8
780	780	FOR NOT LESS THAN 2 YEARS AND NOT EX CEEDING 10 YEARS AND A FINE NOT 9
781	781	EXCEEDING $2,500; AND 10
782	782
783	783	(II) FOR A SECOND OR SUBS EQUENT CONVICTION , IS SUBJECT 11
784	784	TO IMPRISONMENT FOR NOT LESS THAN 5 YEARS AND NOT EXCEED ING 15 YEARS 12
785	785	AND A FINE NOT EXCEE DING $10,000; AND 13
786	786
787	787	(2) SHALL RESTORE THE FI REARM T O THE OWNER OR PAY T HE 14
788	788	OWNER THE VALUE OF T HE FIREARM. 15
789	789
790	790	(C) (1) NOTWITHSTANDING § 14–102 OF THE CRIMINAL LAW ARTICLE, 16
791	791	THE COURT MAY NOT IM POSE LESS THAN THE M ANDATORY MINIMUM SEN TENCE OF: 17
792	792
793	793	(I) FOR A FIRST CONVICTI ON, 2 YEARS; AND 18
794	794
795	795	(II) FOR A SECOND OR SUBS EQUENT CONVICTION , 5 YEARS. 19
796	796
797	797	(2) THE COURT MAY NOT SUS PEND ANY PART OF THE MANDATORY 20
798	798	MINIMUM SENTENCE OF : 21
799	799
800	800	(I) FOR A FIRST CONVICTI ON, 2 YEARS; AND 22
801	801
802	802	(II) FOR A SECOND OR SUBS EQUENT CONVICTION , 5 YEARS. 23
803	803
804	804	(3) A SENTENCE IMPO SED UNDER THIS SECTI ON SHALL BE SEPARATE 24
805	805	FROM AND CONSECUTIVE TO A SENTENCE FOR AN Y OTHER OFFENSE . 25
806	806
807	807	5–141. 26
808	808
809	809	(a) A dealer or other person may not be a knowing participant in a straw purchase 27
810	810	of a regulated firearm for a minor or for a person prohibited by law from possessing a 28 18 HOUSE BILL 41
811	811
812	812
813	813	regulated firearm. 1
814	814
815	815	(b) (1) A person who violates this section is guilty of a [misdemeanor] FELONY 2
816	816	and on conviction is subject to imprisonment FOR NOT LESS THAN 5 YEARS AND not 3
817	817	exceeding [10] 15 years [or] AND a fine not exceeding $25,000 [or both]. 4
818	818
819	819	(2) NOTWITHSTANDING § 14–102 OF THE CRIMINAL LAW ARTICLE, 5
820	820	THE COURT MAY NOT IM POSE LESS THAN THE M ANDATORY MINIMUM SEN TENCE 6
821	821	UNDER PARAGRAPH (1) OF THIS SUBSECTION . 7
822	822
823	823	(3) THE COURT MAY NOT SUS PEND ANY PART OF THE MANDATORY 8
824	824	MINIMUM SEN TENCE REQUIRED UNDER PARAGRAPH (1) OF THIS SUBSECTION . 9
825	825
826	826	(4) EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE P ROVIDED IN § 4–305 OF THE 10
827	827	CORRECTIONAL SERVICES ARTICLE, THE PERSON IS NOT EL IGIBLE FOR PAROLE 11
828	828	DURING THE MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCE . 12
829	829
830	830	(c) Each violation of this section is a separate crime. 13
831	831
832	832	5–142. 14
833	833
834	834	(a) A person may not obliterate, remove, change, or alter the manufacturer’s 15
835	835	identification mark or number on a firearm. 16
836	836
837	837	(b) If on trial for a violation of this section possession of the firearm by the 17
838	838	defendant is established, the defendant is presumed to have obliterated, removed, changed, 18
839	839	or altered the manufacturer’s identification mark or number on the firearm. 19
840	840
841	841	(C) A PERSON WHO VIOLATES THIS SECTION IS GUIL TY OF A MISDEMEANOR 20
842	842	AND ON CONVICTION IS SUBJECT TO IM PRISONMENT NOT EXCEE DING 10 YEARS OR 21
843	843	A FINE NOT EXCEEDING $10,000 OR BOTH. 22
844	844
845	845	5–144. 23
846	846
847	847	(a) Except as otherwise provided in this subtitle, a dealer or other person [may 24
848	848	not: 25
849	849
850	850	(1) knowingly participate in the illegal sale, rental, transfer, purchase, 26
851	851	possession, or receipt of a regulated firearm in violation of] WHO KNOWINGLY VIOLAT ES 27
852	852	A PROVISION OF this subtitle[; or 28
853	853
854	854	(2) knowingly violate § 5–142 of this subtitle. 29
855	855
856	856	(b) A person who violates this section] is guilty of a misdemeanor and on 30
857	857	conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 5 years or a fine not exceeding $10,000 31 HOUSE BILL 41 19
858	858
859	859
860	860	or both. 1
861	861
862	862	[(c)] (B) Each violation of this [section] SUBTITLE is a separate crime. 2
863	863
864	864	SECTION 4. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That t his Act is an emergency 3
865	865	measure, is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public health or safety, has 4
866	866	been passed by a yea and nay vote supported by three–fifths of all the members elected to 5
867	867	each of the two Houses of the General Assembly, and shall take effect from the date it is 6
868	868	enacted. 7
869	869