| 13 | | - | AN ACT TO CREATE THE OFFENSES OF POSSESS ING, BRANDISHING, OR 2 |
|---|
| 14 | | - | DISCHARGING A FIREARM OR WEAPON OF MASS DEATH AND DESTRUCTIO N 3 |
|---|
| 15 | | - | BY A FELON DURING TH E COMMISSION OR ATTE MPTED COMMISSION OF A 4 |
|---|
| 16 | | - | FELONY. 5 |
|---|
| 17 | | - | The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 6 |
|---|
| 18 | | - | SECTION 1. G.S. 14-415.1 reads as rewritten: 7 |
|---|
| 19 | | - | "§ 14-415.1. Possession of firearms, etc., by felon prohibited. 8 |
|---|
| 20 | | - | (a) It shall be is unlawful for any person who has been convicted of a felony to purchase, 9 |
|---|
| 21 | | - | own, possess, or have in his the person's custody, care, or control any firearm or any weapon of 10 |
|---|
| 22 | | - | mass death and destruction as defined in G.S. 14-288.8(c). For the purposes of this section, a 11 |
|---|
| 23 | | - | firearm is (i) any weapon, including a starter gun, which will or is designed to or may readily be 12 |
|---|
| 24 | | - | converted to expel a projectile by the action of an explosive, or its frame or receiver, or (ii) any 13 |
|---|
| 25 | | - | firearm muffler or firearm silencer. This section does not apply to an antique firearm, as defined 14 |
|---|
| 26 | | - | in G.S. 14-409.11. 15 |
|---|
| 27 | | - | Every person violating the provisions of this section shall be punished as subsection is guilty 16 |
|---|
| 28 | | - | of a Class G felon.felony. 17 |
|---|
| 29 | | - | (a1) A person who violates subsection (a) of this section during the commission or 18 |
|---|
| 30 | | - | attempted commission of a felony under (i) this Chapter or (ii) Article 5 of Chapter 90 of the 19 |
|---|
| 31 | | - | General Statutes is guilty of a Class F felony. 20 |
|---|
| 32 | | - | (a2) A person who violates subsection (a) of this section and brandishes a firearm or a 21 |
|---|
| 33 | | - | weapon of mass death and destruction during the commission or attempted commission of a 22 |
|---|
| 34 | | - | felony under (i) this Chapter or (ii) Article 5 of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes is guilty of a 23 |
|---|
| 35 | | - | Class D felony. For the purposes of this subsection, to brandish is to display all or part of the 24 |
|---|
| 36 | | - | firearm or weapon of mass death and destruction or otherwise make the presence of the firearm 25 |
|---|
| 37 | | - | or weapon of mass death and destruction known to another person. 26 |
|---|
| 38 | | - | (a3) A person who violates subsection (a) of this section and discharges a firearm or a 27 |
|---|
| 39 | | - | weapon of mass death and destruction during the commission or attempted commission of a 28 |
|---|
| 40 | | - | felony under (i) this Chapter or (ii) Article 5 of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes is guilty of a 29 |
|---|
| 41 | | - | Class C felony. 30 |
|---|
| 42 | | - | (b) Prior convictions which cause disentitlement under this section shall only include: 31 |
|---|
| 43 | | - | (1) Felony convictions in North Carolina that occur before, on, or after December 32 |
|---|
| 44 | | - | 1, 1995; and 33 |
|---|
| 45 | | - | (2) Repealed by Session Laws 1995, c. 487, s. 3, effective December 1, 1995. 34 |
|---|
| 46 | | - | (3) Violations of criminal laws of other states or of the United States that occur 35 |
|---|
| 47 | | - | before, on, or after December 1, 1995, and that are substantially similar to the 36 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 |
|---|
| 48 | | - | Page 2 House Bill 28-Second Edition |
|---|
| 49 | | - | crimes covered in subdivision (1) which are punishable where committed by 1 |
|---|
| 50 | | - | imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. 2 |
|---|
| 51 | | - | When a person is charged under this section, records of prior convictions of any offense, whether 3 |
|---|
| 52 | | - | in the courts of this State, or in the courts of any other state or of the United States, shall be 4 |
|---|
| 53 | | - | admissible in evidence for the purpose of proving a violation of this section. The term 5 |
|---|
| 54 | | - | "conviction" is defined as a final judgment in any case in which felony punishment, or 6 |
|---|
| 55 | | - | imprisonment for a term exceeding one year, as the case may be, is authorized, without regard to 7 |
|---|
| 56 | | - | the plea entered or to the sentence imposed. A judgment of a conviction of the defendant or a 8 |
|---|
| 57 | | - | plea of guilty by the defendant to such an offense certified to a superior court of this State from 9 |
|---|
| 58 | | - | the custodian of records of any state or federal court shall be prima facie evidence of the facts so 10 |
|---|
| 59 | | - | certified. 11 |
|---|
| 60 | | - | (c) The indictment charging the defendant under the terms of this section shall be separate 12 |
|---|
| 61 | | - | from any indictment charging him with other offenses related to or giving rise to a charge under 13 |
|---|
| 62 | | - | this section. An indictment which charges the person with violation of this section must set forth 14 |
|---|
| 63 | | - | the date that the prior offense was committed, the type of offense and the penalty therefor, and 15 |
|---|
| 64 | | - | the date that the defendant was convicted or plead guilty to such offense, the identity of the court 16 |
|---|
| 65 | | - | in which the conviction or plea of guilty took place and the verdict and judgment rendered 17 |
|---|
| 66 | | - | therein. 18 |
|---|
| 67 | | - | (d) This section does not apply to a person who, pursuant to the law of the jurisdiction in 19 |
|---|
| 68 | | - | which the conviction occurred, has been pardoned or has had his or her firearms rights restored 20 |
|---|
| 69 | | - | if such restoration of rights could also be granted under North Carolina law. 21 |
|---|
| 70 | | - | (e) This section does not apply and there is no disentitlement under this section if the 22 |
|---|
| 71 | | - | felony conviction is a violation under the laws of North Carolina, another state, or the United 23 |
|---|
| 72 | | - | States that pertains to antitrust violations, unfair trade practices, or restraints of trade." 24 |
|---|
| 73 | | - | SECTION 2. This act becomes effective December 1, 2025, and applies to offenses 25 |
|---|
| 74 | | - | committed on or after that date. 26 |
|---|
| 15 | + | AN ACT TO CREATE THE OFFENSE OF POSSESSING A FIREARM OR WEAP ON OF 2 |
|---|
| 16 | + | MASS DEATH AND DESTR UCTION BY A FELON DURING THE COMMISSION OR 3 |
|---|
| 17 | + | ATTEMPTED COMMISSION OF A FELONY. 4 |
|---|
| 18 | + | The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 5 |
|---|
| 19 | + | SECTION 1. Article 54A of Chapter 14 of the General Statutes is amended by 6 |
|---|
| 20 | + | adding a new section to read: 7 |
|---|
| 21 | + | "§ 14-415.1A. Possession of certain weapons by felon during the commission or attempted 8 |
|---|
| 22 | + | commission of a felony. 9 |
|---|
| 23 | + | (a) Definitions. – The following definitions apply in this section: 10 |
|---|
| 24 | + | (1) Brandish. – To display all or part of the firearm or weapon of mass death and 11 |
|---|
| 25 | + | destruction or otherwise make the presence of the firearm or weapon of mass 12 |
|---|
| 26 | + | death and destruction known to another person. 13 |
|---|
| 27 | + | (2) Firearm. – As defined in G.S. 14-409.39. 14 |
|---|
| 28 | + | (3) Weapon of mass death and destruction. – As defined in G.S. 14-288.8. 15 |
|---|
| 29 | + | (b) Offense. – It is unlawful for any person who is prohibited pursuant to G.S. 14-415.1 16 |
|---|
| 30 | + | from possessing a firearm or a weapon of mass death and destruction to possess a firearm or 17 |
|---|
| 31 | + | weapon of mass death and destruction during the commission or attempted commission of a 18 |
|---|
| 32 | + | felony under (i) this Chapter or (ii) Article 5 of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes. 19 |
|---|
| 33 | + | (c) Penalty. – Unless the conduct is covered under some other provision of law providing 20 |
|---|
| 34 | + | greater punishment, a person who violates subsection (b) of this section is guilty of the following: 21 |
|---|
| 35 | + | (1) A Class C felony, if the person discharges the firearm or weapon of mass death 22 |
|---|
| 36 | + | and destruction during the commission or attempted commission of the felony. 23 |
|---|
| 37 | + | (2) A Class D felony, if the person brandishes the firearm or weapon of mass 24 |
|---|
| 38 | + | death and destruction during the commission or attempted commission of the 25 |
|---|
| 39 | + | felony. 26 |
|---|
| 40 | + | (3) A Class F felony for any other violation of subsection (b) of this section. 27 |
|---|
| 41 | + | (d) Separate Offense. – A violation of subsection (b) of this section is a separate offense 28 |
|---|
| 42 | + | from the underlying felony offense, and G.S. 14-415.1, and shall not merge with any other 29 |
|---|
| 43 | + | offense." 30 |
|---|
| 44 | + | SECTION 2. G.S. 14-415.1(a) reads as rewritten: 31 |
|---|
| 45 | + | "(a) It shall be unlawful for any person who has been convicted of a felony to purchase, 32 |
|---|
| 46 | + | own, possess, or have in his custody, care, or control any firearm or any weapon of mass death 33 |
|---|
| 47 | + | and destruction as defined in G.S. 14-288.8(c). For the purposes of this section, a firearm is (i) 34 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 |
|---|
| 48 | + | Page 2 House Bill 28-First Edition |
|---|
| 49 | + | any weapon, including a starter gun, which will or is designed to or may readily be converted to 1 |
|---|
| 50 | + | expel a projectile by the action of an explosive, or its frame or receiver, or (ii) any firearm muffler 2 |
|---|
| 51 | + | or firearm silencer. This section does not apply to an antique firearm, as defined in 3 |
|---|
| 52 | + | G.S. 14-409.11. 4 |
|---|
| 53 | + | Every person violating the provisions of this section shall be punished as a Class G F felon. 5 |
|---|
| 54 | + | Violation of this section is not a lesser included offense of G.S. 14-415.1A." 6 |
|---|
| 55 | + | SECTION 3. This act becomes effective December 1, 2025, and applies to offenses 7 |
|---|
| 56 | + | committed on or after that date. 8 |
|---|