GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

EXTRA SESSION 1994

H	1 

HOUSE BILL 212*

Short Title:  Conform N. C. Law to Brady Bill.	(Public)
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Sponsors: Representatives Michaux; and Burton.
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Referred to:  Judiciary I.
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February 14, 1994

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO AMEND ARTICLES 52A AND 53 OF CHAPTER 14 OF THE GENERAL STATUTES TO CONFORM WITH THE "BRADY HANDGUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION ACT"AND TO MAKE OTHER CHANGES.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.  G.S. 14-403 reads as rewritten:
"§ 14-403. Permit issued by sheriff; form of permit.
	The sheriffs of any and all counties of this State shall issue to any qualified person in any county a permit to purchase or receive any weapon mentioned in this Article from any licensed dealer offering to sell or person offering to give away or transfer a weapon, which permit shall be in the following form:
North Carolina
.............. County.
I, .........., Sheriff of said County, do certify that ...... whose place of residence is ..........in ..........(or)	in....Township, ......... County, North Carolina, has met the legal requirements for issuance of this permit to purchase or receive one weapon from any licensed dealer offering to sell or from any person offering to give away or transfer a weapon.
.........................
Sheriff
Issue Date:...............Expiration Date:.................
(Not to exceed five years from date of issue)".
Sec. 2.  G.S. 14-404 reads as rewritten:
"§ 14-404. Issuance or refusal of permit; appeal from refusal; grounds for refusal; sheriff's fee.
(a)	Upon application, the sheriff shall issue a license or permit to a resident of that county unless the purpose of the permit is for collecting, in which case a sheriff may issue a permit to a nonresident.  In all cases the sheriff shall be fully satisfied by affidavits, oral evidence, or otherwise, as to the good moral character of the applicant, and that the applicant desires the possession of the weapon mentioned for (i) the protection of the home, business, person, family or property, (ii) target shooting, (iii) collecting, or (iv) hunting, and that the applicant meets all criteria for a permit and is qualified to receive or possess a weapon in accordance with this section.  The applicant for a permit must be at least 21 years of age or present satisfactory evidence to the sheriff that the applicant is lawfully able to possess a weapon pursuant to G.S. 14-315.1(b)(3), or that the applicant is a law enforcement officer authorized to carry firearms and the possession of the firearm is directly related to the officer's official duties.  For purposes of this Article, a resident is one who has lawfully resided in the county in which the permit is to be issued for six continuous months.  Any member of the active duty armed forces is entitled to apply for a permit to receive a pistol if the member meets the residency requirements stated in this section and the member's active duty commanding officer certifies in writing to the sheriff that the member has good moral character and has no criminal history within the military justice system.
(b)	If the sheriff is not so fully satisfied, the sheriff may, for good cause shown, decline to issue the license or permit and shall provide to the applicant within seven days of such refusal a written statement of the reasons for the refusal. An appeal from the refusal shall lie by way of petition to the chief judge of the district court for the district in which the application was filed. The determination by the court, on appeal, shall be upon the facts, the law, and the reasonableness of the sheriff's refusal, and shall be final. A permit may not be issued to the following:
(1)	A person who is under an indictment or information for or has been convicted in any state, or in any court of the United States, of a felony, except that if a person has been convicted and later pardoned, the person may obtain a permit.
(2)	A fugitive from justice.
(3)	A person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance as defined under the North Carolina Controlled Substances Act or section 102 of the Federal Controlled Substances Act. 
(4)	A person who has been adjudicated incompetent on the ground of mental illness or has been committed to any mental institution. 
(5)	An alien who is illegally or unlawfully in the United States.
The sheriff shall determine the criminal history of any applicant by accessing computerized criminal history records as maintained by the State Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation by conducting a national criminal history records check, and by conducting a criminal history check through the Administrative Office of the Courts.
Nothing in this Article shall apply to officers authorized by law to carry firearms if the officers identify themselves to the vendor or donor as being officers authorized by law to carry firearms and state that the purpose for the purchase of the firearms is directly related to the law officers' official duties.
(c)	The sheriff shall charge for the sheriff's services upon issuing the license or permit a fee not to exceed twenty-five dollars ($25.00).  Each applicant for a license or permit shall be informed by the sheriff within 30 days of the date of the application whether the license or permit will be granted or denied and, if granted, the license or permit shall be immediately issued to the applicant."
Sec. 3.  Article 53 of Chapter 14 of the General Statutes is repealed.
Sec. 4.  This act is effective upon ratification and applies to applications for permits filed on or after that date.