Senator David Bullard passes key Second Amendment reform

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Senate Judiciary Committee has approved legislation from Sen. David Bullard, R-Durant, to automatically restore gun rights for some nonviolent felons who have served their time and gone five years without any new charges or convictions.

The committee passed Bullard’s Senate Bill 381 this week. It would allow certain nonviolent offenders to possess, transport and carry a non-semi-automatic firearm if they complete their full sentence and then go five years without any new misdemeanor or felony charges.

Bullard said this bill offers reformed offenders a second chance to regain their Second Amendment rights. He added that this issue is personal because a family member is prohibited from possessing a gun for personal protection because of a nonviolent felony on her record.

“I’ve heard from many Oklahomans who made mistakes when they were young but have since turned their lives around and become upstanding citizens,” Bullard said. “Some of them want to regain their gun rights for personal protection, to keep their loved ones safe, or to rebuild the lives they’ve worked hard to transform. Others wish to hunt, engage in recreational shooting, or simply exercise the rights they’ve been denied for too long. Oklahoma is a proud Second Amendment state where those who have paid their debt to society and demonstrated their commitment to change deserve the opportunity to regain their gun rights.”

SB 381 does not apply to all nonviolent felons. People convicted of child endangerment, stalking, sexual assault, domestic abuse, incest, indecent exposure and those who have violated a protective order or the Sex Offenders Registry Act would not be eligible to have their Second Amendment rights restored.

Bullard’s bill now advances to the full Senate for consideration.

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For more information, contact: Sen. David Bullard at (405) 521-5586 or David. Bullard@oksenate.gov