West Virginia Code § 61-7-7

Persons prohibited from possessing firearms; classifications; right of
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nonprohibited persons over twenty-one years of age to carry concealed deadly
weapons; offenses and penalties; reinstatement of rights to possess; offenses;
penalties.
(a) Except as provided in this section, no person shall possess a firearm, as such is defined in
section two of this article, who: e
(1) Has been convicted in any court of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term
exceeding one year;
(2) Is habitually addicted to alcohol;
(3) Is an unlawful user of or habitually addicted to any controlled substance;
(4) Has been adjudicated to be mentally incompetent or who has been involuntarily
committed to a mental institution pursuant to the plrovisions of chapter twenty-seven of this
code or in similar law of another jurisdiction: Provided, That once an individual has been
adjudicated as a mental defective or involuntarily committed to a mental institution, he or
she shall be duly notified that they are to iimmediately surrender any firearms in their
ownership or possession: Provided, however, That the mental hygiene commissioner or
circuit judge shall first make a determination of the appropriate public or private individual
or entity to act as conservator for the surrendered property;
(5) Is an alien illegally or unlawfully in the United States;
(6) Has been discharged from the armed forces under dishonorable conditions;
(7) Is subject Vto a domestic violence protective order that:
(A) Was issued after a hearing of which such person received actual notice and at which
such person had an opportunity to participate;
(B) Restrains such person from harassing, stalking or threatening an intimate partner of
such person or child of such intimate partner or person, or engaging in other conduct that
would place an intimate partner in reasonable fear of bodily injury to the partner or child;
and
(C)(i) Includes a finding that such person represents a credible threat to the physical safety
of such intimate partner or child; or
(ii) By its terms explicitly prohibits the use, attempted use or threatened use of physical
force against such intimate partner or child that would reasonably be expected to cause
bodily injury; or
(8) Has been convicted of a misdemeanor offense of assault or battery either under the
provisions of section twenty-eight, article two of this chapter or the provisions of subsection
(b) or (c), section nine of said article or a federal or state statute with the same essential
elements in which the victim was a current or former spouse, current or former sexual or
intimate partner, person with whom the defendant has a child in common, person with whom
the defendant cohabits or has cohabited, a parent or guardian, the defendant's child or ward
or a member of the defendant's household at the time of the offense or has been convicted in
any court of any jurisdiction of a comparable misdemeanor crime of domesteic violence.
Any person who violates the provisions of this subsection shall be guiltyr of a misdemeanor
and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 or
confined in the county jail for not less than ninety days nor more than one year, or both.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this stection, any person:
(1) Who has been convicted in this state or any other jaurisdiction of a felony crime of
violence against the person of another or of a felony sexual offense; or
(2) Who has been convicted in this state or ansy other jurisdiction of a felony controlled
substance offense involving a Schedule I controlled substance other than marijuana, a
Schedule II or a Schedule III controlled suibstance as such are defined in sections two
hundred four, two hundred five and gtwo hundred six, article two, chapter sixty-a of this code
and who possesses a firearm as such is defined in section two of this article shall be guilty of
a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in a state correctional facility for not
more than five years or fined not more than $5,000, or both. The provisions of subsection (f)
of this section shall not apply to persons convicted of offenses referred to in this subsection
or to persons convicted of a violation of this subsection.
(c) Any person may carry a concealed deadly weapon without a license therefor who is:
(1) At least twenty-one years of age;
(2) A United States citizen or legal resident thereof;
(3) Not prohibited from possessing a firearm under the provisions of this section; and
(4) Not prohibited from possessing a firearm under the provisions of 18 U. S. C. §922(g) or
(n).
(d) As a separate and additional offense to the offense provided for in subsection (a) of this
section, and in addition to any other offenses outlined in this code, and except as provided by
subsection (e) of this section, any person prohibited by subsection (a) of this section from
possessing a firearm who carries a concealed firearm is guilty of a felony and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be confined in a state correctional facility for not more than three
years or fined not more than $5,000, or both.
(e) As a separate and additional offense to the offense described in subsection (b) of this
section, and in additional to any other offenses outlined in this code, any person prohibited
by subsection (b) of this section from possessing a firearm who carries a concealed firearm
is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in a state correctional
facility for not more than ten years or fined not more than $10,000, or both.
(f) Any person prohibited from possessing a firearm by the provisions of subsection (a) of
this section may petition the circuit court of the county in which he or she reesides to regain
the ability to possess a firearm and if the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that
the person is competent and capable of exercising the responsibility corncomitant with the
possession of a firearm, the court may enter an order allowing the person to possess a
firearm if such possession would not violate any federal law: Provided, That a person
prohibited from possessing a firearm by the provisions of subdivision (4), subsection (a) of
this section may petition to regain the ability to possess a firtearm in accordance with the
provisions of section five, article seven-a of this chapter.
(g) Any person who has been convicted of an offense which disqualifies him or her from
possessing a firearm by virtue of a criminal conviction whose conviction was expunged or set
aside or who subsequent thereto receives an usnconditional pardon for said offense shall not
be prohibited from possessing a firearm by the provisions of the section.

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