You are home, relaxing when you hear glass breaking in the next room. You go to investigate and find someone attempting to break into your home. What do you do?
Nevada law gives citizens the right to defend themselves, by force if necessary, when they feel they are in danger of being harmed or killed by someone. The most common weapon used for home self-defense is the handgun.
The 2nd Amendment of the U.S. Constitution gives all citizens the right to own a firearm.
But say you’re a convicted felon. Where does that leave you? Can you legally own or use a firearm? Can you even defend yourself if you need to use deadly force?
Here’s what you need to know.
What Does Nevada Law Say About Self-Defense?
Under Nevada law, you are legally able to use force in self-defense situations, but you must meet two conditions:
- You have a reasonable belief that the person who is the aggressor poses an imminent threat of harm, and
- You don’t use any more force than is necessary to stop the aggressor from harming you
As a stand your ground state, Nevada does not require a duty to retreat before inflicting serious bodily harm in self-defense as long as the person who is defending themselves:
- Is not the one who initiated the altercation (not the original aggressor)
- Has a legal right to be in the location where the self-defense deadly force is used
- Is not engaging in activity that is illegal or criminal at the time the self-defense deadly force is taking place
The use of a firearm is very common in self-defense situations. Many people have registered guns in their homes strictly for these types of situations. The 2nd Amendment of the U.S. Constitution gives all citizens the right to own firearms.
Does the 2nd Amendment Apply to Felons?
Under both state and federal law, when a person is convicted of a felony in Nevada, they lose their right to gun ownership. People who have been convicted of domestic violence crimes are also prohibited from owning a gun in Nevada.
The only way that a convicted felon can have his or her gun rights restored is to get a pardon from the governor of Nevada. They can apply for a pardon by downloading and completing the Nevada Pardon Form. Once submitted, they will be notified of the decision once the application has been reviewed and a decision has been made.
When applying for a pardon, it is best to have a Nevada criminal law attorney who has experience in helping felons with the restoration of their firearm rights.
Can a Convicted Felon Use a Firearm for Self-Defense?
Technically, a convicted felon cannot use a firearm for self-defense because the law prohibits felons from owning or possessing firearms. Under the law, possession means to maintain control, so even if the felon is in someone else’s home and used the firearm in self-defense, it would likely be illegal.
While a felon is legally allowed to be around someone who owns a firearm, if they are aware of a firearm in that person’s home and are able to maintain control of it, they are in violation of the law that prohibits them from possessing a firearm. Even touching the firearm is considered possession because they have the ability to pick it up.
So, the felon in someone else’s home who uses that person’s firearm in self-defense violated the law because the essentially took possession of it. However, in some very rare cases, the felon may be able to use necessity or necessity privilege, as a defense strategy. This would require an extremely effective defense strategy to support it so having a top criminal defense attorney on your case is absolutely essential.
How do Felons Defend Themselves?
In most cases, the best defense a convicted felon may have in a self-defense situation is to retreat. If they have a firearm in their possession, they are breaking the law. When faced with a self-defense situation they can then choose to defend themselves and reveal the illegal firearm in their possession, or retreat and not have their illegal firearm revealed.
While there are other ways to defend yourself, the firearm is the most efficient and usually the most effective. But given the law prohibiting felons from possessing firearms, retreat is a safer choice most of the time.
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