Source: https://lawcenter.giffords.org/category/wisconsin/
Timestamp: 2019-05-24 13:23:34
Document Index: 387669316

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 941', '§ 941', '§ 175', '§ 10', '§ 175', '§ 948', '§ 948', '§ 948', '§ 29', '§ 51', '§ 51', '§ 51', '§ 54', '§ 54', '§ 813', '§ 813', '§ 813', '§ 813', '§ 813', '§ 813']

Wisconsin Archives | Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence
Ammunition Regulation in Wisconsin
Wisconsin prohibits the possession or use of an armor-piercing bullet during the commission of a crime, if the possessor: 1) has a handgun loaded with an armor-piercing bullet or a projectile or projectile core with a muzzle velocity of 1,500 feet per second or greater; or 2) possesses an armor-piercing bullet.1 “Armor-piercing bullet” is defined as a projectile or projectile core that may be fired from any handgun and that is constructed entirely from one or a combination of tungsten alloys, steel, iron, brass, bronze, beryllium copper or depleted uranium.2
Wisconsin does not:
Require a license or permit to purchase or possess ammunition;
Wis. Stat. § 941.296(2). ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. § 941.296(1)(a). ⤴︎
Assault Weapons in Wisconsin
Wisconsin has no law restricting assault weapons.
Background Checks in Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a point of contact state for handgun purchaser background checks only.1 In Wisconsin, firearms dealers must initiate the background check required by federal law by contacting the Wisconsin Department of Justice (“DOJ”). For long gun (rifle and shotgun) transfers, dealers must contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation.2
Before sale of a handgun, a handgun dealer must request a records search from DOJ and receive a confirmation number confirming the request. In 2015, Wisconsin repealed a long-standing requirement that the dealer must then wait 48 hours before transferring the handgun. The new law provides that the dealer may transfer the handgun upon receiving an approval number from DOJ.3 If the DOJ search indicates that is unclear whether the potential purchaser is prohibited from purchasing a firearm, DOJ must notify the dealer of the results no later than 5 working days after the search was requested.4
Regarding a prospective handgun transferee, the dealer must do the following, in the sequence listed, to obtain the proper information prior to requesting an approval number from DOJ:
Require each handgun transferee to show to the dealer a reliable identification document, such as a motor vehicle operator’s license or state-issued identification card that includes the licensee or card holder’s photograph;
Inspect the transferee’s identification document, including the photograph, and ensure that it accurately and reliably identifies the transferee;
Require the transferee to complete, in triplicate, an official DOJ-issued notification form. The dealer shall provide one copy to the transferee when either the handgun is transferred or when notification of non-approval is given to the transferee. Within 24 hours after the dealer receives DOJ notification that the transfer is either approved or not approved, the dealer shall mail one copy of the completed form to DOJ. The dealer shall retain the completed original form; and
Following the transferee’s completion of the notification form, the dealer shall telephone DOJ and request a record search, conveying all material information on the notification form to DOJ.5
Wisconsin law specifies that particular searches that DOJ must conduct to determine whether a person is prohibited from possessing a firearm under various provisions of Wisconsin and federal law.6
Wisconsin does not require private sellers (sellers who are not licensed dealers) to initiate a background check when transferring a firearm.
Federal Bureau of Investigation, National Instant Criminal Background Check System Participation Map, at https://www.fbi.gov/services/cjis/nics/about-nics ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. § 175.35 ⤴︎
Wis. Admin. Code Jus § 10.06(1). ⤴︎
See Wis. Stat. § 175.35(1)(at) (listing the specific searches that DOJ conducts). ⤴︎
Child Access Prevention in Wisconsin
Wisconsin provides that anyone who recklessly stores or leaves a loaded firearm within the reach or easy access of a child under age 14 is criminally liable for a misdemeanor if:
Wis. Stat. § 948.55(1), (2), (3). ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. § 948.55(4). ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. § 948.55(5). ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. § 29.304(4). ⤴︎
Design Safety Standards for Handguns in Wisconsin
Wisconsin does not impose any design safety standards on handguns.
Disarming Prohibited Persons in Wisconsin
Wisconsin state courts that order a person committed for mental health-related treatment must order the person not to possess firearms and order the seizure of any firearm owned by the individual, if the court determines that the person is prohibited by federal law from possessing a firearm.1 In lieu of gun seizure, the court may designate a person to store the firearm until the order has ended.2
In addition, if a state court: 1) appoints a guardian for an individual; 2) orders protective services for or protective placement of an individual; or 3) orders treatment and services, including involuntary commitment, for an individual incapacitated by alcohol or suffering from alcoholism, the court must determine if that person is prohibited from possessing a firearm because he or she has been adjudicated as a mental defective or committed to a mental institution under federal law.3 If the person is deemed prohibited, the court must order the person not to possess firearms, and order the seizure of any firearm owned by the individual.4 As an alternative to seizing the firearms, the court may designate a person to store the firearms until the order expires or is canceled by the court.5
Wisconsin law allows individuals in any of these categories to petition a court for an order restoring the person’s eligibility to possess firearms and providing for the return of the seized firearms.
For information about removing firearms from domestic violence protective order defendants, see Domestic Violence and Firearms in Wisconsin.
Wis. Stat. § 51.20(13)(cv)(1). ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. § 51.20(cv)(3). ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. §§ 51.45(13)(i)(1), 54.10(3)(f)(1), 55.12(10)(a). ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. §§ 54.10(3)(f)(1), 55.12(10)(a). ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. §§ 54.10(3)(f)(3), 55.12(10)(c). ⤴︎
Domestic Violence & Firearms in Wisconsin
Wisconsin has no law prohibiting individuals convicted of domestic violence misdemeanors from purchasing or possessing firearms or ammunition. Federal law, however, prohibits the purchase and possession of firearms and ammunition by certain domestic abusers.
Wisconsin also has no law requiring the removal of firearms at the scene of a domestic violence incident.
Wisconsin prohibits the possession of a firearm by any person enjoined under a domestic abuse or child abuse restraining order or injunction, certain tribal injunctions1 or a harassment or elder abuse/adult-at-risk restraining order or injunction with an order prohibiting the possession of a firearm.2
In 2014, Wisconsin enacted a new law providing a process for the surrender of firearms by the subjects of the restraining orders and injunctions listed above.3 The law requires a court to stay an injunction and extend a temporary restraining order for up to 48 hours during which time the respondent must complete a firearm possession form. If the respondent is not present in court, the petitioner must testify as to the respondent’s possession of firearms.4 If the court is satisfied that the respondent possesses firearms, it must issue a surrender and extend order and schedule a hearing to surrender firearms within one week.
If a surrender and extend order has been issued, the respondent has 48 hours to surrender his or her firearms to a person who is not prohibited from possessing a firearm and is approved by the court, or to a sheriff.5 At the firearm surrender hearing, the respondent must verify that he or she has already surrendered his or her firearms or surrender the firearms during the hearing.6 If the respondent fails to attend the hearing to surrender firearms, the court must issue an arrest warrant for him or her.7
See Wis. Stat. §§ 813.12(1)(am), (4)(a), (4m), 813.122(5m). ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. §§ 813.125(4m), 941.29(1)(f), (g), (2)(d), (e), 813.123(5)(a). ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. § 813.1285. ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. § 813.1285 (2). ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. § 813.1285(3). ⤴︎
Wis. Stat. § 813.1285(4). ⤴︎
Fifty Caliber Rifles in Wisconsin
Wisconsin has no law restricting fifty caliber rifles.