2023 Pennsylvania Consolidated & Unconsolidated Statutes › Title 18 - CRIMES AND OFFENSES › Chapter 61 - Firearms and Other Dangerous Articles › Section 6105.2 - Relinquishment of firearms and firearm licenses by convicted persons

§ 6105.2. Relinquishment of firearms and firearm licenses by convicted persons.
(a) Procedure.--
(1) A person subject to a firearms disability pursuant to section 6105(c)(9) (relating to persons not to possess, use, manufacture, control, sell or transfer firearms) shall relinquish any firearms under the person's possession or control to the appropriate law enforcement agency of the municipality as described in subsection (b) or to a dealer as described in subsection (c).
(2) The court of conviction shall order the relinquishment, and the order shall be transmitted to the appropriate law enforcement agency of the municipality and to the sheriff of the county of which the person is a resident. The order shall contain a list of any firearm ordered relinquished.
(3) The person shall inform the court in what manner the person will relinquish the firearms.
(4) If the person is present in court at the time of the order, the person shall inform the court whether relinquishment will be made under subsection (b) or (c).
(b) Relinquishment to law enforcement agency.--
(1) Relinquishment to an appropriate law enforcement agency shall be made within a period not longer than 24 hours following conviction, except for cause shown, in which case the court shall specify the time for relinquishment of any or all of the person's firearms.
(2) In securing custody of the person's relinquished firearms, the law enforcement agency shall provide the person subject to the relinquishment order with a signed and dated written receipt, which shall include a detailed description of each firearm and its condition.
(3) As used in this subsection, the term "cause" shall be limited to facts relating to the inability of the person to retrieve a specific firearm within a period not longer than 24 hours due to the then-current location of the firearm.
(c) Relinquishment to dealer.--
(1) In lieu of relinquishment to the local law enforcement agency, the person subject to a court order may, within 24 hours or within the time ordered by the court upon cause being shown as in subsection (b), relinquish firearms to a dealer licensed pursuant to section 6113 (relating to licensing of dealers).
(2) The dealer may charge the person a reasonable fee for accepting relinquishment.
(3) The person shall obtain an affidavit from the dealer on a form prescribed by the Pennsylvania State Police, which shall include, at a minimum, the following:
(i) The caption of the case in which the person was convicted.
(ii) The name, address, date of birth and Social Security number of the person.
(iii) A list of the firearms, including the manufacturer, model and serial number.
(iv) The name and license number of the dealer licensed pursuant to section 6113 and the address of the licensed premises.
(v) An acknowledgment that the firearms will not be returned to the person, unless the person is no longer prohibited from possessing a firearm under Federal or State law, or sold or transferred to a person the dealer knows is a member of the defendant's household.
(vi) An acknowledgment that the firearms, if transferred, will be transferred in compliance with this chapter.
(4) Any person relinquishing a firearm pursuant to this subsection shall, within the specified time frame, provide to the appropriate law enforcement agency or the sheriff's office, or both, the affidavit required by this subsection and relinquish to the law enforcement agency any firearm ordered to be relinquished that is not specified in the affidavit.
(d) Notice of noncompliance.--
(1) If the person fails to relinquish any firearm within 24 hours or within the time ordered by the court upon cause being shown, the law enforcement agency shall, at a minimum, provide immediate notice to the court, the victim, the prosecutor and the sheriff.
(2) For purposes of this subsection, "victim" shall have the same meaning as "direct victim" in section 103 of the act of November 24, 1998 (P.L.882, No.111), known as the Crime Victims Act.
(e) Alternate relinquishment to dealer.--
(1) If the person relinquishes firearms to the appropriate law enforcement agency pursuant to subsection (b), the person may request that the appropriate law enforcement agency make one transfer of any such firearm to a dealer licensed pursuant to section 6113 within six months of relinquishment.
(2) If requesting a subsequent transfer, the person shall provide the appropriate law enforcement agency with the dealer affidavit described in subsection (c).
(3) The appropriate law enforcement agency shall make the transfer, if the person complies with this subsection, and may charge the person for any costs associated with making the transfer.
(f) Recordkeeping.--
Any portion of an order or petition or other paper that includes a list of firearms ordered to be relinquished shall be kept in the files of the court as a permanent record and withheld from public inspection, except upon an order of the court granted upon cause shown, after redaction of information relating to the firearms, or, as necessary, by law enforcement and court personnel.
(g) Relinquishment of licenses.--
(1) A person convicted of a crime resulting in a firearm disability pursuant to section 6105(c)(9) shall also relinquish to the sheriff any firearm license issued under section 6106 (relating to firearms not to be carried without a license) or 6109 (relating to licenses) or 23 Pa.C.S. § 6108.3 (relating to relinquishment to third party for safekeeping).
(2) The provisions of subsections (a)(2) and (3), (b), (d) and (f) shall also apply to firearm licenses of the person.
(h) Penalty.--
A person convicted of a crime resulting in a firearm disability pursuant to section 6105(c)(9) commits a misdemeanor of the second degree if the person intentionally or knowingly fails to relinquish a firearm or other weapon or ammunition to an appropriate law enforcement agency or a dealer in accordance with this section.
(i) Definition.--
As used in this section, the term "firearm" means any weapon which is designed to or may readily be converted to expel any projectile by the action of an explosive or the frame or receiver of any such weapon.
(Oct. 12, 2018, P.L.519, No.79, eff. 180 days)
2018 Amendment.
Act 79 added section 6105.2. Section 11 of Act 79 provided that Act 79 shall apply to orders issued pursuant to 23 Pa.C.S. § 6108 on or after the effective date of section 11.
Cross References.
Section 6105.2 is referred to in section 6105 of this title.