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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2015 - 2016
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | February 10, 2015 01:20 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Ronald G. Waters |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Carrying a Firearm without a License |
| In the near future, I will be re-introducing legislation that would amend Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes to require courts to impose a mandatory sentence for a person who carries a firearm without a license. A person is currently charged with a felony of the third degree for carrying a firearm without a license, but if the person is otherwise eligible to possess a valid license, he or she would only be charged with a misdemeanor of the first degree. If convicted for either of these offenses, a person could serve up to seven years or up to five years in prison, respectively. Unfortunately, judges often decide to impose lesser sentences on offenders for these two significant crimes. My legislation mandates that judges impose a sentence of two years of total confinement for a person convicted of carrying a firearm without a license. In addition, my bill mandates that judges impose a sentence of six months jail time for a person who is convicted of carrying a firearm without a license but is otherwise eligible to possess a valid license. One of the only ways to deter individuals from carrying unlicensed firearms is to guarantee that they will be forced to spend a significant amount of their time in prison for breaking these very serious laws. If you have any questions regarding this legislation, please contact Timothy Scott at tscott@pahouse.net or at 717-787-3172 x6451. |