What Are the Consequences of a Gun Charge in Oklahoma?

Overall, Oklahoma is quite friendly towards the Second Amendment. You don’t even need to have a permit to carry a gun openly for a legitimate purpose, which would include things like hunting or for competitions. You do need a permit to conceal carry, but it’s not too difficult to get one unless you are prohibited by state or federal law from owning a gun. That said, Oklahoma has some very strict laws and penalties for those who are convicted of a gun charge. A gun charge attorney should always be your first call if you’re ever accused of any charge related to firearms. An OKC criminal defense attorney can investigate the incident and will aggressively defend your rights.

The consequences you face will depend on whether you’re being charged under state or federal law.

To conceal carry or carry a firearm for self-defense, you need a handgun permit and a concealed carry permit. To be eligible for this, you must complete a firearm safety and training course, pay a fee, be a US citizen and Oklahoma resident, be at least 21 years, and not be prohibited from owning a firearm. 

State law prohibits anyone with a prior felony conviction, anyone who has provided false or misleading information on a handgun license, or anyone who is judges to be mentally incompetent, who has a misdemeanor conviction for assault and battery causing serious bodily injury, and anyone currently being treated for a mental illness to own a gun. 

You also cannot own a gun if you are considered a “habitual offender,” if you have been convicted of illegal drug possession within the last 10 years, if you have been convicted of domestic abuse or stalking or have violated a protective order, or if you have attempted suicide in the last 10 years. There are other things that can get your rights to carry a gun revoked, but in general, you will likely know if you are prohibited from legally owning a gun because you will have been denied a permit.

When a gun is in play during the commission of a crime, things become very serious, very quickly. Pointing a gun at another person to intimidate them or threaten them is considered a felony, and it doesn’t matter if the gun is loaded or unloaded. If you’re found guilty, you can expect up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. Brandishing a gun in the presence of a child makes things even worse. In some cases, brandishing a weapon is only considered reckless conduct: this would apply if the police believe that you’re creating an unreasonable risk to others, but you haven’t actually been threatening anyone. Reckless conduct is a misdemeanor and comes with a punishment of 10 days to six months in jail.

If you use a firearm while committing a felony, then extra penalties are stacked onto whatever penalties you are given for the felony itself. For a first offense, you can expect to go to jail for no less than two years and not more than 10. Subsequent offenses have a minimum of 10 years in imprisonment and can be extended up to 30 years. A number of gun crimes come with the possibility of a life sentence: armed robbery, assault and battery with a deadly weapon, or shooting with intent to kill. You will also lose your license to own a handgun if convicted of a gun charge.

Federal gun charges are divided into violent or non-violent offenses. Violent offenses include illegally having a firearm, unlawful possession by a convicted felon, armed robbery, and possession by a prohibited person. As you can see, certain people can expect to be charged as if they had committed a violent crime just for owning a gun when they are prohibited under federal law from having it in certain circumstances. Nonviolent federal gun charges include unlawful sale, illegal transfer, and straw purchases.

The penalties for federal gun charges include the loss of your right to own a gun, restrictions on being able to carry a gun publicly, and even the loss of your voting rights if you’re convicted under the Armed Career Criminal Act. If you are convicted of drug trafficking and there’s a gun involved, even if the gun wasn’t actually being used in the commission of any sort of crime, you can get extra enhanced penalties tacked on to your trafficking charge. The mandatory minimum sentence for most federal gun charges related to possession of a controlled substance is 10 years. Generally, federal gun charges usually come with sentences of 5 to 10 years up to life in prison.