§ 656-A Firearms; surrender and license suspension, revocation and ineligibility

When a judge issues an order of protection in Family Court, or when someone violates one of these orders, the judge must decide what happens to that person's guns. This includes deciding whether to suspend or take away their license to carry, own, repair, or get rid of firearms. The judge also decides if the person can no longer qualify for a gun license at all.

The judge follows a specific process laid out in another part of the law, Section 842-a, to make these decisions. This means the court doesn't just automatically take away someone's guns or gun license. Instead, the judge looks at the situation and follows set steps to figure out what should happen with any firearms the person owns or wants to own.

In practice, this means if you're involved in a case with an order of protection, whether as the person protected or the person the order is against, the court will address the gun issue directly. If you own firearms and an order of protection is issued against you, expect the judge to consider whether you should have to give up your guns or lose your ability to legally possess them.