Milwaukee Gun Court Sees Even Innocent Gun Owners
Most people who end up in Milwaukee’s gun court are there because they are charged with a crime. But not everyone. Some are there to petition the court to return their weapon, seized by police. Some were arrested on unrelated charges and the weapon was taken then. Others were never connected to a crime at all. But all of them must prove they own the weapon and plead their case to a judge before being awarded their property.
Last month, about 20 such people came before the court in an effort to reclaim their weapon. Circuit Court Judge Charles F. Kahn Jr. would rather not give any of the weapons back; he’d like to see them all destroyed. But, he knows that people have a right to own firearms and is bound by the laws of the land.
“It’s not a good idea, and absolutely not necessary to have a gun,” he tells people in his courtroom. “The guns cause people’s deaths and disability…I see it over and over.”
Some gun owners are spared going to court as the police willingly return their weapons. But according to police Captain Jason Smith, those related to a crime, those involved in a suspected straw purchase, or those that the police aren’t sure how they came to possess—those are the ones who have to see the judge.
Gun rights advocates say no one should have to go through this procedure to get back their own property. This is especially true when the rightful owner did not commit a criminal offense.
Many of the petitioners in court will be denied their weapon. The president of Wisconsin Carry, Inc. says this amounts to a de facto prosecution, a case in which a citizen is deprived of their right to bear arms and their right to personal property “on a whim.”
Some people are given their guns and others are asked to return with more proof of ownership. When asked to return more than once, many will just give up, allowing the city to destroy their weapon rather than dealing with the trouble of getting it back through the gun court.
Some guns are kept away from their owners when it can be determined that they used drugs. A little known federal regulation that prohibits the court from turning over weapons to drug users can be the downfall for anyone ever charged with a drug offense, even something as small as marijuana possession.
Though some people go to court to get their weapons back, most are never returned to their rightful owner, having been involved in a gun crime or belonging to a now-convicted felon. These are all destroyed.
When you are charged with a crime, things change. Your rights change as you are labeled a convicted criminal as well. Discussing your case with a criminal defense lawyer before it gets to that point is one way of potentially mitigating the impact such charges have on your life.
