After Self-Defense Shooting, Prior Misdemeanor May Deprive Man of Gun

Add to favorites

In the nine or so years he’s had it, Delmar Polite had never fired his .357 revolver before Monday.

A pack of jackals changed that for him, however, when they decided it’d be a good idea to smash in his front door at 2:30 a.m. and attempt to make off with his stuff.

“I was in the bed asleep,” he said. “I was scared.”

Frightened or not, Polite did what a lot of us would do. He grabbed his pistol and went downstairs to defend himself and his home. He got off a couple of rounds — Polite didn’t hit a blessed thing — but managed to ward off the home invaders.

Polite called police and, when they showed up, they confiscated his gun — standard practice, nothing out of the ordinary — until they finished their investigation. Thanks to a 13-year-old misdemeanor conviction, Polite might not get his gun back at all.

Prior convictions

As records go, the one Polite accrued as a younger man isn’t pristine, but it’s not that bad, either.

Aiding and abetting larceny, misdemeanor (1988); misdemeanor worthless check (1991); and misdemeanor assault on a female (1998).

Three misdemeanors, three guilty pleas. Far worse people walk the streets every day.

It’s the last one, the domestic-violence charge, that’s hanging him up now. Under federal law, anyone convicted of anything related to domestic violence — felony or misdemeanor — isn’t supposed to have a gun. Ever.

“I don’t know what would have happened if I didn’t have that gun,” he said. Read more

Source: journalnow.com

Related Posts:

• No Related Posts Found