A person convicted of a felony often loses rights such as voting, jury service and gun ownership. Getting these rights back is nearly impossible without a presidential pardon, according to clemency experts. But for the first time in decades, the Justice Department is allowing ex-felons a chance to regain their gun ownership rights. The DOJ will accept applications this week from invited candidates and begin accepting applications from the first 5,000 candidates from the general public in November. The DOJ estimates 25 million people might qualify for the new gun restoration program. Gun rights groups support this initiative as it will give people who have paid their debts a second chance, while critics raise questions about its implementation. Here’s what we know so far.
➡️ Violent offenders will not be considered for the program, including those who are convicted of rape or kidnapping.
➡️ Eligible applicants must submit their conviction details, character references, fingerprints and eventually a $30 fee to the DOJ. An estimated 330,000 people are expected to apply each year.
➡️ One complication the program faces is that some states have their own laws for restoring gun rights. This means a person who regains their federal gun rights might not be allowed to own a firearm in their state.
➡️ A similar program run by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives ended in the 1990s. A 1992 Violence Policy Center report found that of the more than 2,000 people whose gun rights were restored between 1985 and 1992, 69 were rearrested for crimes such as attempted murder, first-degree sexual assault and child molestation. | 
