Maycomb Daily by RYAN J. FOLEY 6/30/2019
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Retired farmer Allan Phillips had been out of legal trouble for 40 years when he asked Iowa's governor to restore the gun rights he lost in 1978.
Phillips, 76, wrote in his 2017 application for clemency that it was time for him to get past the consequence of his misdemeanor conviction for having a loaded hunting gun in his vehicle. But his request would ultimately land him in legal jeopardy.
As his application slowly moved forward, Phillips received a surprise visit earlier this year from state investigators conducting a background check. They found that he had access to firearms at his home in West Branch in violation of the gun ban that his 41-year-old conviction had triggered. They soon charged him with being a felon in possession of a firearm, which can carry up to five years in prison.
The prosecution of Phillips, who is awaiting trial, has reignited debate about whether the lifetime loss of gun rights is too harsh for some defendants and shows how hard it is to get them restored once lost. The county sheriff, who wrote a letter describing Phillips as a law-abiding citizen as part of the application process, said Phillips likely could have kept guns off the radar had he not applied for legal recognition to own them.
"He probably would have been better off staying quiet," Sheriff Warren Wethington said.
More:
https://www.macombdaily.com/news/nation-world-news/seeking-gun-rights-back-iowa-farmer-gets-arrested-instead/article_3210f209-1586-532b-9733-ff7091ed83d3.html
