Can a Felon Own a Gun in Ohio? Penalties, Relief, and Federal Ban

In almost every case, a felon cannot legally own a gun in Ohio. Ohio Revised Code 2923.13 prohibits anyone convicted of a felony offense of violence or a felony drug offense from acquiring, carrying, or using a firearm, and federal law under 18 U.S.C. 922(g) independently bars firearm possession by anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison. Ohio does provide a court process to lift the state-level ban, but that order does not automatically clear the federal one. Understanding both layers is what keeps a person who thinks they’ve fixed their status from walking into a 15-year federal sentence.

Who Ohio’s Firearm Ban Covers

Ohio calls the prohibited status being under a “disability,” and the list of people who fall under it is broader than most people expect. Under ORC 2923.13, you are prohibited from knowingly acquiring, carrying, or using any firearm if you:

Are a fugitive from justice
Have been convicted of, or are under indictment for, any felony offense of violence
Have been convicted of, or are under indictment for, any felony involving illegal drugs
Have been found to be drug dependent, in danger of drug dependence, or a chronic alcoholic
Have been adjudicated mentally incompetent, committed to a mental institution, or found by a court to be a person with a mental illness subject to court order

Two features of this list matter. You do not need a conviction to trigger the ban — an active indictment for a qualifying felony is enough. And the ban is not limited to violent crimes. A drug felony creates the same disability as an assault conviction.¹

What Counts as Possession

Ohio recognizes two kinds of possession: actual and constructive. Actual possession is holding the gun. Constructive possession is having a firearm in a place you control — your home, your car, your storage unit — even if you never touch it. Federal courts treat the question the same way under 18 U.S.C. 922(g), and a family member’s firearm sitting accessible in a shared residence can be charged as the prohibited person’s possession.²

If a prohibited person lives in a home with legally owned firearms, the Department of Justice recommends storing those firearms unloaded in a locked safe the prohibited person cannot access, with trigger or cable locks as a second layer. A gun tucked in a drawer or closet does not qualify.³ Ammunition locked separately adds another buffer. The point is to leave no argument that the prohibited person had access.

The Federal Ban Runs Alongside

Ohio law is only half the picture. Federal law at 18 U.S.C. 922(g) prohibits firearm possession by anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison, which captures nearly every felony conviction, state or federal, violent or not. The federal ban also covers ammunition. Buying a box of cartridges is itself a federal offense for a prohibited person, even with no gun involved.²

State and federal prohibitions operate independently. Clearing one does nothing about the other.

Penalties for Illegal Possession

Having a weapon while under disability in Ohio is a third-degree felony.¹ A conviction carries a definite prison term of 9, 12, 18, 24, 30, or 36 months,⁴ plus a possible fine up to $10,000.⁵

Federal exposure is worse. A 922(g) conviction carries up to 15 years in federal prison, and for a defendant with three or more prior convictions for violent felonies or serious drug offenses, the minimum is 15 years with no probation.⁶ Federal and state prosecutors can both charge the same incident, and the sentences can run consecutively.

How to Petition for Relief in Ohio

ORC 2923.14 allows a person under disability to petition the court of common pleas in their county of residence for relief from the state-level firearms ban. The petition is not granted automatically. The applicant has to convince a judge they deserve it.

Who Qualifies to Apply

Before filing, you must be fully discharged from your sentence. That means all imprisonment, parole, community control, and post-release control complete, and all fines and restitution paid. No part of the sentence can still be pending.⁷

Two categories of people cannot apply at all: anyone convicted under Ohio’s terrorism-related weapons offense (ORC 2923.132), and anyone with two or more felony convictions carrying certain firearm specifications. For those individuals the state relief door is closed.⁷

What the Application Involves

The petition is filed in the common pleas court where you live and must list every conviction or condition that created the disability, the sentence imposed, and facts showing you’re a suitable candidate. The Ohio Attorney General publishes a standard form.⁸ A copy goes to the county prosecutor, who will investigate and can object at the hearing. Expect a review of your criminal history, employment, and conduct since release.⁷

What the Court Has to Find

The statute requires the court to find you’ve led a law-abiding life since discharge and are likely to keep doing so. Judges weigh the nature of the original offense, how much time has passed, evidence of rehabilitation like steady work or community involvement, and credible character witnesses. There’s no statutory waiting period, but a petition filed shortly after discharge rarely succeeds. Time and a clean record are what carry these cases.

If the court grants relief, it issues an order lifting the Ohio disability. That order is specific to state law.

Why State Relief Doesn’t Automatically Clear the Federal Ban

This is where people get hurt. A person who successfully petitions under ORC 2923.14 and assumes they can now buy a gun anywhere is still committing a federal felony every day they possess one, unless the federal side has also been addressed.

Federal law at 18 U.S.C. 921(a)(20) says a conviction doesn’t count for federal firearm purposes if the person has been pardoned, had the conviction expunged, or had their civil rights restored — unless that pardon or restoration expressly forbids firearms. That sounds like an opening, but Ohio’s version of restoration is partial. Voting rights come back on completion of sentence; firearm rights do not. And for anyone with a federal conviction, the Supreme Court held in Beecham v. United States that state action cannot undo a federal firearms disability. Only federal relief works on federal convictions.⁹¹⁰

The Federal Relief Process That May Be Reopening

18 U.S.C. 925(c) technically lets individuals apply to the Attorney General for relief from the federal disability. In practice, Congress has blocked ATF from spending money to process those applications every year since 1992, so the route has been closed for over three decades.

That may be shifting. In March 2025 the Attorney General withdrew 925(c) authority from ATF, and in July 2025 the Department of Justice published a proposed rule to run the relief process itself. The comment period closed in October 2025, and as of that point the rule had not been finalized.¹¹ Until that process is actually operational, the reliable ways to clear a federal ban are a presidential pardon for federal convictions or the 921(a)(20) restoration framework for state convictions.

Pardons

An unconditional pardon from Ohio’s governor relieves all disabilities from the pardoned conviction, including the firearms prohibition. ORC 2967.04(B) allows a pardon recipient to purchase and possess firearms at the state level.¹²

A pardon can also resolve the federal side. Under 921(a)(20), a pardoned conviction is not a conviction for federal firearm purposes unless the pardon itself says the person cannot possess firearms. An unconditional pardon takes the federal disability with the state one.¹⁰

A note on record sealing: sealing an Ohio conviction is not the same as relief from disability. The Ohio Supreme Court’s guidance treats them as separate processes. A person who seals a felony but never petitions under ORC 2923.14 is still under disability and still cannot legally possess a firearm in Ohio.

After You Get Relief: The Background Check Problem

A court order lifting your disability doesn’t instantly update the NICS background check system. It’s common to be denied at a licensed dealer even with a valid relief order in hand, because the records the FBI relies on haven’t caught up.

The FBI runs a challenge process for people who believe they were wrongly denied. You can submit a challenge and the FBI must respond within 60 calendar days.¹³ If the challenge succeeds, you can enroll in the Voluntary Appeal File and receive a Unique Personal Identification Number (UPIN). Entering that UPIN on the ATF Form 4473 on future purchases helps NICS match your record to the supporting court order or pardon and reduces repeat denials.¹⁴

1
Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 2923.13 – Having Weapons While Under Disability
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
3
Department of Justice. Safe Storage of Firearms – Unload It, Lock It, Store It
4
Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 2929.14 – Definite Prison Terms
5
Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 2929.18 – Financial Sanctions – Felony
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 924 – Penalties
7
Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 2923.14 – Relief from Disability
8
Ohio Attorney General. Relief from Disability Form
9
Law.Cornell.Edu. Beecham v. United States
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 921 – Definitions
11
Federal Register. Application for Relief From Disabilities Imposed by Federal Laws
12
Supreme Court of Ohio. Adult Rights Restoration and Record Sealing
13
Federal Bureau of Investigation. Requesting Reason for and/or Challenging a NICS-Related Denial
14
Federal Bureau of Investigation. Voluntary Appeal File