Class G Felony in North Carolina: Sentences, Fines, and Firearm Ban

A Class G felony in North Carolina carries a minimum prison sentence of 8 to 31 months, with maximum terms reaching 47 months, depending on your prior record and whether the judge finds aggravating or mitigating factors. Class G sits in the middle of the state’s ten felony classes (A through I) and covers offenses like second-degree burglary, common law robbery, second-degree arson, and possession of a firearm by a felon. A conviction also brings consequences that outlast the sentence: a permanent firearms ban, loss of voting rights during supervision, and no path to expungement under current law.

What Counts as a Class G Felony

North Carolina classifies dozens of specific crimes at this level. The ones charged most often include second-degree burglary, common law robbery, second-degree arson, exploitation of an elderly or disabled adult where the loss reaches $20,000 or more, possession of a firearm by a felon, breaking into a place of worship, malicious use of an explosive or incendiary device, and organized retail theft involving merchandise worth more than $20,000.

That list is not exhaustive. The General Assembly reclassifies offenses periodically, and some crimes previously charged as lower-level felonies have moved up to Class G in recent years. The charging document in your case will name the exact statute.

How the Sentence Is Set

North Carolina judges do not have open-ended sentencing discretion for felonies. The Structured Sentencing Act locks every felony sentence into a grid built from two inputs: the offense class and the defendant’s prior record level. There are six prior record levels, each tied to a point total calculated from prior convictions.

Points accumulate according to the severity of past offenses. A prior Class A felony adds more points than a prior misdemeanor. The levels break down this way:

Level I: 0 to 1 point
Level II: 2 to 5 points
Level III: 6 to 9 points
Level IV: 10 to 13 points
Level V: 14 to 17 points
Level VI: 18 or more points

Someone with no criminal history starts at Level I. Someone with an extensive record could land at Level V or VI, where active prison time is mandatory.¹

Prison Ranges by Prior Record Level

At each prior record level the grid gives three ranges: a presumptive range that applies in most cases, a mitigated range when mitigating factors are found, and an aggravated range when aggravating factors are found. The judge selects a minimum sentence from the applicable range, and the maximum is then fixed by statute.²

Minimum sentences for a Class G felony, in months:

Level I: Mitigated 8–10, Presumptive 10–13, Aggravated 13–16
Level II: Mitigated 9–12, Presumptive 12–14, Aggravated 14–18
Level III: Mitigated 10–13, Presumptive 13–17, Aggravated 17–21
Level IV: Mitigated 11–15, Presumptive 15–19, Aggravated 19–24
Level V: Mitigated 13–17, Presumptive 17–22, Aggravated 22–27
Level VI: Mitigated 15–20, Presumptive 20–25, Aggravated 25–31

These are minimums. Your actual release date depends on the corresponding maximum set by statute. A 10-month minimum carries a 21-month maximum. A 25-month minimum carries a 39-month maximum. At the top of the chart, a 31-month minimum carries a 47-month maximum. The gap between minimum and maximum is the window during which the Post-Release Supervision and Parole Commission controls release.²

Aggravating and Mitigating Factors

The presumptive range applies unless the judge finds a reason to move off it. Aggravating factors that push sentences upward include use of a deadly weapon during the offense, a particularly vulnerable victim, committing the offense while on pretrial release, and acting as a leader among co-defendants.

Mitigating factors that can lower a sentence include a minor role in the offense, duress or provocation, cooperation with law enforcement, and a support system that reduces the likelihood of reoffending. Mental health and substance abuse conditions can also mitigate, particularly when the defendant has sought treatment. The judge must find these factors by a preponderance of the evidence before departing from the presumptive range.³

When Prison Is Not Mandatory

Not every Class G conviction ends in active prison time. At Prior Record Levels I through IV the grid authorizes either intermediate or active punishment, so the judge has a real choice. At Levels V and VI, active punishment is the only option.

Intermediate punishment is more restrictive than ordinary probation but keeps you out of prison. It requires a suspended sentence with at least one intensive condition, such as house arrest with electronic monitoring, intensive supervised probation, drug treatment court, a residential substance abuse program, or special probation (sometimes called a split sentence), which pairs a short jail stay with supervised probation.⁴

Community punishment, the lightest option and the one that includes ordinary unsupervised probation, is never authorized for a Class G felony at any prior record level. A first-time offender cannot receive plain probation for a Class G conviction.

Fines and Restitution

North Carolina law does not set a specific fine amount for Class G felonies. The statute leaves the fine to the judge’s discretion unless the criminal statute defining the particular offense sets its own fine.²

Restitution is separate. In every criminal case the court must consider whether to order restitution to the victim. The judge weighs the actual losses against the defendant’s resources, income, earning capacity, and dependents. When the full loss exceeds what the defendant can reasonably pay, the court can order partial restitution and must explain that decision on the record.⁵

After Prison: Post-Release Supervision

North Carolina eliminated discretionary parole for felonies committed after October 1, 1994. For offenses after that date, parole is not part of the equation. Anyone who serves an active prison sentence for a Class G felony is subject to a mandatory nine-month period of post-release supervision after release.⁶

The Post-Release Supervision and Parole Commission manages the process, reviewing each case to set release timing and supervision conditions. Purposes include monitoring behavior in the community, supporting reintegration, collecting unpaid restitution, and continuing treatment or education started in prison.⁷

Violating supervision conditions can send you back to prison for the remaining balance of your maximum sentence. This is where the gap between minimum and maximum matters most. The wider that gap, the more time is available to serve if supervision is revoked.

Firearm Ban

A Class G conviction triggers a firearms ban under both federal and state law. Federal law prohibits anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment from possessing any firearm or ammunition. Every Class G felony clears that threshold, so the federal ban applies automatically.⁸

North Carolina makes it illegal for any person convicted of a felony to purchase, own, or possess a firearm. Violating that ban is itself a Class G felony, meaning a new conviction can add 8 to 31 months just for having a gun.⁹

Restoring firearm rights is difficult. Only people convicted of nonviolent felonies may petition a district court, and only after civil rights have been fully restored for at least 20 years. Even then the petition is discretionary and can be denied.¹⁰

Voting Rights

You lose the right to vote in North Carolina the moment you are convicted of a felony. The disqualification lasts through incarceration, probation, and post-release supervision. When every part of your sentence is finished, your voting rights are automatically restored, but you have to re-register even if you were registered before.¹¹

Unpaid fines or restitution do not by themselves keep you off the rolls. If probation has ended, voting rights come back even with remaining debts. If a court extends probation specifically for failure to pay, you remain ineligible until that extended supervision ends.¹¹

No Expungement

Class G is the line where expungement stops being available. North Carolina’s expunction statute for nonviolent felonies explicitly excludes Class A through Class G felonies. A Class H or Class I conviction may qualify after a 10- or 20-year waiting period, but a Class G conviction cannot be cleared under that provision no matter how much time passes.¹²

The record shows up on background checks indefinitely, affecting employment, housing, and professional licensing. A pardon from the governor remains a theoretical route, but pardons are rare and discretionary. For most people convicted at this level, the record is permanent.

Immigration and Travel

For non-citizens, a Class G conviction can trigger removal. Many Class G offenses involve conduct that federal immigration law treats as a crime involving moral turpitude or an aggravated felony, either of which can lead to deportation and a permanent bar on re-entry. Anyone holding a visa or green card, or living in the country without status, should speak with an immigration attorney before entering any plea.

Even U.S. citizens with a Class G conviction can face travel restrictions. Canada is the destination most commonly affected. Canadian border agents access U.S. criminal databases, and a felony conviction generally makes a traveler inadmissible. A Temporary Resident Permit can cover short visits, and criminal rehabilitation offers a permanent resolution but requires waiting at least five years after the entire sentence is finished.

Building a Defense

The right strategy depends on the specific offense charged, but a few approaches come up repeatedly at this level.

Challenging the evidence is usually the first move. If law enforcement obtained evidence through an illegal search or seized property without a valid warrant or a recognized exception, a motion to suppress can pull that evidence out of the case. Losing key physical evidence or a confession taken in violation of your rights can gut a prosecution. North Carolina courts take suppression motions seriously when police overreach is documented.

Where the offense requires a specific mental state, attacking intent can be decisive. Second-degree burglary requires that you entered a dwelling intending to commit a felony or theft inside. If the evidence shows you entered by mistake or without any criminal purpose, that element fails. Fraud charges likewise require proof that you intended to deceive. Accidental or negligent conduct may support lesser charges, but it does not support a Class G conviction that demands intentional wrongdoing.

Duress is less common but viable when the defendant was forced to commit the offense through threats of serious harm. Courts expect real evidence: corroborating testimony, records of threats, or proof of a coercive relationship.

Even when a full defense is not realistic, mitigating factors can meaningfully cut the sentence. Remorse, early acceptance of responsibility, cooperation with investigators, and documented treatment for mental health or substance abuse carry weight inside the structured sentencing framework. A stable support network, steady employment, and community ties can push the judge toward intermediate punishment instead of active time for defendants at Prior Record Levels I through IV.³

1
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 15A-1340.14 – Prior Record Level for Felony Sentencing
2
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 15A-1340.17 – Punishment Limits for Each Class of Offense and Prior Record Level
3
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 15A-1340.16 – Aggravated and Mitigated Sentences
4
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 15A-1343.2 – Special Probation Conditions
5
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code Chapter 15A Article 81C – Restitution
6
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 15A-1368.2 – Post-Release Supervision Eligibility and Procedure
7
North Carolina Department of Adult Correction. Post Release Supervision and Parole Commission
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts
9
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 14-415.1 – Possession of Firearms by Felon
10
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code Chapter 14 Article 54A – Possession of Firearms
11
North Carolina State Board of Elections. Registering as a Person in the Criminal Justice System
12
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 15A-145.5 – Expunction of Certain Misdemeanors and Felonies