A person convicted of a felony in Indiana cannot lawfully possess a firearm, but the exposure depends on the conviction. Indiana bars every felon from carrying a handgun, imposes a Level 4 felony carrying two to twelve years in prison on anyone classified as a “serious violent felon” who possesses any firearm, and federal law layers on a separate prohibition that reaches fifteen years for essentially any felony conviction.1Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 35-47-4-5 – Unlawful Possession of Firearm by Serious Violent Felon Sorting out which of these rules applies to a given record is the first thing anyone in this situation needs to do.
Indiana’s Two Separate Prohibitions
Indiana law contains two firearm bans aimed at people with felony records, and they carry very different penalties.
The broader one is Indiana Code 35-47-2-1.5. It prohibits anyone convicted of an offense punishable by more than a year of imprisonment from carrying a handgun.2Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 35-47-2-1.5 – Unlawful Carrying of a Handgun That sweeps in essentially every felony, violent or not. Indiana went to permitless carry in 2022, so most adults no longer need a license to carry a handgun. This prohibition still blocks felons from doing so.
The more serious statute is Indiana Code 35-47-4-5. A person who qualifies as a “serious violent felon” and knowingly possesses any firearm — not just a handgun, but rifles and shotguns too — commits a Level 4 felony.1Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 35-47-4-5 – Unlawful Possession of Firearm by Serious Violent Felon The penalty gap between the two statutes is large, so the qualifying-conviction question matters.
Who Counts as a Serious Violent Felon
The serious violent felon designation is reserved for specific prior convictions. The statute lists more than thirty offenses, grouped roughly as follows:1Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 35-47-4-5 – Unlawful Possession of Firearm by Serious Violent Felon
- Homicide offenses, including murder, attempted murder, voluntary manslaughter, and reckless homicide not involving a vehicle
- Violent personal crimes such as felony-level battery, aggravated battery, strangulation, domestic battery at Level 2 through Level 5, kidnapping, criminal confinement, and robbery
- Sex offenses including rape, child molesting, felony-level sexual battery, human and sexual trafficking, and incest
- Felony-level arson, felony-level burglary, and criminal organization intimidation
- Felony-level resisting law enforcement, escape, assisting a criminal, and trafficking with an inmate
- Dealing or manufacturing cocaine, narcotics, or methamphetamine
- Stalking at Level 4 or Level 5
The statute also reaches convictions from other states that are substantially similar to an Indiana offense on the list, and certain federal offenses that resulted in at least five years of imprisonment. Older convictions from before Indiana’s 2014 felony reclassification still count if they fall under the equivalent prior felony classes named in the statute.
What “Possession” Means
Prosecutors do not need to catch someone gripping a gun to bring a charge. Indiana recognizes two forms of possession.
Actual possession is the firearm on the person’s body or in their immediate physical control. Constructive possession is where most contested cases arise. A gun found in a home, vehicle, or shared space can support a charge if the state proves the defendant knew the firearm was there and had the ability and intent to control it. Both elements are required. A firearm tucked under a couch in a room the defendant was visiting does not, on its own, prove constructive possession. Courts look at proximity, whether the defendant’s belongings were near the weapon, and whether the space was under the defendant’s exclusive control.
State Penalties for a Serious Violent Felon Charge
A conviction under IC 35-47-4-5 is a Level 4 felony. The sentencing range is two to twelve years, with an advisory sentence of six years, and the court may add a fine of up to $10,000.3Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 35-50-2-5.5 – Level 4 Felony Judges start from the advisory number and adjust for aggravating and mitigating factors: a clean record since the original offense pulls toward the low end, a pattern of violence toward the high end.
Possessing a firearm during the commission of a separate offense can also enhance the sentence on that other charge, and the two can stack. Beyond prison, a fresh felony piles onto the collateral consequences already flowing from the earlier conviction. Voting rights are suspended during incarceration, professional licensing gets harder, and employment and housing become significantly more difficult to secure.
Federal Exposure on Top
Federal law operates independently of Indiana’s scheme. Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than a year in prison is barred from possessing firearms or ammunition.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts The federal ban is not limited to violent felonies. It covers virtually every felony conviction and reaches out-of-state and federal convictions as well.
The maximum federal sentence is fifteen years, raised from ten by the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act in 2022. The Armed Career Criminal Act adds a mandatory minimum of fifteen years, with no probation, for a defendant with three or more prior convictions for violent felonies or serious drug offenses.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 924 – Penalties
State and federal authorities can prosecute the same conduct. A felon found with a gun in Indianapolis could face a Level 4 felony charge under state law and a separate federal indictment. Federal prosecutors tend to focus on repeat violent offenders and cases tied to broader investigations, but dual prosecution is always possible. One practical effect: a person with a non-violent felony, like a financial crime, may be outside the reach of Indiana’s serious violent felon statute but still face serious federal exposure.
Domestic Battery Triggers Its Own Ban
Indiana treats domestic battery as a separate firearm-disqualifying event, even at the misdemeanor level. Under Indiana Code 35-47-4-6, a person with a domestic battery conviction who knowingly possesses a firearm commits unlawful possession by a domestic batterer, a Class A misdemeanor.6Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 35-47-4-6 – Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Domestic Batterer
This catches people off guard. A misdemeanor domestic battery conviction does not turn someone into a felon, but it still strips firearm rights under Indiana law. When the court makes a formal domestic violence determination — typically because the defendant and victim were living together, dating, or related — the restriction runs at least five years. Finishing probation does not lift it. A separate rights restoration process under IC 35-47-4-7 does.
A felony-level domestic battery can trigger both IC 35-47-4-6 and, if the offense qualifies, the serious violent felon prohibition under IC 35-47-4-5.
Getting Firearm Rights Back
Two main paths exist in Indiana, plus a federal overlay to watch.
Expungement
A felony expungement under Indiana Code 35-38-9 restores the person’s civil rights, including “proper person” status under Indiana’s firearms chapter.7Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 35-38-9-10 – Unlawful Discrimination Against a Person Whose Record Has Been Expunged The provision was amended in 2015 to address firearm rights specifically, and the ATF has recognized that an Indiana expungement restoring proper-person status is sufficient to lift the federal prohibition as well. Eligibility turns on the offense, the time since conviction, and a clean subsequent record. The most serious violent offenses face stricter timelines or are not eligible at all.
Governor’s Pardon
Where expungement is not available, Indiana Code 35-47-2-20 provides two pardon-based routes.8Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 35-47-2-20 – Removal of Disability Under This Chapter A full pardon removes the firearm disability for felonies outside IC 35-42 (the chapter covering crimes against persons), but only after fifteen years have passed between the offense and the application. A conditional pardon can lift the disability for any felony, including violent offenses under IC 35-42, if the Indiana State Police superintendent finds that circumstances have changed enough that the person is likely to handle firearms lawfully.
Governor’s pardons are rare and go through a separate Indiana Parole Board application. There is no guaranteed timeline, and the process requires solid documentation of rehabilitation. Domestic battery convictions have their own restoration mechanism under IC 35-47-4-7.
The Federal Layer
A successful state restoration does not automatically clear the federal ban. Federal law recognizes a state restoration only if the state has actually removed the firearms disability. If an Indiana expungement or pardon explicitly restores firearm rights, the federal bar lifts. If it does not, 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1) still applies no matter what Indiana allows.