Ownership, possession, or control prohibited, when; penalty
HRS §134-7
in effect134-7. Ownership, possession, or control prohibited, when; penalty
(a) No person who is a fugitive from justice or prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under title 18 United States Code section 922 or any other provision of federal law shall own, possess, or control any firearm or ammunition.
(b) No person who is
being prosecuted for one or more charges for a felony, a crime of violence, a
criminal offense relating to firearms, or an illegal sale or distribution of
any drug in a court in this State or elsewhere, or who has been convicted in this
State or elsewhere of having committed a felony, a crime of violence, a
criminal offense relating to firearms, or an illegal sale or distribution of
any drug shall own, possess, or control any firearm or ammunition.
(c) No person shall
own, possess, or control any firearm or ammunition if the person:
(1) Is or has been under treatment or counseling for
addiction to, abuse of, or dependence upon any dangerous, harmful, or
detrimental drug, intoxicating compound as defined in section 712-1240, or
intoxicating liquor;
(2) Has been acquitted of a crime on the grounds of
mental disease, disorder, or defect pursuant to section 704-411 or any similar
provision under federal law, or the law of another state, a United States
territory, or the District of Columbia;
(3) Is or has been
diagnosed with or treated for a medical, behavioral, psychological, emotional,
or mental condition or disorder that causes or is likely to cause impairment in
judgment, perception, or impulse control to an extent that presents an
unreasonable risk to public health, safety, or welfare if the person were in
possession or control of a firearm; or
(4) Has been adjudged to:
(A) Meet the criteria for involuntary
hospitalization under section 334-60.2; or
(B) Be an "incapacitated person",
as defined in section 560:5-102,
unless the person
establishes, with appropriate medical documentation, that the person is no
longer adversely affected by the criteria or statuses identified in this
subsection.
(d) No person who is less than twenty-five
years old and has been adjudicated by the family court to have committed a
felony, a crime of violence, a criminal offense relating to firearms, or an
illegal sale or distribution of any drug shall own, possess, or control any
firearm or ammunition.
(e) No minor shall
own, possess, or control any firearm or ammunition if the minor:
(1) Is or has been under treatment for addiction to
any dangerous, harmful, or detrimental drug, intoxicating compound as defined
in section 712-1240, or intoxicating liquor;
(2) Is a fugitive from justice; or
(3) Has been determined not to have been responsible
for a criminal act or has been committed to any institution on account of a
mental disease, disorder, or defect,
unless the minor
establishes, with appropriate medical documentation, that the minor is no
longer adversely affected by the addiction, mental disease, disorder, or
defect.
For the purposes of
enforcing this section, and notwithstanding section 571-84 or any other law to
the contrary, any agency within the State shall make its records relating to
family court adjudications available to law enforcement officials.
(f) No person who has been restrained pursuant
to an order of any court, including a gun violence protective order issued
pursuant to part IV, from contacting, threatening, or physically abusing any
person, shall possess, control, or transfer ownership of any firearm or
ammunition, so long as the protective order, restraining order, or any
extension is in effect. The protective order or restraining order shall
specifically include a statement that possession, control, or transfer of
ownership of a firearm or ammunition by the person named in the order is
prohibited. The person shall relinquish possession and control of any firearm
and ammunition owned by that person to the police department of the appropriate
county for safekeeping for the duration of the order or extension thereof. At
the time of service of a protective order or restraining order involving
firearms and ammunition issued by any court, a police officer may take custody
of any and all firearms and ammunition in plain sight, those discovered
pursuant to a consensual search, and those firearms surrendered by the person
restrained. If the person restrained is the registered owner of a firearm and
knows the location of the firearm, but refuses to surrender the firearm or
disclose the location of the firearm, the person restrained shall be guilty of
a misdemeanor. In any case, when a police officer is unable to locate the
firearms and ammunition either registered under this chapter or known to the
person granted protection by the court, the police officer shall apply to the
court for a search warrant pursuant to chapter 803 for the limited purpose of
seizing the firearm and ammunition.
(g) Except as provided in section 134-5, no
person who is under the age of twenty-one shall own, possess, or control any
ammunition for any firearm; provided that this subsection shall not apply to a
person in an exempt category identified in section 134-11(a).
(h) Any person disqualified from ownership,
possession, control, or the right to transfer ownership of firearms and
ammunition under this section shall surrender or dispose of all firearms and
ammunition in compliance with section 134-7.3.
(i) Any person who otherwise would be
prohibited under subsection (b) from owning, possessing, or controlling a
firearm and ammunition solely as a result of a conviction for a crime that is
not a felony, and who is not prohibited from owning, possessing, or controlling
a firearm or ammunition for any reason under any other provision of this
chapter or under title 18 United States Code section 922 or another provision
of federal law, shall not be prohibited under this section from owning,
possessing, or controlling a firearm and ammunition if twenty years have
elapsed from the date of the conviction.
(j) Any person violating subsection (a) or (b)
shall be guilty of a class C felony; provided that any felon violating
subsection (b) shall be guilty of a class B felony and if said prior felony
conviction is that of a crime of violence, as defined in section 134-1, the
defendant shall be sentenced to an indeterminate term of imprisonment as
provided by law. Any person violating subsection (c), (d), (e), (f), (g), or
(h) shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
[L 1988, c 275, pt of §2; am L 1990, c
191, §1; am L 1993, c 215, §1; am L 1994, c 204, §§6, 7; am L 1995, c 189, §§2,
26; am L 1998, c 133, §5; am L 1999, c 297, §1; am L 2000, c 127, §2; am L
2004, c 4, §1; am L 2006, c 27, §2; am L 2019, c 150, §3; am L 2023, c 52, §6;
am L 2024, c 248, §3; am L 2025, c 16, §1]
Source: Hawaii State Legislature (capitol.hawaii.gov), via Internet Archive capturesURL: http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol03_Ch0121-0200D/HRS0134/HRS_0134-0007.htmFetched: 11/10/2026