Attorney General Opinions | 2007 Miss. AG LEXIS 290 | 2018


Attorney General Jim Hood has received your request on behalf of Sheriff Kenneth Dickerson for an official opinion and has assigned it to me for research and response. Your letter reads as follows:

Can we hire a law enforcement officer certified through the State of Mississippi who plead no contest to a domestic violence charge in the State of Tennessee in 1995? This individual was sentenced to 11 months and 29 days by the General Sessions Court in Dyer County, Tennessee on April 27, 1995. The jail term was suspended pending payment of $ 1,937.00 in medical bills.

The officer said he did have an attorney and the medical bills were for injuries sustained by the victim. The officer also stated this matter came up prior to him going to MLEOTA [Mississippi Law Enforcement Officer Training Academy] by the Academy, and he was required to take a copy with him on his attendance. This officer was allowed to continue and did graduate from the Academy. Can this officer carry a firearm?

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There is no state law that addresses your specific question. The response to your inquiry is found in federal law provisions, specifically 18 U.S.C.A. Section 922. The Mississippi Attorney General can not interpret federal law by way of an Official Attorney General's Opinion. The following information is provided solely for guidance.

The possession of a firearm or ammunition by a person who has been convicted of a qualifying misdemeanor crime of domestic violence is prohibited by federal law. 18 U.S.C.A. Section 922(g)(9). A qualifying misdemeanor crime of domestic violence is one that:
- is a misdemeanor under State law (Section 921 (33)(A)(i));
- has as an element the use or attempted use of physical force or threatened use of a deadly weapon (Section 921(33)(A)(ii));
- is perpetrated by a current or former spouse of the victim, a parent or guardian of the victim, a person with a child in common with the victim, a person who cohabitats or formerly cohabitated with the victim as spouse, parent or guardian, or a person similarly situated to a spouse, parent or guardian of the victim;
- for which the defendant had the right to counsel or knowingly and intelligently waived that right; and
- for which the defendant had the right to a jury (if provided by applicable State law) or knowingly and intelligently waived that right.


There is no exemption to this restriction for individuals who serve in the military or are in law enforcement which would permit these individuals to possess service weapons - they may not possess ANY firearm or ammunition.

Additionally, 18 U.S.C.A. Section 922(d) provides that:
"[i]It shall be unlawful for any person to sell or otherwise dispose of any firearm or ammunition to any person knowing or having reasonable cause to believe that such person ...

(9) has been convicted in any court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence."


Much like 922(g)(9), there is no "official duty" exemption to the provisions of 922(d)(9). To knowingly transfer a firearm or ammunition to a person having a qualifying conviction might open the transferor to federal prosecution. It is the opinion of this office that, prior to providing this individual with a firearm or ammunition,  you should consult with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Mississippi to determine if the offense committed by the individual in question constitutes a qualifying misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.

If our office may be of further assistance, please advise.