DUI & Second Amendment Rights

Question:    I got charged with a DUI in Forsyth County, Georgia, and I want to know about my gun ownership rights.  It's my first DUI charge ever.  I've never even been arrested before and I've only gotten 3 traffic tickets in my life, and they were in the 1990's. 

But I'm worried that if I have a DUI I have to give up my gun rights.  I own a shotgun and two handguns.  The pistols were gifts from my wife when I got out of the Army and returned from Iraq and Afghanistan.  Since I got charged with a DUI I'm concerned that my Second Amendment rights are now in danger.

I know that Forsyth is tough on drunk drivers but I didn't think I was that drunk.  I was buzzed, but I thought a long way from drunk or intoxicated.  I was driving home from doing some target shooting with a friend in the Cumming area.  I got stopped because I wasn't driving in my lane.  Basically I swerved because I was looking for my phone and then the cop saw me.  The Forsyth deputy asked me where I was coming from and I told him and I said that I had about 4 beers.  Maybe I shouldn't have said anything.

I refused those roadside tests but I took a blow test at the jail and I blew a .185.  That's pretty high, I know that.  I never would have driven if I thought that the reading would have been so high. 

Please tell me if my gun rights will be taken from me and I have to surrender my weapons.

T.C. in Forsyth County

Answer:    It sounds like your Second Amendment rights are secure and that you will be able to keep your guns.  A first DUI charge is a misdemeanor, not a felony.  As such, you can keep your weapons.  A misdemeanor charge has no impact on an individual's right to carry a gun.

A fourth DUI within 10 years, however, is charged as a felony and therefore could impact your gun rights.  Also, a DUI with a serious injury can be charged as a felony.

We answer many questions every week about gun rights and DUI.  Luckily, most people do not have to worry about losing their weapons because of a DUI charge.  

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