In these gun laws pages, we refer to both “federal gun laws” and “state gun laws.” The major difference between the two has to do with who makes the law, who prosecutes someone who violates the law, and what the penalty is for breaking the law.

One reason why it is important for you to know that there are these two sets of gun laws is so that you can understand all of the possible ways that the abuser might be breaking the law, and you can better protect yourself. Throughout this section, we will be referring mostly to state laws. Be sure to also read our Federal Gun Laws pages to see if any federal laws apply to your situation as well. You will need to read both state and federal laws to see which ones, if any, the abuser might be violating.

If you are calling the police because you believe the abuser has violated a gun law, you do not necessarily need to be able to tell the police which law was violated (state versus federal) but local police cannot arrest someone for violating federal law, only for violating state/local laws. Only federal law enforcement, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (“ATF”), can arrest someone for violating federal laws. If the local police believe that a state law is being violated, they could arrest the abuser and hand the case over to the state prosecutor. If the local police believe a federal law is being violated, hopefully, the police department will notify the ATF or perhaps the U.S. Attorney’s office in your state (which is the federal prosecutor). For information on how you can contact ATF directly to report the violation of federal gun laws, go to Who do I notify if I think the abuser should not have a gun? If the abuser is breaking both state and federal laws, s/he might be prosecuted in both state and federal court.

Kansas state law says that it is illegal for the following people to have a firearm:

• a person who is addicted to, and illegally using, drugs;
• a person who is/was mentally ill or an alcohol or drug abuser and subject to involuntary commitment for care and treatment;
• someone under age 18, unless the barrel of the gun is at least 12 inches long;
• someone who is a fugitive from justice, which means that the person knows that there is a warrant issued for him/her for committing a felony;
• an immigrant who is not authorized to be in the United States;
• someone who, within the past five years, has been convicted of a misdemeanor for a domestic violence offense in Kansas or a similar misdemeanor crime in another state;
• someone who has a current protection order against him/her (a “respondent”) that meets the following three conditions:
  1. The order was issued after a hearing and the respondent received notice of the hearing beforehand and had the opportunity to participate in the hearing;
  2. The order restrains the respondent from doing any of the following:
     • harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner, the intimate partner’s child, or the respondent’s child; or
     • engaging in other conduct that would place an intimate partner in reasonable fear of bodily injury to himself/herself or his/her child; and
  3. The order:
     • includes a determination (“finding”) by the judge that the respondent represents a “credible threat” to the physical safety of the intimate partner or his/her child; or
     • has terms in it that clearly prohibit the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force against the intimate partner or his/her child that would reasonably be expected to cause bodily injury;¹
• a person who has been convicted as an adult, or adjudicated as a juvenile offender, of:
  • a “person felony,” which includes various drug crimes listed in Kansas Statutes § 21-36a01 through § 21-36a17; or
  • a violation of the Uniform Controlled Substances Act prior to July 1, 2009;
• a person who has been convicted as an adult, or adjudicated as a juvenile offender, of a “person felony” other than the ones referred to above, and:
  • did not use a firearm while committing the crime; and
  • less than three years have passed since completing the sentence;
• someone who was convicted as an adult, or adjudicated as a juvenile offender, of certain other felonies listed in subsection (3)(A)(i) of Kansas Stat. § 21-6304 and less than eight years have passed since completing the sentence; and
• someone who was convicted as an adult, or adjudicated as a juvenile offender, of any other “nonperson felony” and less than three months have passed since completing the sentence.²

If any of these situations apply to the abuser, it may be illegal for him/her to have a gun. Also, federal laws, which apply to all states, restrict an abuser’s right to have a gun if you have a restraining order against him/her that meets certain requirements. Go to Federal Gun Laws to get more information.

¹ Kan. Stat. § 21-6301(a)(10), (a)(13), (a)(14) - (a)(18), (m)(2)
² Kan. Stat. § 21-6304(a)

Kansas law states that it is illegal for a respondent to have a firearm with a protection from abuse order in place if it was issued after a hearing for which the respondent received notice of the hearing beforehand and s/he had the opportunity to participate in the hearing.¹ A temporary ex parte protection from abuse order issued without notice to the abuser would not satisfy this requirement so the abuser can still have a gun while a temporary ex parte order is in place.

¹ Kan. Stat. § 21-6301(a)(17)

Here are a few things that may help:

• If the abuser has a gun, tell the judge how many guns s/he has, and if s/he has ever threatened you with a gun(s);
• Ask the judge to specifically write in your restraining order that the abuser cannot own, buy or have a gun while the order is in effect. The form that you will have to fill out to petition for a restraining order will have a place where you can request additional protections. You can ask that the abuser’s gun(s) be taken away in that section.
• Before leaving the courthouse, check to make sure that the gun restriction is written on your order.

It also may be helpful if the judge explains what will happen to the abuser’s guns, who will take them, and where they will be held once you leave the courthouse. If the judge agrees to add language that the abuser cannot keep his/her guns while the restraining order is in effect, you may also want to ask that the judge:

• Require the abuser to give his/her guns to the police, or require the police to go to the abuser’s house and get them;
• Make it clear to both you and the abuser how long the guns will be kept away from the abuser; and
• Order that the police notify you when the guns are returned to the abuser.

Kansas state law says that it is illegal the following criminals to own or possess a gun:

• someone who, within the past five years, has been convicted of a misdemeanor for a domestic violence offense in Kansas or a similar misdemeanor crime in another state. A domestic violence offense includes an offense where the abuser uses or attempts to use of physical force, or threatens to use a deadly weapon, and is committed against a person with whom the abuser is/was involved in a dating relationship or is a family or household member;
• someone who is a fugitive from justice, which means that the person knows that there is a warrant issued for him/her for committing a felony;¹
• a person who has been convicted as an adult, or adjudicated as a juvenile offender, of:
  • a “person felony,” which are various drug crimes listed in Kansas Statutes § 21-36a01 through § 21-36a17; or
  • a violation of the Uniform Controlled Substances Act prior to July 1, 2009;
• a person who has been convicted as an adult, or adjudicated as a juvenile offender, of a “person felony” other than the ones referred to above that did not involve the use of a firearm while committing the crime, and less than three years have passed since completing the sentence;
• someone who was convicted as an adult, or adjudicated as a juvenile offender, of certain other felonies listed in subsection (3)(A)(i) of Kansas Stat. § 21-6304 and less than eight years have passed since completing the sentence; and
• someone who was convicted as an adult, or adjudicated as a juvenile offender, of any other “nonperson felony” and less than three months have passed since completing the sentence.²

Also, under federal laws, which apply to all states, it is illegal to possess a firearm if a person was convicted of a felony or a domestic violence misdemeanor. Go to the Federal Gun Laws page to get more information.

¹ Kan. Stat. § 21-6301(a)(15), (a)(18), (m)(1), (m)(2)
² Kan. Stat. § 21-6304(a)

If you think the abuser is violating state firearm laws, you can call your local police or sheriff department or the State Police. If you think the abuser is violating federal firearm laws, you can call the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF).

You can find contact information for sheriff departments in your area on our KS Sheriff Departments page.

You can find ATF field offices in Kansas on the ATF website. For reporting illegal firearm activity, a person can also call 1-800-ATF-GUNS (1-800-283-4867). Many ATF offices have victim advocates on staff (called “victim/witness coordinators”) and so perhaps you may ask to speak one of these advocates if you are having a hard time connecting with (or receiving a call back from) an ATF officer.

A local domestic violence organization in your area may also be able to answer your questions and assist you in talking to the necessary law enforcement officials. You will find contact information for organizations in your area on our KS Advocates and Shelters page.

Note: Generally, the abuser does not have to have knowledge of the law in order to be arrested for breaking the law. If the abuser has or buys a gun in violation of the law, the abuser can be arrested, whether or not s/he knows that s/he was in violation of the law.¹

¹United States v. Lippman, 369 F. 3d 1039 (8th Cir. 2004); United States v. Henson, 55 F. Supp. 2d 528 (S.D. W.V. 1999)

Kansas state laws make it illegal to do any of the following acts:

1. possess any firearm if the person has a protection order issued against them that meets the following requirements:
   • it was issued after a hearing, of which the person received actual notice, and at which the person had an opportunity to participate;
   • it restrains such person from harassing, stalking or threatening an intimate partner or his/her child or the respondent’s child, or engaging in other conduct that would place an intimate partner in reasonable fear of bodily injury to the partner or the child; and
   • either:
     • it includes a determination (finding) that such person represents a credible threat to the physical safety of an intimate partner or a child; or
     • by its terms, it specifically prohibits the use, attempted use or threatened use of physical force against an intimate partner or a child that would reasonably be expected to cause bodily injury; or
2. possess any firearm if the person was convicted of a misdemeanor for a domestic violence offense within the past five years; 
3. possess any firearm if the person is/was mentally ill and subject to involuntary commitment for care and treatment;
4. possess any firearm if the person has an alcohol or substance abuse problem and is subject to involuntary commitment for care and treatment;
5. possess any firearm while a fugitive from justice; 
6. possess any firearm if the person is an undocumented immigrant or illegally in the United States; 
7. possess any firearm if the person is addicted to and an unlawful user of drugs (controlled substance);¹
8. carry a concealed weapon while under the age of 21;
9. carrying a shotgun with a barrel less than 18 inches in length or any other firearm that automatically discharges more than once when a single trigger is pulled.²

Committing a crimes listed in numbers one through six, above, is a level 8 nonperson felony, which can carry a sentence of up to 11 months in jail or more if the person has a prior record³ plus a fine.

Committing a crime listed in number seven, above, is a class B nonperson select misdemeanor, which can carry a sentence of up to six months in county jail and a fine of up to $1,000.⁴

Committing a crime listed in number eight, above, is a class A nonperson misdemeanor, which can carry a sentence of up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $2,500.⁵

Committing a crime listed in number nine, above, is a level 9 nonperson felony, which can carry a sentence of up to nine months in jail or more if the person has a prior record⁶ plus a fine.

¹ Kan. Stat. § 21-6301(a)
² Kan. Stat. § 21-6302(a)(4), (a)(5)
³ Kan. Stat. §§ 21-6301(b)(4); 21-6804(a)
⁴ Kan. Stat. §§ 21-6301(b)(3); 21-6602(a)(2); 21-6611(b)(1)
⁵ Kan. Stat. §§ 21-6302(b)(1); 21-6602(a)(1); 21-6611(b)(1)
⁶ Kan. Stat. §§ 21-6302(b)(2); 21-6804(a)

Even if the abuser was never convicted of a crime and you do not have a protection from abuse order against him/her, Kansas state law says that it is illegal for the following people to own or possess a gun:

• a person under 18, unless the barrel of the gun is at least 12 inches long;
• a person who is addicted to, and illegally using, drugs;
• a person who is/was mentally ill or an alcohol/drug abuser and subject to involuntary commitment for care and treatment;
• someone who is a fugitive from justice; and
• an immigrant who is not authorized to be in the United States.¹

If any of these situations apply to the abuser, please talk to an advocate in your area about how this law is being enforced. If none of these situations apply, you can still make a plan for your safety. See our Safety Tips page for more information. You can also contact your local domestic violence organization for additional help. You may want to talk to them about whether leaving the area - either long term or for a little while - might help improve your safety. See our Places that Help page to find a local domestic violence organization near you.

Also, federal laws, which apply to all states, restrict an abuser’s right to have a gun under other circumstances. Go to Federal Gun Laws to get more information.

For additional information on gun laws in Kansas, you can go to the Giffords Law Center website.

¹ Kan. Stat. §§ 21-6301(a)(10), (a)(13) - (a)(16); 21-6302