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Legal Information: Rhode Island

Restraining Orders

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Laws current as of July 19, 2024

Can the person the order is against get his/her gun back?

A person who had his/her gun taken away because of an extreme risk protection order can get the gun back when the order is no longer in effect. The gun will be returned to the respondent within ten days of asking for it if:

  1. s/he shows proof from the court that the extreme risk protective order ended or expired and was not renewed  and
  2. the law enforcement agency that has the gun checks the national criminal records and determines that there is no other reason why the person can’t have a gun under state or federal law.1 Note: See our Rhode Island State Gun Laws and Federal Gun Laws pages to learn about other reasons why someone cannot legally have a gun.

1 RI Gen. Laws § 8-8.3-8(a)

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Will I be notified if the gun is returned?

If you were the person who asked for the extreme risk protection order, you can ask the law enforcement agency holding the gun to notify you before the gun is returned to the respondent. You or the judge can also ask the law enforcement agency to notify any “interested party,” for example, the respondent’s family or someone the respondent lives with.1

1 RI Gen. Laws § 8-8.3-8(b)

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