The California statute that requires felons convicted of firearm possession crime (PC 29800) to serve six months in jail if they are granted probation or a suspended sentence is Penal Code 29900 PC.  In some unusual cases, the judge may dispense with this jail requirement.

The wording of Penal Code 29900 is as follows:

(a) (1) Notwithstanding subdivision (a) of Section 29800, any person who has been previously convicted of any of the offenses listed in Section 29905 and who owns or has in possession or under custody or control any firearm is guilty of a felony.

(2) A dismissal of an accusatory pleading pursuant to Section 1203.4a involving an offense set forth in Section 29905 does not affect the finding of a previous conviction.

(3) If probation is granted, or if the imposition or execution of sentence is suspended, it shall be a condition of the probation or suspension that the defendant serve at least six months in a county jail.

(b) (1) Any person previously convicted of any of the offenses listed in Section 29905 which conviction results from certification by the juvenile court for prosecution as an adult in adult court under the provisions of Section 707 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, who owns or has in possession or under custody or control any firearm, is guilty of a felony.

(2) If probation is granted, or if the imposition or execution of sentence is suspended, it shall be a condition of the probation or suspension that the defendant serve at least six months in a county jail.

(c) The court shall apply the minimum sentence as specified in subdivisions (a) and (b) except in unusual cases where the interests of justice would best be served by granting probation or suspending the imposition or execution of sentence without the imprisonment required by subdivisions (a) and (b), or by granting probation or suspending the imposition or execution of sentence with conditions other than those set forth in subdivisions (a) and (b), in which case the court shall specify on the record and shall enter on the minutes the circumstances indicating that the interests of justice would best be served by the disposition.

The California criminal defense attorneys at Spodek Law Group will give you some more insight on this piece of legislation in this short article.

If a person has been convicted of certain violent crimes, California law makes it illegal for them to possess a firearm. Some of the violent crimes in this statute include:

• Robbery
• Kidnapping
• Rape
• Arson
• Carjacking
• Murder
• Voluntary manslaughter
• Assault with intent to commit rape or robbery
• Any felony that is punishable by death or life in prison
• Any felony in which the defendant used a weapon or inflicted significant bodily injury on a person

For the purposes of this statute, the term “possess” includes owning, purchasing, or physically handling a gun. Simply having control over a gun counts as possession.

The penalty for firearm possession by a convicted felon is as much as 3 years in county jail and/or $10,000 in fines.

Probation or a suspended sentence is a possible outcome, but the defendant would still be required to serve a minimum of six months in jail. In some exceptional, unusual cases, the court may decide that incarceration is not “in the interest of justice.”

Contact the highly skilled criminal defense attorneys at Spodek Law Group for your free, confidential consultation if you are facing 29900 PC violent felons with firearms charge.