(Sorry, that should say "Negative")
Has anyone encountered any unexpected negative consequences of having a rating for PTSD? I was Medically Retired last year for other injuries, but I'm still going through the process of getting PTSD rated by the VA. I'm trying to see if anyone has had their rating somehow negatively impact their civilian lives, i.e. the ability to own firearms, etc. It seems like unless you are declared incompetent there isn't a problem. But given the current state of affairs I'm concerned that having been diagnosed with PTSD will find its way to other information and have unintended consequences. If anyone has any experience with this, I'd appreciate it, I'm considering cancelling the evaluation because I don't know how this information may negatively impact my life. Thanks
Chief
The right to bear arms when a PTSD diagnosis is rendered is a very interesting topic/issue which has generated a lot of debate throughout the years.
Some individuals would state that a lot of Law Enforcement Officers are also diagnosed with PTSD whenever they have to use their firearm or other forms of protection in the line of duty, and yet, they are still allowed to carry and use a firearm. Are they correct or are they wrong?
Moreover, others would say that under the United States Code, Chapter 44 which covers “Firearms”, it is illegal and a federal felony for an individual to possess a firearm if a person has been adjudicated as mentally defective or has been committed to any mental institution.
Obviously, an individual who already lawfully owns a firearm may be subsequently not a lawful possessor and would have to lawfully dispose of their firearms, if so adjudicated or committed as set forth in the aforementioned provision of the federal penal code.
To that extent, the typical way the aforementioned federal law is enforced is via new firearm sales with the annotation of a question posted on the ATF Form 4473 (Revised, April 2012). The question is listed as 11.f., which states as follows:
“Have you ever been adjudicated mentally defective (which includes a determination by a court, board, commission, or other lawful authority that you are a danger to yourself or to other or are incompetent to manage your own affairs) or have you ever been committed to a mental institution?”
With that all said, if an individual suffers from a PTSD diagnosis and fall into either of the above categories, then they would be an unlawful possessor of firearms, and would have to answer “yes” to this question. Naturally, failure to comply would be a crime for failure to properly disclose this information on a Federal Firearms License (FFL). In addition, it's a separate crime in taking possession of a firearm if the aforementioned actually occurred and the individual cleared the NICS check. This determination could be made by any state or federal body or medical doctor or police officer (i.e., involuntary commitment) and there is little clarification found in other legal resources.
However, there is an exception for having the aforementioned disqualifier as follows:
“A person who has been adjudicated as a mentally defective or committed to a mental institution is not prohibited if:
(1) the person was adjudicated by or committed by a department or agency of the Federal Government, such as the United States Department of Veteran’s Affairs (“VA”) (as opposed to a State court, State board, or other lawful State authority); and
(2) either:
(a) the person’s adjudication or commitment for mental incompetency was set aside or expunged by adjudicating agency;
(b) the person has been fully released or discharged from all mandatory treatment, supervision, or monitoring by the agency; or
(c) the person was found by the agency to no longer suffer from the mental health condition that served as the basis of the initial adjudication. Persons who fit this description should answer “no” to Item 11.f.
This exception does not apply to any person who was adjudicated to be not guilty by reason of insanity, or based on lack of mental responsibility, or found incompetent to stand trial, in any criminal case or under the Uniform Code of Military Justice.”
In addition, with competent legal counsel, there are many ways to examine a particular fact situation to address whether a person is a prohibited possessor based on any mental health condition.
Thus, I quite often comment that "possessing well-informed knowledge is truly a powerful equalizer."
Best Wishes!
