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Bill Summary · HB 28

HB 28 — Gun Violence Prevention Act (Summary)

Status: Regular Message Sent to Senate
Introduced: March 14, 2025
Primary subject areas: Criminal law; weapons; courts; public safety

Purpose

The bill creates a new, graded criminal offense targeting persons prohibited from possessing firearms (i.e., convicted felons) who possess, brandish, or discharge a firearm or a “weapon of mass death and destruction” while committing or attempting to commit a felony. It also raises the penalty class for general felon-in-possession conduct in the existing statute.

Key provisions

  • Adds a new statutory section (proposed G.S. 14‑415.1A) that makes it unlawful for a person already prohibited from possessing firearms under G.S. 14‑415.1 (i.e., convicted felons) to possess a firearm or a weapon of mass death and destruction during the commission or attempted commission of a felony under Chapter 14 or specified drug crimes (Article 5 of Chapter 90).
  • Establishes graded felony penalties for that new offense:
    • Class C felony if the firearm/weapon is discharged during the felony.
    • Class D felony if the firearm/weapon is brandished (defined as displaying or otherwise making the presence known).
    • Class F felony for other violations (possession without brandishing or discharge).
  • Amends existing G.S. 14‑415.1 (general prohibition on firearm possession by felons) to increase the baseline penalty class for a violation from Class G to Class F.
  • Clarifies that the new offense is a separate, non‑merging offense distinct from the underlying felony and from G.S. 14‑415.1.

Definitions (as used in the bill)

  • Brandish: display all or part of the firearm/weapon or otherwise make its presence known to another person.
  • Firearm and weapon of mass death and destruction: as defined by existing statutory cross‑references (G.S. 14‑409.39 and G.S. 14‑288.8 respectively).

Who is affected

  • Persons convicted of felonies who are legally prohibited from possessing firearms — they face enhanced, separate criminal exposure if they possess, brandish, or discharge a firearm while committing or attempting another felony.
  • Law enforcement, prosecutors, public defenders, courts, and correctional systems — because the bill creates new prosecutable offenses and increases potential sentence exposure.
  • Victims and the public — the measure is intended to deter violent conduct by increasing penalties when firearms are involved during felony offenses.

Effective date and applicability

  • The bill specifies an effective date of December 1, 2025, and applies to offenses committed on or after that date.

Potential impacts

  • Criminal‑justice impact: creates additional prosecutable offenses and elevates penalties in firearm‑involved felony contexts. Because penalties are graded (C, D, F), convictions could result in substantially longer sentences than the baseline possession offense.
  • Fiscal impact: likely to increase prosecutorial, court, and correctional costs to the extent it leads to more prosecutions and custodial sentences; the bill text does not include a fiscal note quantifying these effects.

Procedural notes

  • Introduced March 14, 2025. Public hearings and committee consideration occurred; effective date set in the bill text (Dec 1, 2025). Status updates indicate the bill was transmitted to the Senate (Regular Message Sent To Senate).

If you want, I can:
- Pull the exact statutory text changes side‑by‑side with current law;
- Outline current North Carolina sentencing ranges by felony class to estimate likely incarceration exposure; or
- Draft talking points for stakeholders (law enforcement, defense bar, policy advocates).

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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