PA State Trooper Banned From Having Gun When Off-Duty
If you’re not able to be trusted with a gun when you’re off-duty, should you even be on a police force? Pennsylvania State Trooper Michael L. Keyes isn’t permitted by law to have a gun except for when he dons his police uniform.
Keyes suffered from deep depression, tried to kill himself repeatedly by taking drugs, and was involuntarily committed for mental health treatment, reports The Patriot News. These factors weighed in to the decision made by the court on whether to allow Keyes to carry a firearm off duty.
The court’s ruling states that Keyes’ involuntary mental health commitment constitutes an unsurmountable legal barrier to his ability to possess a gun.
The federal Gun Control Act is at play in this decision. It bars anyone who has been subjected to involuntary mental health commitments from possessing guns. Expungement is not possible for Keyes’ involuntary mental health commitment record and so he cannot surmount the federal ban.
