State Gun Laws

If the abuser is in the courtroom when a judge orders them to give up their guns and ammunition, they will have 24 hours to do so. If the abuser is not in the courtroom when the order is issued, they will have 48 hours after being served with a copy of the order to give them up. These time frames do not count legal holidays and weekends.¹

After the judge orders the abuser to give up their guns and ammunition, the abuser may do so by:

• selling or transferring the firearms to a federally-licensed firearms dealer;
• storing them with a law enforcement agency; or
• selling or transferring them to a person who can legally possess firearms or ammunition.²

The judge must also schedule a compliance hearing within eight to 12 business days to make sure that the abuser did, in fact, give up the firearms. The respondent will be notified of the hearing date, and they are supposed to appear in person. If the judge decides that there is “probable cause” to believe the respondent has not given up their firearms, the judge will issue a search warrant so that law enforcement can search the respondent’s home for the firearms and take them.³

You can read more about keeping an abuser from accessing guns on the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence and Firearms’ website.

¹ Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-14-105.5(2)(a)
² Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-14-105.5(4)
³ Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-14-105.5(1)(c), (5)(a), (5)(e)