WomensLaw serves and supports all survivors, no matter their sex or gender.

Legal Information: Texas

State Gun Laws

Updated: 
July 28, 2023

What is the definition of a felony?

Throughout these gun law pages, we will refer to gun laws that make it illegal for someone convicted of a felony to have a gun. A felony is a more serious crime than a misdemeanor. It is defined under Texas state law as an offense punishable by death or confinement in a penitentiary or any other offense that is named a felony under the law.1 However, you cannot always tell if someone was convicted of a felony only by looking at the amount of time s/he actually served in prison since sentences are often reduced or pled down. If you are unsure if the abuser was convicted of a felony, you might want to talk to the prosecutor who handled the criminal case against the abuser to find out or go to the courthouse and search the conviction records.

1 Tex. Penal Code § 1.07(a)(23)