Chariton, IA

My son would have loved to become a police officer, however, when he was younger his sister had him jailed for domestic abuse. They pushed one another. He was I believe over 21 at the time.

We lived in Massachusetts and I believe it was a misdemeanor in that state. However, he now lives in South Carolina. He believes he cannot apply for a weapons permit because of his "record". Is he right that he is not allowed to carry a weapon? Also, is a weapon required in Bounty Hunting in the South? How long does one's criminal record stay on file.

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These are all great questions for a criminal attorney and an expert in firearm laws; both of which I am not.  Additionally, I tend not to comment on firearms related questions.  

I can confirm that many states require a license to work in bail recovery- SC is one of them, so does IA.  In order to obtain a state-issued license, they will require a criminal background investigation as part of the process.  Your son's misdemeanor will most certainly be discovered.

All states that require a professional license to work in the field (of which I am aware) will automatically deny all bail enforcement applicants with a felony record.  Period.  Many states have provisions for people with misdemeanors on their record as long as it occurred X number of years ago, but the number of years will vary state to state when applicable.  Some states also have provisions in their licensing requirements that specifically exclude persons- forever- with certain misdemeanors offenses as well (especially when it involves firearm licensing).  Since your son's crime involved violence, it would not surprise me if he is specifically excluded from licensing.  

A weapon is certainly not required to do this job.

- L. Scott Harrell