Citation(s) from the GunPolicy.org literature library
Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. 2024 ‘Firearm Prohibitions in South Carolina.’ Who Can Have a Gun. San Francisco, CA: Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. 23 April
Relevant contents
Prohibited Purchasers Generally in South Carolina
Federal law prohibits certain persons from purchasing or possessing firearms, such as felons, certain domestic abusers, and certain people with a history of mental illness.
A law South Carolina adopted in 2010 makes it unlawful for a person who has been convicted of a "violent crime," as defined by South Carolina law, to possess a firearm or ammunition if the violent crime is also classified as a felony offense.
South Carolina prohibits any person from possessing or acquiring a handgun if he or she:
- Has been convicted of a "crime of violence" in any court ("crime of violence" includes murder; manslaughter (except negligent manslaughter arising out of traffic accidents); rape; mayhem; kidnapping; burglary; robbery; housebreaking; assault with intent to kill, commit rape, or rob; assault with a dangerous weapon; or assault with intent to commit any offense punishable by imprisonment for more than one year);
- Is a fugitive from justice;
- Is a habitual drunkard;
- Is a drug addict;
- Has been adjudicated mentally incompetent;
- Is a member of a subversive organization;
- Is under age 18 (except for a member of the U.S. Armed Forces, active or reserve, National Guard, state militia or R.O.T.C., when on duty or training; and except for the temporary loan of a handgun for instruction under the immediate supervision of a parent or adult instructor); or
- Is a person who, by order of a circuit judge or county court judge of South Carolina, has been adjudged unfit to carry or possess a firearm (such adjudication may be made upon application by any police officer or prosecuting officer of South Carolina, or by the court on its own initiative).
The state also prohibits the purchase, sale, lease, rental, barter, exchange, transportation into the state or possession of a firearm by an alien unlawfully present in the U.S.
In addition, South Carolina prohibits providing patients and prisoners under the jurisdiction of the South Carolina Department of Mental Health ("SCDMH") with access to firearms. Furthermore, patients receiving inpatient services in a program under the jurisdiction of the Division of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services of the SCDMH in a treatment facility operated by SCDMH cannot possess firearms. A juvenile committed to the custody of the Department of Juvenile Justice is also prohibited from possessing a firearm.
A person may not purchase a handgun from a licensed firearms dealer unless he or she is a resident of South Carolina…
[Editor's note: The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence regularly updates its webpages with new data as US gun regulation evolves state by state. For the most up-to-date information on US gun laws, please refer to the Giffords URL below]