Sec. 1. 17-A MRSA §1158, as amended by PL 1995, c. 252, §1, is further amended to read:

§1158. Forfeiture of firearms

As part of every judgment of conviction and sentence imposed, every firearm that constitutes the basis for conviction under Title 15, section 393 or under section 1105, subsection 1, paragraph C or that is used by the defendant or any accomplice during the commission of any murder or Class A, Class B or Class C crime or any Class D crime defined in chapter 9, 11 or 13 or that was seized during a lawful search for scheduled drugs in which scheduled drugs were found and for which the defendant is subsequently convicted of an offense under chapter 45 must be forfeited to the State at the State's request and the court shall so order, unless another person can satisfy the court prior to the judgment and by a preponderance of the evidence that such other person had a right to possess the firearm, to the exclusion of the defendant, at the time of the offense. The Attorney General shall adopt rules in accordance with Title 5, chapter 375, governing the disposition to state, county and municipal agencies of firearms forfeited under this section.

SUMMARY

This bill amends the firearms forfeiture laws to require a defendant who is convicted of a drug offense to forfeit, if the State requests, any firearm seized during a lawful search for drugs during which drugs were found.