Tennessee is not a red flag state. It has no extreme risk protection order law, and in 2024 it went a step further by making it a crime to enforce a federal red flag order against a Tennessee resident. Roughly 20 states use the red flag framework; Tennessee has chosen the opposite direction and instead relies on firearm restrictions tied to specific court findings and convictions.
What a Red Flag Law Is
Red flag laws let a court temporarily bar someone from possessing firearms when evidence shows they pose a serious danger to themselves or others. The formal name for the court order is an extreme risk protection order, or ERPO. The process typically begins with a petition from a family member, household member, or law enforcement officer, depending on the state. A judge reviews the evidence and, if the standard is met, orders the person to surrender their firearms for a set period.
Tennessee has none of that. ERPO bills have been introduced in the General Assembly but never passed. What did pass, in 2024, points the other way.
Tennessee’s 2024 Anti-ERPO Law
Governor Bill Lee signed SB 2763 on May 28, 2024. The law does three things. It prohibits any state agency or local government from adopting its own ERPO framework. It bars those entities from accepting federal grants meant to fund ERPO implementation. And it makes enforcing a federally created extreme risk protection order against a Tennessee resident a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to 11 months and 29 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,500.1Justia. Tennessee Code 40-35-111 – Authorized Terms of Imprisonment and Fines for Felonies and Misdemeanors The penalty applies to any individual who attempts to enforce such an order, including law enforcement officers.
The practical effect is direct. If Congress passed a national red flag law tomorrow, Tennessee would treat enforcement of it inside the state as a crime. Tennessee is among a small group of states that have gone beyond declining to adopt ERPOs and passed affirmative anti-ERPO statutes.
How Guns Can Still Be Taken Away in Tennessee
No red flag law does not mean no way to separate a dangerous person from firearms. Several existing mechanisms accomplish something similar, but each is triggered by a specific legal event rather than a standalone risk assessment by a judge.
Orders of Protection
When a Tennessee court issues an order of protection that meets the requirements of federal law under 18 U.S.C. ยง 922(g)(8), the respondent must surrender all firearms within 48 hours. The respondent can transfer them to a third party who is legally allowed to possess firearms, turn them over to law enforcement, or use another lawful method, and must then complete an affidavit of firearms dispossession and file it with the court.2Justia. Tennessee Code 36-3-625 – Dispossession of Firearms
The prohibition lasts as long as the order stays in effect. Once it expires or is lifted, the respondent can reclaim the firearms. Knowingly failing to surrender is a Class A misdemeanor, and each firearm counts as a separate offense.2Justia. Tennessee Code 36-3-625 – Dispossession of Firearms
Domestic Assault Convictions
A conviction for domestic assault triggers a mandatory firearm dispossession order. The judge must order the defendant to give up all firearms within 48 hours of the conviction by any lawful means, such as transferring them to someone who is not prohibited from possessing firearms. The defendant must complete and return an affidavit of firearms dispossession to the convicting court. This is not discretionary; the statute says the judge “shall immediately order” it upon a guilty plea or guilty verdict.3Justia. Tennessee Code 39-13-111 – Domestic Assault
This overlaps with federal law, which independently bars anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence from possessing firearms. The Tennessee statute adds a specific timeline and affidavit requirement that the federal prohibition alone does not provide.
Involuntary Mental Health Commitment
A person who has been involuntarily committed to a mental institution or adjudicated as mentally defective is prohibited from possessing firearms under both federal and Tennessee law. Tennessee also disqualifies anyone who has had a conservator appointed due to mental illness or incapacity, and anyone found by a court within the past seven years to pose an immediate substantial likelihood of serious harm because of mental illness.4Justia. Tennessee Code 39-17-1351 – Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit
Courts that order a commitment or adjudicate someone as mentally defective must report that information to both the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System and the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security.5Tennessee State Courts. Mental Health Reporting The reporting requirement has been in place since 2009 and was clarified by a 2020 Attorney General opinion to include conservatorship appointments for mental incapacity.6Tennessee Office of the Attorney General. Opinion No. 20-17 – NICS and Department of Safety Reporting Requirements for Court Clerks
The threshold for involuntary commitment requires a finding that the person has a mental illness or serious emotional disturbance and poses an imminent substantial likelihood of serious harm.7Justia. Tennessee Code 33-6-401 – Emergency Detention Voluntary treatment does not trigger a firearm prohibition.
Felony Convictions
Tennessee prohibits firearm possession by anyone convicted of a violent felony, a felony involving a deadly weapon, or a felony drug offense.8Justia. Tennessee Code 39-17-1307 – Unlawful Carrying or Possession of a Weapon Possessing a firearm after a conviction for a violent felony or a felony involving a deadly weapon is itself a Class B felony, carrying 8 to 30 years in prison and a potential fine of up to $25,000.1Justia. Tennessee Code 40-35-111 – Authorized Terms of Imprisonment and Fines for Felonies and Misdemeanors
A separate provision covers handgun possession after any felony conviction. Anyone convicted of any felony cannot possess a handgun unless they have received a pardon, had the conviction expunged, or had their civil rights restored through a process that does not specifically prohibit firearm possession.8Justia. Tennessee Code 39-17-1307 – Unlawful Carrying or Possession of a Weapon So possessing a long gun after a nonviolent, non-drug felony may not be a state offense, but possessing a handgun after any felony is.
Restoring Firearm Rights After a Felony
Tennessee allows people with felony convictions to petition for restoration of their full citizenship rights, firearm possession included. The petition is filed in circuit court in the county where the person lives or where the conviction occurred.9Tennessee General Assembly. SB 1603 – Tennessee Code 40-29-101 Eligibility timing depends on the offense.
For most felonies, a person can file after receiving a pardon, completing all incarceration and supervision, or after the maximum sentence expires. For violent felonies and felony drug offenses, the waiting period is 10 years after the maximum sentence has expired and the person has been released from all confinement and supervision.9Tennessee General Assembly. SB 1603 – Tennessee Code 40-29-101 The list of qualifying violent felonies is specific and includes murder in any degree, aggravated robbery, carjacking, aggravated assault, aggravated burglary, and aggravated kidnapping.
The court must grant or deny the petition in its entirety. A judge cannot restore voting rights while withholding firearm rights, or the reverse.9Tennessee General Assembly. SB 1603 – Tennessee Code 40-29-101 For people convicted in other states, the path is narrower. Tennessee courts have held that an out-of-state civil restoration is not enough; the person generally needs an executive pardon from the state where the conviction occurred, and the offense must have been nonviolent.
Where the firearm disability stems from a mental health adjudication rather than a felony conviction, a separate court process exists to have that disability removed.4Justia. Tennessee Code 39-17-1351 – Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit