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23 J. on Firearms & Pub. Pol'y 130 (2011)
What We Can Learn from Britt v. State: How Overcriminalization Is Eroding a Fundamental Right

handle is hein.journals/jfpp23 and id is 128 raw text is: WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM BRITT V STATE: HOW OVERCRIMINALIZATION IS ERODING A FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT' Joshua Styles* INTRODUCTION In Britt v. State,2 the Supreme Court of North Carolina held that the 2004 version of North Carolina General Statute section 14- 415.1 was unconstitutional as applied to Barney Britt, a convicted felon who regained his right to bear arms seventeen years before the statute's enactment. The statute, as it remains today, prevents all convicted felons-regardless of the date of conviction or the nature of the crime-from possessing any firearms anywhere at any time.3 The Supreme Court of North Carolina held that the statute was unconstitutional as applied to Barney Britt, noting that Britt did not commit a violent felony and had become a fully productive member of society in the years following his conviction. It is significant that the court did not make a determination as to the constitutionality of the statute on its face, as this will likely lead (and in fact has already led) to a host of constitutional challenges from individual plaintiffs who wish to have their right to keep and bear arms restored.4 Despite this certainty of numerous appeals, the Supreme Court of North Carolina showed discretion by not holding section 14-415.1 unconstitutional on its face, as this allowed the General Assembly time to correct the overbreadth of the statute through the legislative process. On July 20, 2010, the General Assembly of North Carolina responded to the court's holding in Britt by enacting Session Law 2010-108, which provides for a small number of convicted felons to petition the court to have their right to keep and bear arms restored twenty years after their other citizenship rights have been restored.' This Note will argue that the General Assembly's 130-

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