[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3098 Engrossed in House (EH)]

103d CONGRESS

  1st Session

                               H. R. 3098

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit the possession of a 
handgun or handgun ammunition by, or the private transfer of a handgun 
                 or handgun ammunition to, a juvenile.






103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3098

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit the possession of a 
handgun or handgun ammunition by, or the private transfer of a handgun 
                 or handgun ammunition to, a juvenile.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. FINDINGS AND DECLARATIONS.

    The Congress finds and declares that--
            (1) Crime, particularly crime involving drugs and guns, is 
        a pervasive, nationwide problem.
            (2) Problems with crime at the local level are exacerbated 
        by the interstate movement of drugs, funds, and criminal gangs.
            (3) Firearms and ammunition, and handguns in particular, 
        move easily in interstate commerce, as documented in numerous 
        hearings in both the Judiciary Committee of the House of 
        Representatives and Judiciary Committee of the Senate.
            (4) In fact, even before the sale of a handgun, the gun, 
        its component parts, ammunition, and the raw materials from 
        which they are made have considerably moved in interstate 
        commerce.
            (5) While criminals freely move from State to State, 
        ordinary citizens may fear to travel to or through certain 
        parts of the country due to the concern that violent crime is 
        not under control, and foreigners may decline to travel in the 
        United States for the same reason.
            (6) Just as the hardened drug kingpins begin their life in 
        the illicit drug culture by exposure to drugs at a young age, 
        violent criminals often start their criminal careers on streets 
        where the ready availability of guns to young people results in 
        the acceptability of their random use.
            (7) Violent crime and the use of illicit drugs go hand-in-
        hand, and attempts to control one without controlling the other 
        may be fruitless.
            (8) Individual States and localities find it impossible to 
        handle the problem by themselves; even States and localities 
        that have made a strong effort to prevent, detect, and punish 
        crime find their effort unavailing due in part to the failure 
        or inability of other States and localities to take strong 
        measures.
            (9) Inasmuch as illicit drug activity and related violent 
        crime overflow State lines and national boundaries, the 
        Congress has power, under the interstate commerce clause and 
        other provisions of the Constitution, to enact measures to 
        combat these problems.
            (10) The Congress finds that it is necessary and 
        appropriate to assist the States in controlling crime by 
        stopping the commerce in handguns with juveniles nationwide, 
        and allowing the possession of handguns by juveniles only when 
        handguns are possessed and used for legitimate purposes under 
        appropriate conditions.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION OF THE POSSESSION OF A HANDGUN OR AMMUNITION BY, OR 
              THE PRIVATE TRANSFER OF A HANDGUN OR AMMUNITION TO, A 
              JUVENILE.

    (a) Definition.--Section 921(a) of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
    ``(29) The term `handgun' means--
            ``(A) a firearm that has a short stock and is designed to 
        be held and fired by the use of a single hand; and
            ``(B) any combination of parts from which a firearm 
        described in subparagraph (A) can be assembled.''.
    (b) Offense.--Section 922 of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(s)(1) It shall be unlawful for a person to sell, deliver, or 
otherwise transfer to a juvenile, or to a person who the transferor 
knows or has reasonable cause to believe is a juvenile--
            ``(A) a handgun; or
            ``(B) ammunition that is suitable for use only in a 
        handgun.
    ``(2) It shall be unlawful for any person who is a juvenile to 
knowingly possess--
                    ``(A) a handgun; or
                    ``(B) ammunition that is suitable for use only in a 
                handgun.
    ``(3) This subsection does not apply--
            ``(A) to a temporary transfer of a handgun or ammunition to 
        a juvenile, or to the possession or use of a handgun or 
        ammunition by a juvenile, if the handgun and ammunition are 
        possessed and used by the juvenile--
                    ``(i) in the course of employment, in the course of 
                ranching or farming related to activities at the 
                residence of the juvenile (or on property used for 
                ranching or farming at which the juvenile, with the 
                permission of the property owner or lessee, is 
                performing activities related to the operation of the 
                farm or ranch), target practice, hunting, or a course 
                of instruction in the safe and lawful use of a handgun;
                    ``(ii) with the prior written consent of the 
                juvenile's parent or guardian who is not prohibited by 
                Federal, State, or local law from possessing a firearm;
                    ``(iii) with the prior written consent in the 
                juvenile's possession at all times when a handgun is in 
                the possession of the juvenile; and
                    ``(iv) in accordance with State and local law;
            ``(B) during transportation by the juvenile of an unloaded 
        handgun in a locked container directly from the place of 
        transfer to a place at which an activity described in 
        subparagraph (A)(i) is to take place, and transportation by the 
        juvenile of that handgun, unloaded and in a locked container, 
        directly from the place at which such an activity took place to 
        the transferor;
            ``(C) to a juvenile who is a member of the Armed Forces of 
        the United States or the National Guard who possesses or is 
        armed with a handgun in the line of duty;
            ``(D) to a transfer by inheritance of title (but not 
        possession) of a handgun or ammunition to a juvenile; or
            ``(E) to the possession of a handgun or ammunition by a 
        juvenile taken in defense of the juvenile or other persons 
        against an intruder into the residence of the juvenile or a 
        residence in which the juvenile is an invited guest.
    ``(4) A handgun or ammunition, the possession of which is 
transferred to a juvenile in circumstances in which the transferor is 
not in violation of this subsection shall not be subject to permanent 
confiscation by the Government if its possession by the juvenile 
subsequently becomes unlawful because of the conduct of the juvenile, 
but shall be returned to the lawful owner when such handgun or 
ammunition is no longer required by the Government for the purposes of 
investigation or prosecution.
    ``(5) For purposes of this subsection, the term `juvenile' means a 
person who is less than 18 years of age.
    ``(6)(A) In a prosecution of a violation of this subsection, the 
court shall require the presence of a juvenile defendant's parent or 
legal guardian at all proceedings.
    ``(B) The court may use the contempt power to enforce subparagraph 
(A).
    ``(C) The court may excuse attendance of a parent or legal guardian 
of a juvenile defendant at a proceeding in a prosecution of a violation 
of this subsection for good cause shown.''.
    (c) Penalties.--Section 924(a) of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ``paragraph (2) or (3) 
        of''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
    ``(5)(A)(i) A juvenile who violates section 922(s) shall be fined 
under this title, imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both, except that 
a juvenile described in clause (ii) shall be sentenced to probation on 
appropriate conditions and shall not be incarcerated unless the 
juvenile fails to comply with a condition of probation.
    ``(ii) A juvenile is described in this clause if--
            ``(I) the offense of which the juvenile is charged is 
        possession of a handgun or ammunition in violation of section 
        922(s)(2); and
            ``(II) the juvenile has not been convicted in any court of 
        an offense (including an offense under section 922(s) or a 
        similar State law, but not including any other offense 
        consisting of conduct that if engaged in by an adult would not 
        constitute an offense) or adjudicated as a juvenile delinquent 
        for conduct that if engaged in by an adult would constitute an 
        offense.
    ``(B) A person other than a juvenile who knowingly violates section 
922(s)--
            ``(i) shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more 
        than 1 year, or both; and
            ``(ii) if the person sold, delivered, or otherwise 
        transferred a handgun or ammunition to a juvenile knowing or 
        having reasonable cause to know that the juvenile intended to 
        carry or otherwise possess or discharge or otherwise use the 
        handgun or ammunition in the commission of a crime of violence, 
        shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 10 
        years, or both.''.
    (d) Technical Amendment of Juvenile Delinquency Provisions in Title 
18, United States Code.--
            (1) Section 5031.--Section 5031 of title 18, United States 
        Code, is amended by inserting ``or a violation by such person 
        of section 922(s)'' before the period at the end.
            (2) Section 5032.--Section 5032 of title 18, United States 
        Code, is amended--
                    (A) in the first undesignated paragraph by 
                inserting ``or (s)'' after ``922(p)''; and
                    (B) in the fourth undesignated paragraph by 
                inserting ``or section 922(s) of this title,'' before 
                ``criminal prosecution on the basis''.
    (e) Technical Amendment of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 
Prevention Act of 1974.--Section 223(a)(12)(A) of the Juvenile Justice 
and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5633(a)(12)(A)) is 
amended by striking ``which do not constitute violations of valid court 
orders'' and inserting ``(other than an offense that constitutes a 
violation of a valid court order or a violation of section 922(s) of 
title 18, United States Code, or a similar State law)''.
    (f) Model Law.--The Attorney General, acting through the Director 
of the National Institute for Juvenile Justice and Delinquency 
Prevention, shall--
            (1) evaluate existing and proposed juvenile handgun 
        legislation in each State;
            (2) develop model juvenile handgun legislation that is 
        constitutional and enforceable;
            (3) prepare and disseminate to State authorities the 
        findings made as the result of the evaluation; and
            (4) report to Congress by December 31, 1994, findings and 
        recommendations concerning the need or appropriateness of 
        further action by the Federal Government.

            Passed the House of Representatives November 20, 1993.

            Attest:






                                                                 Clerk.