WPIC 133.02.07 Unlawful Possession of a Firearm—Second Degree—Involuntary Commitment—Elements
11A WAPRAC WPIC 133.02.07Washington Practice Series TMWashington Pattern Jury Instructions--Criminal
11A Wash. Prac., Pattern Jury Instr. Crim. WPIC 133.02.07 (5th Ed)
Washington Practice Series TM
Washington Pattern Jury Instructions--Criminal
January 2024 Update
Part XIII. Miscellaneous Crimes
WPIC CHAPTER 133. Weapon Offenses
WPIC 133.02.07 Unlawful Possession of a Firearm—Second Degree—Involuntary Commitment—Elements
To convict the defendant of the crime of unlawfully possessing a firearm in the second degree, each of the following elements of the crime must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt:
(1) That on or about (date), the defendant [knowingly owned a firearm] [or] [knowingly had a firearm in [his] [her] possession or under [his] [her] control];
(2) That the defendant had previously been involuntarily committed by court order for mental health treatment [, unless [his] [her] rights have been restored]; and
(3) That the defendant's [ownership] [or] [possession or control] of the firearm occurred in the State of Washington.
If you find from the evidence that each of these elements has been proved beyond a reasonable doubt, then it will be your duty to return a verdict of guilty.
On the other hand, if after weighing all the evidence you have a reasonable doubt as to any one of these elements, then it will be your duty to return a verdict of not guilty.
NOTE ON USE
Use bracketed material as applicable. With this instruction, use WPIC 2.10 (Firearm—Definition as Element), WPIC 10.02 (Knowledge—Knowingly—Definition), and WPIC 133.52 (Possession—Weapon—Definition).
COMMENT
RCW 9.41.040(2)(a)(iii).
The statute prohibits a person from owning, possessing, or controlling a firearm “[a]fter having previously been involuntarily committed for mental health treatment under RCW 71.05.240, 71.05.320, 71.34.740, 71.34.750, chapter 10.77 RCW, or equivalent statutes of another jurisdiction, unless his or her right to possess a firearm has been restored as provided in RCW 9.41.047.” Practitioners should note that this prohibition does not encompass all mental illness commitments, only those commitments that are ordered under the statutes referenced in RCW 9.41.040.
The WPI Committee is of the view that the restoration of a defendant's rights is an affirmative defense. If facts are presented that raise this defense, separate instructions should be drafted. See WPIC 14.00 (Defenses—Introduction).
[Current as of December 2019.]
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