Denial of release
A previous criminal conviction alone is not suitable to found a judgment of unreliability which precludes the issue of authorization to carry weapons. The Veneto TAR with ruling no. 1410/2023 published on 10 October 2023 ruled on the refusal to issue the license carry a rifle for clay pigeon shooting motivated by the competent Police Headquarters on the basis of a previous criminal prejudice, inherent to the violation of the provisions on drugs by the applicant. However, according to the Venetian judges, a refusal motivated only on the basis of this dating episode must be considered illegitimate, given that elements favorable to release, identifiable in the current behavior of the applicant, were not considered (as they should have been).
Broad discretionary power
In particular, after having recalled that "the Administration, in terms of issuing and renewing the license to carry weapons, enjoys a largely discretionary power, the object of which essentially consists of the evaluation of the overall conduct of the interested party, independent of the its appreciation (and therefore its concrete relevance) in criminal proceedings", the TAR highlighted that this "assessment does not, however, appear fixed and unchangeable in its outcomes, as it is strictly connected to changes in the personal conditions of the interested party and the context that surrounds its existence", having to take into account "the inevitable mutability of human behavior and the possibility that they can evolve in a favorable direction, so as to overcome - especially after a long period of time and at the conclusion of a path of conscious maturation and active regret - the previous critical issues".
Measure annulled
Consequently, the Judges continue, "The Administration, in examining the private individual's request, is ... required to carry out a congruous and adequate investigation - which it must give an account of in the justification - "which allows it to make an overall evaluation of the subject and therefore also taking into account the life path of the applicant following any impeding episodes, and this in particular where such episodes, as in the case now under consideration, date back over time"". In light of these principles, the provision rejecting the application for the release of a firearms license for clay shooting use was annulled, which the Administration will have to examine again, having to this end examine "every further aspect - even if it arises - of the conduct and personality of the interested party" (source: UITS).
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