Pennsylvania is considering a mandatory-minimum five-year prison sentence for any convicted felon caught with a gun, says the Philadelphia Daily News. State law already requires convicted felons who are armed when they commit new crimes to be imprisoned for five years. This new proposal would require the same penalty even if the convict committed no crime other than gun possession. It also would classify that offense - as well as other firearm crimes such as straw-purchasing and illegal transfers - as "crimes of violence," increasing penalties for subsequent arrests.
The Crime Report