TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Azya Thornton on Feb 14, 2025

A bill introduced in the statehouse by Rep. Kelly Keisling, R-Byrdstown, and Sen. Becky Massey, R-Knoxville, would require changes to Tennessee’s gun surrender form, mandating that the name, address and signature of the recipient of dispossessed firearms be included. Currently, Tennessee is one of about a dozen states that allows individuals ordered to surrender their guns to give them to a third party, such as a friend or relative, without requiring the third party's identification in court. According to WPLN news, this lack of oversight has raised concerns, as people could claim to have surrendered their firearms while still retaining access to them. Tennessee consistently has one of the highest rates of women killed by men, and most of those homicides are committed with guns. The legislation was inspired by WPLN and ProPublica’s reporting in Scott County, which Keisling represents, where the local court system amended the state form to identify the third party in an effort to improve accountability.