The author stated that Arthur Leigh Allen could possess firearms because “Allen was on probation, not parole…meaning he wasn’t considered a felon.” Allen was charged with violating California Penal Code section 288, which stated:
Any person who shall willfully and lewdly commit any lewd or lascivious act including any of the acts constituting other crimes provided for in part one of this code upon or with the body, or any part or member thereof, of a child under the age of fourteen years, with the intent of arousing, appealing to, or gratifying the lust or passions or sexual desires of such person or of such child, shall be guilty of a felony and shall be imprisoned in the State prison for a term of from one year to life.
A 1975 California Court of Appeal decision, In re Wells, specifically states that §288 had contained this language since the 1937 amendment (Stats. 1937, ch. 545, §1, p. 1562).
Allen was convicted by guilty plea in the Sonoma Superior Court on January 23, 1975 and would remain a convicted felon for the rest of his life. A sentence of probation is often prescribed for first-time felons, but that doesn’t change the classification of the crime. At the time the 1991 search warrant was executed, it was unlawful for a felon to possess firearms of the type found in Allen’s home.
