In light of all the gun violence going on the prosecutors and police are being very aggressive with their crackdown of handguns.
Being in possession of a handgun as a disqualified person can expose you to a very harsh sentence. A felon in possession of a handgun carries a minimum mandatory sentence of five year without parole. In Federal Court, an armed carrying criminal (a term with specific elements) is subject to up to 15 years incarceration.
There are usually more serious issues to be looked into. What were the circumstances that led to the discovery of the handgun. Was it a stop while on the street? A car stop? A house raid? Was there a search warrant involved? And was the handgun operable? In cases of drug trafficking what was the nexus, the connection between the gun and the drugs.