I'm not in agreement, wholly. "Once a felon...
almost always a felon." And, as so many of us like to believe, we are a "Nation of Laws"; since we've codified a law, "felons are not allowed to vote, possess firearms, etc." that is part and parcel of the consequences of the choices the individual makes in committing a felony. That is above and beyond any "punishment" meted out for the act. (Let's face facts, jail sentences are not recreation periods... no matter how easy we may seem to feel about the current state of our jails.) It is a finding with the conviction of the crime that the individual is no longer trustworthy in society. In a manner of speaking, their decision to break the law in the case of a felony, also calls into question their future decision making abilities regarding the future rule (voting), and full participation (gun ownership), of our society. Now... the fact that we, as a society, also recognize that an individual can remediate themselves and again become fully participatory in our society, we have a mechanism (in most states), where said individual can regain those rights. Jumping thru the hoops or whatever might be required to show that one is remediated, is not unreasonable. If one is inclined to show one's responsibility to one's neighbors that they deserve those rights restored, then do the necessary legwork to get 'er done. Otherwise live with the consequences of your earlier decisions.
DBW & OI, I agree, "Correctional Facility," et al, are just politically correct labels to make the liberal elements feel good. The "State" cannot correct, remediate, nor reform anyone. Only the individual may do that.
Here's my problem with the original post:
"I am still considered mentally ill, with a history of violent behavior."
This seems to be a "Catch-22" situation. Can a individual that's mentally ill, recognize the problem and act in such a fashion as to not exhibit the symptoms of such illness. If so, then how is one "considered mentally ill". I submit that the individual may be cognizant of the finding, but not cognizant of the actions or behaviors that would render such determination. And in accordance with the law, such individual could not truthfully answer the questions on the 4473 that would allow the sale to proceed.