Hawaii

Restrictions Based on Convictions: Yes but the Hawaii legislature has expended this to: it is illegal for the follow to own or possess body armor

  1. The person is a fugitive from justice;
  2. The person is under indictment for, or has waived indictment for, or has been bound over to the circuit court for, or has been convicted in this State or elsewhere of having committed a felony, or any crime of violence, or an illegal sale of any drug;
  3. The person is or has been under treatment for addiction to any dangerous, harmful, or detrimental drug, intoxicating compound as defined in section 712-1240, or intoxicating liquor;
  4. The person has been acquitted of a crime on the grounds of mental disease, disorder, or defect pursuant to section 704-411;
  5. The person is or has been under treatment for significant behavioral, emotional, or mental disorders as defined by the most current diagnostic manual of the American Psychiatric Association or for treatment for organic brain syndromes;
  6. The person is less than twenty-five years old and has been adjudicated by the family court to have committed a felony, two or more crimes of violence, or an illegal sale of any drug; or
  7. The person is a minor who:
    1. Is or has been under treatment for addiction to any dangerous, harmful, or detrimental drug, intoxicating compound as defined in section 712-1240, or intoxicating liquor;
    2. Is a fugitive from justice; or
    3. Has been determined not to have been responsible for a criminal act or has been committed to any institution on account of a mental disease, disorder, or defect.
  8. It is a defense to subsection (3), (4), (5), (7)(A), and (7)(C), that the person has been medically documented to be no longer adversely affected by the addiction, mental disease, disorder, or defect at issue.
  9. For purposes of enforcing this section, and notwithstanding section 571-84 or any other law to the contrary, any agency within the State shall make its records relating to family court adjudications and mental health records available to law enforcement officials.
  10. (10)Any person disqualified from ownership, possession, or control of body armor by this chapter shall relinquish that body armor to the chief of police within fourteen days.

Documentation or Licensing: Not required in general but if you fall under the people mentioned above you will need to get an exemption if:

  1. The person has a reasonable need to possess body armor to ensure the person's personal safety, to earn a livelihood, or as a condition of employment; and
  2. The person is likely to use the body armor in a safe and lawful manner.

Any person seeking a complete or partial exemption under this section shall submit an application to the chief of police of the appropriate county. The chief of police may deny the request for an exemption, grant a complete exemption from the prohibition, or grant a partial exemption by allowing possession of body armor only under certain specified circumstances or in certain locations or both.

Where to Purchase: Can be purchased from dealers, retailers, or online suppliers.

Official Government Source: Hawaii state legislature (Check section 69 of the act.)