Is it illegal to be in the presence of an illegal firearm

[tcoz]

Thanks DoubleMag. It's why when I have a serious question that requires a thoughtful answer I only post it on THR. I can only imagine some of the wiseass answers I'd receive on some other forums.

 

[Sam1911]

Good on ye'.

 

[JShirley]

If one were to swap uppers on an AR on a private range who would care ?

If one were to suggest on THR committing a felony , the staff might suspend that member's posting privileges.

Because THR is supposed to showcase gun owners at their best.

John

 

[lemaymiami]

For Speedo... you're description was right on. Big city jails only vary in amount and degree of very bad things - Like you, I'd like to spend the rest of my life without ever visiting any jails, prisons, or courtrooms....

 

[Officers'Wife]

I would put this in the category of:

If in doubt, don't.

Were it me, I would request my buddy leave the SBR at home. If your buddy is ANY kind of friend, it wont be an issue, if on the other hand, he refuses..........you might want to ask yourself if YOU should be hanging out with him at all.

My uncle had what he called the reasonable man test... The reasonable man would take the need to ask if something is a bad idea as proof that it is a bad idea.

 

[rromeo]

You could argue that you didn't know the gun was illegal since it's not your gun and you didn't measure the barrel length (although you posted here that you think it is). But do you really want to fight that battle?

You can argue that until your posts are found on a message forum, asking about the situation 3 days prior.

 

[DMF]

Depending on the circumstances, it could be considered "misprision of a felony."
The applicable federal statute is 18USC4. https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/4

 

[Midwest]

Depending on the circumstances, it could be considered "misprision of a felony."
The applicable federal statute is 18USC4. https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/4

Here is an example of Misprision

http://www.justice.gov/usao-mdfl/pr...brantley-misprision-crime-committed-following

Court Of Appeals Upholds Conviction Of Courtnee Brantley For Misprision Crime Committed Following Police Murders

In January 2013, a federal jury in Tampa found Brantley guilty of misprision of a federal felony: Morris’s possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. (A person commits misprision when she knows that someone committed a felony, she fails to notify the authorities about it, and she takes affirmative steps to conceal the felony.) The jury found that Brantley had known that Morris was a convicted felon and that he had possessed the gun that night, that she had not reported the crime to authorities, and that she had taken affirmative steps to conceal Morris’s possession of the firearm from authorities.


(Note: The above is public information from a government site)
.

 

[Drail]

This is kind of like - "is it illegal for a child to be in the presence of a known prostitute?" I mean - both parties are equipped to commit a crime right? Does that mean a crime has actually taken place? Or "if I step onto the range with a semi auto rifle and something breaks that turns it into a full auto rifle am I automatically guilty of something that I had no control over?" Yeah, that one really happened.

 

[JohnKSa]

I mean - both parties are equipped to commit a crime right? Does that mean a crime has actually taken place?

In the case described by the OP, a crime is DEFINITELY taking place. The only question is whether or not the OP would be culpable for being present when it happens.

 

[MachIVshooter]

OP, you made the right choice.

Unregistered SBRs are undoubtedly pretty common, most of us who shoot much where other people are have almost certainly been in the presence of them. They may have even belonged to people we know. I do not personally ask people to see their stamp; I'm not an LEO, and I operate under the presumption of innocence, just as our system is supposed to. Why? Well, because if some random dude who was not a range employee/property owner or LEO demanded I show him my stamps, I'd tell him to pound sand.

To date, no one has volunteered that their SBR or other NFA item was unregistered, so I have never knowingly been in the presence of an unregistered NFA item.

However, the fact that you knew ahead of time that this one is an illegal firearm may have put you in a predicament, as your postings here or elsewhere can most certainly be ruled relevant and admissible in criminal proceedings.

In January 2013, a federal jury in Tampa found Brantley guilty of misprision of a federal felony: Morris’s possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. (A person commits misprision when she knows that someone committed a felony, she fails to notify the authorities about it, and she takes affirmative steps to conceal the felony.) The jury found that Brantley had known that Morris was a convicted felon and that he had possessed the gun that night, that she had not reported the crime to authorities, and that she had taken affirmative steps to conceal Morris’s possession of the firearm from authorities.

The bolded and underlined is an important aspect of this particular decision. It means "covering for someone", and is tantamount to conspiring in many situations. Wouldn't apply to the OP's situation unless he attempted to help the owner of the unregistered firearm avoid getting caught.