Proof of Ownership?

[jcwit]

In answer to the question, no I do not carry a file cabinet with all the pertinent info regarding which if any which firearm I might have in my possession at any one time.

 

[Jeff H]

I do not carry receipts, but I do have the receipts of all of the guns I have bought.(including private party sales) It only makes sense to keep them for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is warranty work.

If the situation were to ever come up that a LEO would ask, I could easily provide this info.

 

[Sam1911]

...I could easily provide this info.

Now here's a question... WOULD you? If your state laws do not include any provision under which you can be forced to show proof of ownership of a piece of property absent reasonable suspicion that you've stolen it, is it appropriate to acquiesce to that demand or should it be refused?

 

[TexasRedneck]

I dunno...do you carry receipts for other tools you own? I don't - so, why would I tote one for a gun? I might have one of any of the 50+ handguns along with me - why would I mess with it? There is NO legal requirement to do so - period.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Y'all do not that a purchase receipt is not proof of ownership, right? It isn't some sort of property time. A purchase receipt is simply proof of purchase, nothing more. It does not indicate ownership after the moment of purchase at which time the gun may change ownership to somebody not on the receipt. The receipt does not vouch for ownership beyond the point of sale.

I don't know about the rest of you, but I have receipts for guns I no longer own.

 

[trex1310]

I saw an episode of "Navajo Cops" where they confiscated a guy's gun
because he didn't have proof of ownership. He was stopped for
speeding, told the cop he had a weapon (Tokarev). The s/n was clean.

 

[TexasRedneck]

I saw an episode of "Navajo Cops" where they confiscated a guy's gun

Oh....so, based on some "Reality Show" on an Indian reservation.....this now becomes something applicable country-wide?!??

 

[CoRoMo]

Now here's a question... WOULD you?

Nope.

I could tell them when and where I bought it. How much it cost, and where I had it shipped for the transfer. How many rounds it's loaded with and what make/model of ammo that is. I could tell them about the few issues I've had with the weapon and what loads I've put through it. I could tell them how it shoots and how to detail strip it down to every last spring and pin. I could tell them about the custom holster it's riding in and when/where and how much THAT cost me. I could tell them about the modifications I've made to this gun and to this holster. I could tell them about the guy who made the holster and the guy who designed the pistol, his company and their line of firearms. I could also tell them every little reason I used in the decision to carry this particular make and model of handgun and holster.

I'd then ask them those questions about their carry gun.

 

[Kaeto]

timhernandez : In Michigan, no registration, no DB of owners to weapons, etc.

If asked to provide proof of ownership, I would ask where the requirement to carry or produce said documentation was listed as a requirement of a CPL.

Handguns are registered in Michigan. It used to be called "A safety inspection" but what they did was enter the serial number and owner's name into a registry. Now they have come out and admitted that they register handguns

 

[Carl N. Brown]

LE runs a serial number check, and ask for proof of ownership, if not provided they confiscate/impound on the grounds they don't 'Know' who it actually belongs to.

Doesn't happen to my knowledge in Tennessee (at least currently; may have happened in the past when we had a law requiring "application for permission to purchase" countersigned by the local CLEO).

This like the TV cop demand to show "pink slip" and proof of insurance on a traffic stop. Has never happened to me. (Although the "pink slip" puzzled me until I was told the California auto title/registration was pink; TN title is green, tag receipt is white, and we are advised NOT to have the title in the car. Tag is proof of registration and title.)

No doubt stuff happens on TV, but even that does not make it real. On the late show one night, space scientist Lee Van Cleef used a ham radio and aided and abetted a giant carrot from Venus to come to earth and try to conquer the world.

 

[clg114]

I do not carry receipts or any kind of proof of ownership for the handgun that lives in my truck. I do have paperwork for all of the firearm transactions I've been involved in. I don't know what happens to a gun after it leaves me. If the police come knocking on my door with questions about a gun that I used to own,I want to be able to show where it went. I have never had a police officer evan want to see my gun. I always show my CCL with my DL and tell them that there is a gun in the truck. The last time I was stopped,the LEO said "This is Idaho,everybody has a gun in thier truck".

 

[hermannr]

Why would you need a proof of ownership? If the SN is checked, and it does not come back as stolen, it is none of the LEO's business how you obtained the weapon.

The whole concept smells of guilty unless proven innocent....not the way law works in the US.

Even if you had a receipt of purchase from an FFL, if the weapon came back as stolen you are still SOL. It isn't yours because the valid purchase chain is broken.

BTW; a LEO cannot legally just take your firearm because you cannot produce proof of purchase...If he could, what would happen to my Marlin .22, manufactured and purchsed in 1930, it has no SN, and has never been outside my family???? how do you have proof of purchase for something like that? Or my 1903 Winchester Shotgun? Or my 1926 Colt revolver? Can I tell you who originally purchased these firearms? Sure, Can I PROVE my story? absolutely not, everyone, other than me, that has owned these weapons is dead.

May I add; I do not get stopped very frequently, but even the times that the officer could see my sidearm (I OC mostly) I never was asked for, nor ever gave them my CPL or my sidearm. and I have been OCing in WA state for over 40 years now...

 

[c1ogden]

I'm not worried about a "hit" on a stolen gun. It's not stolen.

It may not be but it might show up that way. I've seen guns come up as stolen when the clerk entering it made a typo on the serial number. Also, keep in mind that serial numbers are often repeated by other manufacturers. I once had a dispatcher tell me that I was holding a stolen gun. When I got back to HQ I noticed that, although the serial numbers did match, I was holding a Colt and the stolen was an S&W. I've also seen cases when a stolen item is returned to the owner but never removed from the system (NCIC). In the case I had, the person in possession was listed as the theft victim so all was worked out quickly. If I had been dealing with the guy who had bought it from the theft victim things would have taken quite a bit longer to sort out.

You might be in the right but, unfortunately, that doesn't mean you'll be problem free.