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Inherited pistols

colt10
A friend of mine inherited about 10 handguns.His father was an under cover cop in pittsburg PA,some of the guns were his grandfathers.I'm told that back in the day when an arest was made,and a gun was taken away from the arest that the aresting officer could keep the gun after the case was closed as long as it wasn't a murder. Two were his service revolvers,the others we are unsure.they could be crime guns.some are very old,and may not be registered to anyone. can any ffl holder check the serial numbers and tell us who they are registered to,and the very old ones (1908,WW1 1911 and others)would they be registered.my friend does not want to have the batfe at his door at 4:00 am. Guns are not his thing, but he will keep his fathers service revolvers after they are trasfered into his name.When all of the legal things are taken care of he wants to sell the rest and give the money to his mother, so I might be listing them here.Thank you for any help
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8 comments

Date Votes
  • Nwcid
    Well since there is no Federal registration of hand guns unless you live in a state that has registration, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_laws_in_the_United_States_(by_state) then they are not registered to anyone.

    In most states the only guns you have to register are NFA items (there is a link to info on that at the top of this forum).
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  • 32 Magnum
    Colt10,
    PA has no "registration" and there is no way for a civilian or a Dealer to find out who previously owned the guns.
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  • wpage
    Go ahead and list thrm here...

    Get them off the street
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  • lpaalp
    Right... PA does not require registration of any firearms. If your friend decides to sell or givew them away, they must be transferred thru a FFL holder.
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  • Hawk Carse
    I would think an FFL would only be needed for out of state transfer.
    Or does PA ban in-state private sale? And how do they enforce it without registration?
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  • nmyers
    A nonlicensee (that is, you) can sell a gun to a resident of his own state (state & local law permitting), or to a dealer in any state.

    Just about everything you need to know can be found by going to the Gunbroker home page, & clicking on the FOR SELLERS link.

    Neal

    EDIT: Since neither you nor your friend are really familiar with firearms laws, your best bet is to insist that ALL transfers go through an FFL, even if the buyer is a PA resident. That way, you have zero possibility of a visit from the fellas with the bulges in the cheap suits.
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  • lpaalp
    quote:Originally posted by nmyers
    A nonlicensee (that is, you) can sell a gun to a resident of his own state (state & local law permitting), or to a dealer in any state.

    Just about everything you need to know can be found by going to the Gunbroker home page, & clicking on the FOR SELLERS link.

    Neal

    In PA, long guns can be sold FTF between residents without an FFL, but handguns must be transferred thru an FFL (state law). The PA state police receives a record of transfer... but insist no database exists... its just to record the sale... so they say.

    Only applies to the OP for the guns to be sold. those that were inheirited and are to be kept require no action.
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  • 32 Magnum
    +1 - exactly. NRA sued the PA State Police a couple years ago claiming a "de facto" registration of hand guns has been kept since 1934-35. State Supreme court disagreed with NRA saying it was "only a record of sale" and not a registration. I do know that when guns showed up during commission of a crime, the State Police and ATF agents went through the same procedures of tracking from Manufacturer, through wholesaler, to dealer's 4473 records and then to original purchaser and often to another dealer for transfer, and so on. When reporting stolen handguns to local police in PA, they want to see the STATE record of sale form, which is given to the purchaser, to confirm proper ownership. If the gun was inherited or brought in from out of state, they would like to see some other confirmation of ownership before listing on the NICS as stolen. I went through this procedure in 2003. So, advise your friend to have the probate attorney draw up a list of the firearms and serial numbers and have it notarized as proof of inheritance - that will satisfy the requirement, if the guns are stolen, or if some cowboy stops him and decides to confiscate the firearm until proof of legal ownership is provided.
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