NFA laws are dumb, again . . . still
A few interesting bits on my tale of an incapacitated person and their NFA weapons. Commenters Alien and Patrick offer some insight.
Sebastian offers more info and concurs that the family can’t take them. And more here.
The recommendation to remove his firearms comes from a doctor. The doctor can shove his opinion up his ass unless he has discussed the matter with the patient and the patient agrees.
And I get that. Trouble is, for this guy, it’s coloring books for Christmas. The patient’s response would likely be to gurgle and poop his pants. It’s pretty terrible, actually.
However, as more details unfolded on the situation, seems the family thought his AR-15 was a machine gun and it was not. I only found that out today. So, it was not applicable in this situation. But it was a good discussion and a good thing to know, given that I own a suppressor.
March 19th, 2015 at 7:49 pm
Josh Sugarman strikes again
March 19th, 2015 at 8:18 pm
If the owner is that incapacitated, then he needs to have a guardian appointed, and then the guardian can sell the collection, or mail a letter informing the BATFE record center of the changes to the form ( i.e., adding his family members as responsible persons ).
March 19th, 2015 at 8:57 pm
I disagree with Triggerfinger when he says:
“The man owns his own life. If he wishes to commit suicide, that is his decision to make, and it does not justify theft or any other use of force. If his family would rather he did not commit suicide (and that is an entirely understandable and laudable wish!) they can discuss the matter with him and try to convince him not to. As far as I am concerned, there is no suicide exception to the initiation of force.”
Morally, maybe. However, that is not the law. The law has something else to say about the matter.
March 19th, 2015 at 10:36 pm
If you have NFA items, you should discuss these contingencies with a knowledgeable lawyer. The $200 today can save you and yours a lot in the future.
IANAL, But. As to the silencer, a separate lock box inside the safe that only you have the key or combo to may be a solution to constructive possession?
March 20th, 2015 at 4:09 am
NFA items or not, the best solution is an NFA Trust, which can be owned by a revocable trust if one wants, or exist as a standalone trust, which is usually the case, unless the value of its contents suggests that it should be an integral part of the estate plan. Check with an attorney with expertise in both types of trusts.
Many do not realize that an NFA Trust can contain non-NFA items, or that estate planning trusts simplify estate resolutions by avoiding probate. Or that trusts, depending on how they are structured, can exist in perpetuity, and that trusts can be named anything you want. It’s common to name it after the owner – “The Joe Smith Revocable Trust” – but you could name it “The Saturn and Pluto Saturday Beer Fest Revocable Trust” with Joe Smith as the primary trustee if you wanted. Same with NFA trusts (which, actually, is a good idea). NFA trusts have a number of advantages over individual-named ownership of NFA items.
Check with an attorney specializing in estate planning for more info regarding laws in your state. BTW, just because that attorney does estate planning trusts does not mean he or she is an expert in NFA Trusts. That’s a rather specialized niche in law practice.
March 20th, 2015 at 5:06 am
Divemedic,
I know the law disagrees on that point. On that, and many other things, the law is an ass. And just because the law allows me to be an ass in that situation does not mean I would choose to be one.
March 20th, 2015 at 9:26 am
You know, in all of this I forget to say I am sorry to hear your friends are in this situation. The one thing that scares me about living a long life is knowing that I could end up like my grandfather in the end: A strong, smart and wise man who could not remember how many fingers he had.
Doubly tragic at what I presume is a younger age for your friends. The family has to be reeling.
Again. sorry to hear it. God Bless and good luck to them.