Gun Confiscation

Question
I have a friend who was arrested. When he was arrested the police confiscated a shotgun that he had in the home. The shotgun was not his, but belonged to a friend of his. Now the police are requiring a receipt from his friend to get the gun back. He has the serial number, but does not have a receipt or the transfer form. Is there anything he can do to get his gun back?

Answer
Alan,

I have to begin by saying that I am not an attorney and as such, cannot give you legal advice.  If you or your friend need legal advice, you should hire an attorney licensed to practice law in your state of residence.  That said, I will give you my take on the situation.

I'm afraid that my answer may not be very satisfying.  First, if the person was arrested was charged with a felony crime, the guns will be held until there is some final determination of his guilt.  If he is convicted of a felony, the guns will not be returned.  

If convicted of a misdemeanor, the guns will be returned one the court case is over (eventually).  Until the case is actually heard and decided, the police will retain the guns.  They may even be considered 'evidence' if the crime your friend was arrested for involved firearms.

They cannot just 'confiscate' the guns (unless it was a federal drug charge in which case they can).

If the rightful owner of the gun wants to reclaim it, they must present some proof of ownership.  A receipt for the purchase of the gun or a copy of the BATF 4473 that was filled out at the time of purchase would probably do it.  Just the serial number is no good.  Anyone looking at the gun could get that.

If there was no receipt or you no longer have the receipt, check with the gun store where the gun was originally purchased.  They are required by law to keep the BATF 4473 on file indefinitely.  You will probably have to give them an approximate timeframe of the purchase and since they are not required to provide you with a copy, you may have some convincing to do to get them to give you a copy.

If your friend cannot prove ownership with some reasonable documentation, the police will not release the gun to them despite the fact that they are claiming it.  The only other alternative would be to see what happens in the court case.  If there is no felony conviction, the guns may come back eventually.

Hope this helps you out...

Doug