SC Gun Law and Lack of Gun Ownership Transfer Ladies and Gentlemen: Kindly leave aside an argument for the sanctity of 2A and kindly direct your comments to the common sense of protecting yourself from possible criminal investigation or civil penalty over the sale/transfer of a firearm. From my observations in SC, you can buy or sell a gun privately WITHOUT any need to fill out any paperwork whatsoever informing at least SLED that a firearm is now in the possession of someone else. If you are buying, you are trusting the seller that he has obtained the firearm legally and its use has been confined to legal purposes, and if you are selling, you are trusting that the buyer will be using the firearm for legal purposes. Firearms are out there that have been used, in some cases, for criminal activity, and without a SLED-defined record of transfer, you can end up "holding the bag" if your purchase or sale ends up going horribly wrong because of the actions of the seller or the buyer of your previously-licensed firearm (he may not have even given you his correct name if the deal is in cash). This strikes me as being a maddening situation that can only come back and haunt you if you are a law-abiding citizen with any kind of net worth. Please-no 2A rhetoric-I understand that. If you disagree, kindly tell me where my logic has failed me.
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Good Morning KELCARRY, your logic is spot on. Hopefully you did not fall victim to the above mention post. I would suggest a simple Bill of Sale be wrought with both Seller and Purchaser I.D. numbers along with the issuing State referenced. If either will not, no sale, simple as that. This should limit some but not all of liability but will show true intent of trying to be prudent. Just my humble opinion.
Haven't seen you post in a while. Hope all is well.
"The smallest minority on earth is the individual. Those who deny individual rights cannot claim to be defenders of minorities." --author and philosopher Ayn Rand (1905-1982)
Good morning guys, I was wondering about this. I have a pistol I've been thinking of selling to a bud of mine. Would it be ok to just take him and the gun to my local gun shop and just pay them to do the background check and transfer?
As my earlier post suggests. Make up a Bill of sale with description Make/Model of the weapon with serial number. ID and if you want address of Seller and Purchaser with ID info recorded. This will protect both of you. I would put in a safe place as you would any other important doc's.
Say you sell to your friend. Someone steals it from him and commits a crime. YOU being the last recorded owner of the weapon will be asked about it. You can then show the Bill of Sale and they''ll go to the next person for questioning. Probably will never have to use the Bill BUT it does effect traceability and a time line of ownership. AS ALWAYS-Just my humble opinion.
"The smallest minority on earth is the individual. Those who deny individual rights cannot claim to be defenders of minorities." --author and philosopher Ayn Rand (1905-1982)
Hey mappow:What exactly are the "seller and purchaser ID numbers" that you reference? If the "other guy" is a bad guy and up to no good, any info you get will be bogus and still leave you in a hole, even though you demonstrated due diligence. The only sure way is to have a state/SLED form like the form you used to obtain your firearm from a licensed dealer that supposedly attests to the validity of the information under the penalty of, I assume, submitting false info to a state agency. That still does not mean it is correct but you now have the state on your side. I think homershoots' comments come closest to the real deal and if you have any good common sense you would probably err on that side of caution when it comes to dealing with firearms purchases or sales.
KEL, ID numbers are the ones on your Drivers License and or State issued ID. As for erroring on the side of caution. Please do so if you feel the need. Or even have a Notary sign off on the Bill of Sale. Just an idea
"The smallest minority on earth is the individual. Those who deny individual rights cannot claim to be defenders of minorities." --author and philosopher Ayn Rand (1905-1982)
SC Gun Law and Lack of Gun Ownership Transfer MAPPOW has the best idea in that you're expecting the "opposing party" in the transaction to display "apparent" physically proper ID, and you are willing to do the same. That transfer of information does attempt to prove that you are 1. acting in good faith, but 2. trying to be somewhat selective, and 3. wish to be able to have some proof of former possession.
SC Code doesn't require this much; NOR DO WE WANT it to require this much.
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Don't let PUBLIC EDUCATION be responsible for your legacy of "Gun Control". If you don't train them, who will?
Georgia also requires no background check or registration of firearms for private sales. The potential downside is that you may acquire a firearm that has been used illegally or you may sell it to someone who will use if for illegal purposes. This does open you up to a potential hassle but with adequate precautions during the sale (requiring ID, bill of sale etc) it should be minimal on the extremely small chance that you end up in a situation possessing or formerly owning a firearm used illegally. I think the hassle of losing a firearm as evidence or explaining the sale to the leo's is a small price to pay to avoid imposing excessive burdens on private sales. A lot of private sales here require that the buyer have a GWL to ensure that they are legally allowed to purchase a weapon and provide a little more scrutiny.Originally Posted by kelcarry
Hey mappow: I think you last reply is as good as it gets on this issue. It certainly behooves any of us to at least go thru the effort of the Bill of Sale with appropriate identification such as a driver's license, which, in SC, has a picture of the person.There is no cost to you and it should stand the test of due diligence on your part, if, for some reason, the firearm you buy or sell ends up as part of a criminal act. I know, at least in my locale, the local police are NOT interested in any information relating to any purchase or sale of a firearm; they only are interested in the firearm's serial number should it be stolen. Thank you for your replies and I thank you mappow.
Good question, KC.
As a buyer, getting a copy of the seller's DL would be enough for me. Less than 2% of handguns are stolen. Haven't thought much about selling yet. Would probably pay my FFL the $15 to help with that.
Of course at only $15, I might use him for a purchase as well.
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