Does FOPA cover a traveler if they stop mid trip for a hotel stay and firearm never leaves trunk/locked up status?
My apologies if this is the wrong section.
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Does FOPA cover a traveler if they stop mid trip for a hotel stay and firearm never leaves trunk/locked up status?
My apologies if this is the wrong section.
FOPA is a defense, one can still be arrested.
FOPA doesn’t really protect you, so don’t count on it. I’ll be driving through Maryland to get to NC in a few weeks to go on vacation, I just white knuckle it for the few miles I’m in that shit stain of a state.
Thanks guys, had a strong suspsician that it did not but wanted to be clear.
How about renting a car? Your tags won't reveal any gun info.
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There is no direct mention of what are reasonable necessary stops in 18 USC 926A (FOPA) however they can be deduced. Consider a trip from PA to AZ for example (assuming that you qualify at origin/destination and compliant transport). It would be inconceivable that such a trip would be possible without stopping for such intrinsic necessities as fuel, food, 'nature calls', car repairs, overnight lodgings, medical emergencies, etc. For the past several years bills have been introduces to memorialize the type of stops that comport with the intent of FOPA transport but none of them have advanced to statute status - most just died in committee from lack of action.
Provided your overnight is justifiable from a traveling perspective and FOPA attached to the trip then you would be, IMO, covered - even overnight. One word of caution - keep you guns in the FOPA travel mode which will mean leaving them in the vehicle overnight. If you take them out at the motel you end the FOPA protection and become subject to local law. Additionally you would have to re-qualify for FOPA at the resumption of the trip with your current location as your origin. A similar occasion for re-qualification might arise if you deviate from a reasonable direct route for personal excursions (ex: visiting relatives, sightseeing, etc) since these movements would not be incident to the FOPA related trip.
I'm not aware of any case law that either refutes or supports my interpretation. There is some inference from the 3rd Circuit that the key is keeping FOPA protected firearms i the vehicle during overnight stops:
ASSOCIATION OF NJ. RIFLE CLUBS v. Port Authority, 730 F. 3d 252 - Court of Appeals, 3rd Circuit 2013Quote:
It is plain from the latter condition that the statute protects only transportation of a firearm in a vehicle, and requires that the firearm and ammunition be neither readily nor directly accessible from the passenger compartment of such vehicle. In particular, the word "such," in "such transporting vehicle," by definition refers back to earlier part(s) of the sentence, and the only parts it could possibly refer to are the parts referring to the transportation of a firearm or ammunition. The use of "such" therefore makes clear that the transportation the statute protects must occur in a "transporting vehicle."
Moreover, if there were any doubt about the statute's vehicular limitation, the final part of the sentence that follows — the "Provided" clause — again makes clear that only vehicular transportation is included in the statutory grant. It states: "Provided, That in the case of a vehicle without a compartment separate from the driver's compartment the firearm or ammunition shall be contained in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console." 18 U.S.C. § 926A (emphasis supplied). This clause, on its face, presupposes transportation of the firearm in a vehicle.
Iffin I were you and leaving from Washington I would travel down 79, 19, 77 into NC and then, if heading east, hit 74E to 40 (I'm guessing a beach destination). I go to Charlotte at least 4 times a year and will be going to Myrtle Beach shortly and will travel that way.
Safe Travels