DC lawsuit about out of state purchasing of firearms

**FNG19** · December 8th, 2009, 12:19 AM

You can find the original article here. Full details are available with the article, but here's a relevant excerpt:

A gun rights group has sued the Justice Department to overturn this prohibition, which became law as part of the Gun Control Act of 1968, and the case is now in front of U.S. District Judge James Robertson in Washington, D.C.

Narrowly speaking, the Second Amendment Foundation has filed the Hodgkins v. Holder suit on behalf of American citizens who live abroad and would like to buy firearms when they return for a visit (but can't because Form 4473 requires them to list what U.S. state they live in). More broadly, it could restore Americans' right to buy handguns while traveling across state lines as long as they undergo the normal federal background check.

Federal law says that, in general, it is unlawful for a dealer to sell a handgun to "any person who the licensee knows or has reasonable cause to believe does not reside in the state." Rules for buying a rifle or shotgun are a little less strict.

**max384** · December 8th, 2009, 01:12 AM

Thanks for the post. That could have some pretty good implications for the resident gun owners of communist states like NJ and NY if the case is won.

**RJT** · December 8th, 2009, 08:43 PM

Originally Posted by max384

Thanks for the post. That could have some pretty good implications for the resident gun owners of communist states like NJ and NY if the case is won.

They'd probably just consider any guns bought outside the state to be illegal to own within the state unless you jump through the same hoops...main thing it'd do is help residents of DC who have to have their guns transferred in (I remember a newspaper article saying there was no gun stores in DC and the only FFL charges something like $100 or so)

**max384** · December 8th, 2009, 11:25 PM

Originally Posted by RJT

They'd probably just consider any guns bought outside the state to be illegal to own within the state unless you jump through the same hoops...main thing it'd do is help residents of DC who have to have their guns transferred in (I remember a newspaper article saying there was no gun stores in DC and the only FFL charges something like $100 or so)

Isn't that the truth!

**nlcrsn** · December 11th, 2009, 10:50 PM

Now if we could get the full auto ban reversed! We could all be happy again, as my favorite saying goes... HAPPINESS IS A BELT FED WEAPON.

**max384** · December 11th, 2009, 10:55 PM

Originally Posted by nlcrsn

Now if we could get the full auto ban reversed! We could all be happy again, as my favorite saying goes... HAPPINESS IS A BELT FED WEAPON.

HAPPINESS IS NOT cleaning a beltfed weapon.

**dc dalton** · December 11th, 2009, 11:18 PM

Originally Posted by FNG19

More broadly, it could restore Americans' right to buy handguns while traveling across state lines as long as they undergo the normal federal background check.

And there it is right there in black and white.

Why shouldn't ANYONE that can pass a federal background check be prohibited from buying them out of state and then returning to the state they live in?

The ENTIRE pics (or whatever each state calls it) process is based on federal information ... if that's good it shouldn't matter one bit!

Thanks for posting this Jeff, hope to hell these people are able to wake some people up. I doubt it but here's holding out hope.

**max384** · December 11th, 2009, 11:27 PM

Originally Posted by dc dalton

And there it is right there in black and white.

Why shouldn't ANYONE that can pass a federal background check be prohibited from buying them out of state and then returning to the state they live in?

The ENTIRE pics (or whatever each state calls it) process is based on federal information ... if that's good it shouldn't matter one bit!

Thanks for posting this Jeff, hope to hell these people are able to wake some people up. I doubt it but here's holding out hope.

That shocked me (not anymore, now that I know a lot more) when I first began buying firearms that I couldn't buy one in another state if I could pass a federal background check. It just doesn't make sense to me... then again, I also don't think the thousands of different gun laws, different in every state and even city makes any sense. I believe there should be one set of gun laws for the entire country... only problem is that if that did happen the entire country would probably have gun laws similar to Chicago instead of Vermont. Sorry. Small rant.