Carrying guns and ammo in the car (or truck ... or SUV ... or whatever)

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I heard that since I have a RI blue card, that guns and mags need to be locked and unloaded on the way to the range (understood), AND that ammo must be in a separate place. In other words I cannot have some handguns and ammo together in my range bag. I do not see that anywhere in the laws; I think throwing both in the same bag is ok.
Is that correct, or do they need to be separated?

Thanks
 
You mentioned a range bag, so I'm assuming you're going to a range. In that case, 11-47-10 applies.

11-47-10

No license or permit shall be required for the purpose of carrying or transporting any pistol or revolver from one's home or place of business to a bona fide target practice range, nor from a bona fide target practice range to one's home or place of business, to engage in any shoot meet, or practice, provided that the pistol or revolver is broken down, unloaded and carried as openly as circumstances will permit, or provided that the pistols or revolvers are unloaded and secured in a separate container suitable for the purpose.

The crucial language of the statute is that the handgun has to be:

*Broken down, presumably meaning unable to fire a round;
*Unloaded; and
*Secured in a separate container suitable for the purpose.

There's the language about carrying a handgun as openly as possible, but that refers to walking around with a handgun, e.g. on state or town property like Arcadia or if you're at a match. That doesn't apply to being in a vehicle, especially since you're carrying in a "separate container suitable for the purpose [of transporting guns to a range]."

So, yes, 11-47-10 requires keeping the guns and ammo separate. I would keep the mags with the pistol, such as in a side pouch in the pistol's bag, and the ammo in a lockable container like an ammo can. The statute doesn't require locking either the gun or the ammo. So any locks are within your discretion.
 
If you drive a car with a trunk you can only access from the outside, the trunk is a "seperate container." The key wording is at the end where it says OR "provided that the pistols or revolvers are unloaded and secured in a separate container suitable for the purpose."

From that it sounds like so long as you are not carrying the gun on your person and loaded you do not need any special holy grail license/permit to carry an unloaded gun if you have it in a bag for means of transporting it to the places mentioned in the statute.

I've usually put my guns in the trunk and the ammo on the floor in the backseat. There is some prevailing notion that you can't load magazines and drive around with them, but so long as they are separate from the gun, I see no reason why it's illegal to have loaded mags in your possession with a gun nearby during transportation. It sucks to waste time at the range loading mags.
 
What is the "rule" I sometimes see about ammo having to be in its original container? Is it a RI law? I buy some bulk ammo from Wilson Combat and it comes in a plastic bag (inside a shipping cardboard box). Is this getting confused with keeping ammo in "a separate container" when transporting? As always, thanks.
 
What is the "rule" I sometimes see about ammo having to be in its original container? Is it a RI law? I buy some bulk ammo from Wilson Combat and it comes in a plastic bag (inside a shipping cardboard box). Is this getting confused with keeping ammo in "a separate container" when transporting? As always, thanks.
If you are relying on FOPA to be legal, that Federal law requires ammo to be in a separate container from the gun. And unless you have a locked trunk, it has to be in a separate locked container.
 
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