So, just how screwed is this guy?

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Wife's boss has a son who's a CPA, whom I'll call Junior.
Junior lives in CT, and has a valid CT firearms license for his revolver.
Junior goes to the range, gets done, puts the revolver in the trunk of his car.
Life happens, stuff goes in and out of the trunk, but revolver stays put.
Some time later, Junior gets a call to go to the Boston branch, and while in Boston, the car gets stolen.
Junior reports the vehicle theft, but can't recall if he took the revolver out of the trunk, and so he tells BPD there may be a loaded gun in the car.
He gets home, looks in the safe, no revolver; he reaches out to BPD to so inform them.
Vehicle is recovered outside of Boston, revolver is still in the trunk.
Junior has contacted an attorney (I have no idea what firm) and will be going to an arraignment in a few days time.

So here's a guy who's got a very good job, has no priors for anything, and has a valid CT firearms license, and just forgot there was a gun in the trunk and has been very upfront with the BPD the entire time.

We can all agree Junior's really not smart at all for leaving a loaded gun in the trunk.

How screwed is he?
 
Personally I think it will be up to the discretion of the officers and superiors. It will depend upon their mood.

Sure does appear to be an honest mistake by a law abiding guy. And he was honest with the LEO. That might accrue to his benefit.

But if they're out to get someone, well, he may be screwed.

This one is touch and go.
 
IANAL but FOPA covers traveling through a state and only allows for brief stops for gas/bathroom. And FOPA only applies when you're legal to possess in the states you're traveling to and from.

Not sure it would apply to this situation.

Why wouldn't FOPA apply? I presume it was in a locked case in the trunk?

IMHSNO, he should be OK. But IANAL and did not stay at a Holiday Inn Express.
 
Why wouldn't FOPA apply? I presume it was in a locked case in the trunk?

IMHSNO, he should be OK. But IANAL and did not stay at a Holiday Inn Express.

Why wouldn't it apply? Take a quick look and refresh as to when FOPA does apply.

How screwed is he?
Junior needs a good attorney. He probably should have talked to one prior to notifying BPD, but now he's going to need one very familiar with MA gun laws and the judges that he's going to be dealing with.
 
Why wouldn't FOPA apply? I presume it was in a locked case in the trunk?

IMHSNO, he should be OK. But IANAL and did not stay at a Holiday Inn Express.

No. His intent was to stop and work in MA where he doesn't have legal-permission-slip. Everything else ceases to be relevant at that point. Even if he did everything else correctly, he stopped in an unlicensed state.
 
IANAL but FOPA covers traveling through a state and only allows for brief stops for gas/bathroom. And FOPA only applies when you're legal to possess in the states you're traveling to and from.

Not sure it would apply to this situation.

He's legal in CT. Going from CT to MA to CT is like a U-turn. He should be able to drive in CT to the MA border with his gun on his hip. Lock it up while he's in MA, and when he's on his way home as soon as he gets back in CT he should be able to re-arm (well he SHOULD be able to carry it everywhere, but that's another can of worms). But again, IANAL.

Lots of coulda/woulda/shoulda for this one.
 
A couple of questions.
Did the recovering PD. Find the gun in the trunk? Or did junior find it when he went to pick up his car from the tow company? Assuming the cops had it towed when recovered.
What are the charges? And who is being arraigned?
 
Why wouldn't FOPA apply? I presume it was in a locked case in the trunk?

IMHSNO, he should be OK. But IANAL and did not stay at a Holiday Inn Express.
It doesn't apply at all. He was not traveling through mass......it was his final destination as he was reporting to work.

Fopa only applies to traveling through and brief stops for fuel restroom.
 
What's sad is that this is even an issue at all. What's sadder still is his fate will hinge on some self-appointed god like critter from the commie asylums view of it all. I seem to remember some folks forgetting they left their kid in the back seat to fry alive in summer heat. Mistakes happen some are worse than others. Cut the man a break.
 
Wife's boss has a son who's a CPA, whom I'll call Junior.
Junior lives in CT, and has a valid CT firearms license for his revolver.
Junior goes to the range, gets done, puts the revolver in the trunk of his car.
Life happens, stuff goes in and out of the trunk, but revolver stays put.
Some time later, Junior gets a call to go to the Boston branch, and while in Boston, the car gets stolen.
Junior reports the vehicle theft, but can't recall if he took the revolver out of the trunk, and so he tells BPD there may be a loaded gun in the car.
He gets home, looks in the safe, no revolver; he reaches out to BPD to so inform them.
Vehicle is recovered outside of Boston, revolver is still in the trunk.
Junior has contacted an attorney (I have no idea what firm) and will be going to an arraignment in a few days time.

So here's a guy who's got a very good job, has no priors for anything, and has a valid CT firearms license, and just forgot there was a gun in the trunk and has been very upfront with the BPD the entire time.

We can all agree Junior's really not smart at all for leaving a loaded gun in the trunk.

How screwed is he?

he should go to BPD and yap and yap without his lawyer present. It's not like hasn't done it already. Just make sure that he shows up with a big box of donuts after Patriots won a game.

The reality is, no one can say how f***ed he can be. It could and should be nothing, i.e. here is your car sir, have a good day. But it could be a full DVDA if BPD needs more medals for taking guns off the mean streets of Boston. Technically what he did is a punishable by possession of gun in MA without a license and it better not be highly capacitated. I don't know how BPD can just hand that shit back to him. The best he could hope they give it to Dawd and forget about the whole thing.

This is a good reason not to carry serialized firearm. Also a good case not to f*** up royally by bringing it where you should not and not to run your mouth when there is a guillotine of BPD hangs over your head.
 
You just can't take this stuff lightly as a gun owner in the northeast. I cross state borders every so often, including into states like NY and NJ, and I better know what is in my truck when I do. My freedom may depend on it. It's a damn shame that's how it is in the northeast, but that's the reality here.
 
OK I give. nothing makes sense.

It doesn't make sense because all of these laws (or the vast majority at least) are not designed to protect the honest, law-abiding, if sometimes forgetful gun owners. They are designed to screw said "honest, law-abiding, if sometimes forgetful gun owners" if they make the least deviation from those laws, however innocently and without ill intent. And most of the people who write those laws do not like you owning a gun and try to undermine your ability to exercise your rights.

Does THAT make any sense?
 
Tough break man. And agreed the whole thing is stupid, sounds like a decent citizen working and law abiding and makes a dumb mistake that will cost him prolly more than the car thief if they even bother looking for him anymore now that they have this “gunz” fish hooked. Wish him luck.
 
OK I give. nothing makes sense.

FOPA applies to a situation where you are legal to possess a gun in your state of origin and legal in your state of destination. FOPA then covers you in states that you are just incidentally passing through.

He was not incidentally passing through MA. He was coming to MA to do work. In other words, his destination was MA and he is not legal in MA, therefore he gets no protection from FOPA.
 
FOPA also REQUIRES that the gun be unloaded, in a locked case in a locked trunk (for a car) and ammo be in a separate case.

Loaded handgun in trunk isn't FOPA compliant. Then you have the MA "DESTINATION" (office) issue that also isn't compliant.

He's toast if they want to make an example of him, likely possibility to show they are "tough on crime" (BS).
 
Tell "Jr" to make a sizable contribution to the BPD Widows and Orphans Fund. It's tax-deductible!
 
Worst case scenario is The Chief and Fuhrer decide to use this as an example for how laws should be strict across the country. Good publicity for them after getting re-elected.
 
What's sad is that this is even an issue at all. What's sadder still is his fate will hinge on some self-appointed god like critter from the commie asylums view of it all. I seem to remember some folks forgetting they left their kid in the back seat to fry alive in summer heat. Mistakes happen some are worse than others. Cut the man a break.

Forgetting a kid in the car? No problem when.....

No charges against Rome cop whose baby died after being left in car for 8-plus hours
 
BPD?
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RIP. Not to beat a dead horse but FOPA definitely does not apply here. Educate yoself :)

Firearm Owners Protection Act - Wikipedia:

One of the law's provisions (codified in section 926A of title 18 of the U.S. Code) was that persons traveling from one place to another have a defense for any state firearms offense in a state that has strict gun control laws if the traveler is just passing through (short stops for food and gasoline), provided that the individual is not otherwise prohibited from possession of a firearm, the firearms and ammunition are not readily accessible, that the firearms are unloaded and, in the case of a vehicle without a compartment separate from the driver's compartment, the firearms are located in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console.

This section has also been interpreted to protect air travel.

Definitions of certain terms in the law include:
  • Transporting. Not staying for any determined length of time. Passing through on the way to some place.
  • Unloaded. No ammunition in the firearm. In the case of McDaniel v. Arnold, the courts upheld a conviction based on the interpretation that the accused had a loaded firearm despite not having a round in the chambered position.[15]
  • Not readily accessible. There are no clear court decisions or interpretations available but this term is widely regarded as meaning Not capable of being reached quickly for operation.
  • Locked container. A hard-sided container that is locked such as to prevent unauthorized users from gaining access.
 
"Gun was locked in a container in my trunk when the car was stolen, I was on my way to a match at my father's club after grabbing a bite to eat with him."
 
The MGL says knowingly has under his control, right? There would seem to be an argument that this wasn’t the case. Also, couldn’t that admission be suppressed because he made it to alert the police to the possibility of the added danger of a gun being in the car?
 
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