What to do with deceased persons guns?

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Asking for a friend. His grandfather died 5 years ago and had a few shotguns and a pistol, i guess they were in a storage cabinet that never got cleaned out. He was a hunter and as far as he knows they were registered? He hadnt been hunting in 15-20 years so im betting all licenses etc were expired. What can he do about legally inheriting them? I tried to read the laws on it and if im not mistaken it said they must be transferred within 180 days or they could be in his posession illegaly? He has a LTC-A if that matters. He said if its too much trouble he would just prefer to turn them into the police station and be done with it, but i told him they are worth money etc. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
 
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Asking for a friend. His grandfather died 5 years ago and had a few shotguns and a pistol, i guess they were in a storage cabinet that never got cleaned out. He was a hunter and as far as he knows they were registered? What can he do about legally inheriting them? I tried to read the laws on it and if im not mistaken it said they must be transferred within 180 days or they could be in his posession illegaly? He has a LTC-A if that matters. He said if its too much trouble he would just prefer to turn them into the police station and be done with it, but i told him they are worth money etc. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
If he had a will when he died, then one or more heirs inherited the guns.

If he died intestate, then the guns were inherited by whoever's determined
by the Mass law of intestate succession.

If the grandchild wasn't an heir, they can't "inherit" the guns
no matter how much the actual heirs like the grandchild or hate the guns.
In that case those guns would have to be transferred like any other gun sale or gift.

Do not try and transfer them through a gun dealer without knowing if it is legally required.

Do not ask police for advice.

Read the existing threads on inheritance for more info.

P. S. Any licensed gun owner who would surrender their grandparent's guns to the police
should be ostracized.
 
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Assuming MA, they are not "registered" there is no registration in MA. And given the age, probably no transaction record (FA10), not that it matters.

As has been said, whoever was named in the will or otherwise was determined to be the inheritor, owns the guns.

If they are not wanted, they'd make a great karma, just do the transfer through an FFL (check with the FFL first).
 
If he had a will when he died, then one or more heirs inherited the guns.

If he died intestate, then the guns were inherited by whoever's determined
by the Mass law of intestate succession.

If the grandchild wasn't an heir, they can't "inherit" the guns
no matter how much the actual heirs like the grandchild or hate the guns.
In that case those guns would have to be transferred like any other gun sale or gift.

Do not try and transfer them through a gun dealer without knowing if it is legally required.

Do not ask police for advice.

Read the existing threads on inheritance for more info.

P. S. Any licensed gun owner who would surrender their grandparent's guns to the police
should be ostracized tarred, feathered and run out of town on a rail.
FIFY.
 
Assuming MA, they are not "registered" there is no registration in MA. And given the age, probably no transaction record (FA10), not that it matters.

As has been said, whoever was named in the will or otherwise was determined to be the inheritor, owns the guns.

If they are not wanted, they'd make a great karma, just do the transfer through an FFL (check with the FFL first).
Karma?
 
Probably wouldn't hurt to get some actual legal advice from a lawyer versed in both firearms law and whatever branch of law covers wills and estates (estate lawyer?).

There are a few NES members who could probably answer your question legally and correctly, I'm just not sure who at the moment. Still half asleep.
 
Green (paid) members have a handful of special abilities. The obvious one is selling in the classifieds. Something that's talked about less often are "karma" giveaways. This is when a member, in an effort to feed some good juju into the universe, offers something of value, usually by random drawing. Most often, it's little stuff: pins, stickers, or book; occasionally it's bigger: guns/parts, ammo, tools.

He's saying that, if they're not wanted, it's better to give them to strangers on a gun forum than to the police.

He's right. Never give them to the police.
 
If your “friend” has his LTC, then a firearm would not necessarily be in his possession illegally — for example, I can loan another LTC holder a firearm and they would have it in their possession legally (but would not own it). However, if your question was regarding ownership, then he may not own them legally unless inherited as an heir as others have stated.

Of course there are caveats, like post-ban high capacity magazines and machine guns, etc. but it sounds like if it was a bunch of hunting rifles and shotguns there is no issue there.

See if you can get a list for your friend on what his grand dad had, or better yet photographs — occasionally a WWII “bring back” will pop up that could be high-value. A police station will gladly take surrendered firearms, and those family heirlooms could be lost forever.

Best of luck!
 
Probably wouldn't hurt to get some actual legal advice from a lawyer versed in both firearms law and whatever branch of law covers wills and estates (estate lawyer?).

There are a few NES members who could probably answer your question legally and correctly, I'm just not sure who at the moment. Still half asleep.
Probate.
 
Of course there are caveats, like post-ban high capacity magazines and machine guns, etc. but it sounds like if it was a bunch of hunting rifles and shotguns there is no issue there.
All right, I'll elaborate on the "etc":

Don't get an FFL involved before all the legal issues are completely settled,
because if there are off-list guns, an FFL can't transfer them in-state.

One can convert a cherished inheritance into a consignment sale to total strangers out-of-state
by inviting FFLs into one's life ignorantly.

ETA: FFLs are part of the magic solution to a pile of unlicensed heirs
who don't want an estate's guns. FFLs are either exactly what an estate needs,
or a fatal complication - it all depends on the specific legal situation.

(Did anyone else first read that as "prostate"?)
 
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Probably wouldn't hurt to get some actual legal advice from a lawyer versed in both firearms law and whatever branch of law covers wills and estates (estate lawyer?).

There are a few NES members who could probably answer your question legally and correctly, I'm just not sure who at the moment. Still half asleep.
This question has been answered here to the best of anyone's ability due to lack of significant details.

This isn't a unique question/scenario . . . it's been asked and answered here probably 50 times. There is a specific thread on inheritance that covers the details of what is and isn't inheritance and how transfers under both scenarios must (if you want to do it legally) be handled. I wrote that thread and no laws have changed regarding what is and what isn't inheritance since that was written.

180 days is totally irrelevant to the situation as described, so ignore it and don't worry about that.
A police station will gladly take surrendered firearms, and those family heirlooms could be lost forever.
This is an important point. No matter what one wants to do with the guns, they are worth money.

If the police become aware of them, there are more than a few cases where they come in and DEMAND all the guns, confiscate them and the heirs receive nothing for them. Legally all guns in MA that the police confiscate are required to be turned over to Mass State Police for DESTRUCTION!
 
I didn't say that all of them made it to destruction, just that legally that is what is supposed to happen.
I'll never forget the day as a new dealer in MA the local desk sergeant called me to say there was a guy at the station that just wanted his dad's (passed away) guns gone. I was happy I could help out. There was no kickback, so totally legal.

The cops can offer alternatives to destruction under some conditions, they just don't usually do this. I'm sure the rules are different for confiscated arms and as Len said, they must be destroyed.
 
LOL. I had to think for a moment and then reminded myself that things are different in AL. Keep 'em, shoot 'em, trade 'em, sell 'em. It's no one else's business (in state).

Back in those days when we still had volcanoes erupting, I lived in an isolated small town out west. Buying, selling, bartering guns was what we did for amusement. Hell, I owned the same .30-.30 four different times.
 
LOL. I had to think for a moment and then reminded myself that things are different in AL. Keep 'em, shoot 'em, trade 'em, sell 'em. It's no one else's business (in state).

Things are different everywhere outside of MA, except for NY, NJ, MD, HI, and CA.

Most people in flyover country look at you crazy if you mention that interstate transfers are illegal without going through an FFL. I grew up near the corners of AR/OK/TX/LA, and whether it was family or not, no one bothered with the legal details when it came to guns trading hands for cash.
 
Things are different everywhere outside of MA, except for NY, NJ, MD, HI, and CA.

Most people in flyover country look at you crazy if you mention that interstate transfers are illegal without going through an FFL. I grew up near the corners of AR/OK/TX/LA, and whether it was family or not, no one bothered with the legal details when it came to guns trading hands for cash.
Completely agree. I just tried to be accurate. I learned a lot from Len's MA firearms law course. Ninety-nine percent of it is irrelevant here.

But, now that you mention it, the same can apply in MA too. There is a lot of commerce that happens without Marsha's knowledge. Otherwise law abiding people don't risk much unless they turn into criminals. Then again, it's not even risky for gang bangers since they don't go to jail anymore.

People here are absolutley astounded when I speak of how things are in the northeast--and not just about guns.
 
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