Possession/storage of another person’s gun

[TonyDedo]

What are the restrictions in Massachusetts for a licensed person to possess or store a firearm that is owned by another licensed person?

In this particular case, my friend is (was) an active shooter, but cannot store a firearm where he lives (college campus). He is planning to obtain a Mass LTC, but it doesn’t make much sense if he has no place to keep a gun. It was suggested that he could store his gun in my home (I would install a separate gun cabinet for him) and access them as needed from there.

Is this legal, and what are the considerations involved?

And if you cannot store a gun in your home, for whatever reason, are there any other alternative places available?

 

[News Shooter]

There are excellent lawyers here

Who will correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that as long as you are properly licensed and it is stored properly there shouldn't be an issue. You'll probably have to do a transwer FA-10.

 

[icyclefar]

Ownership and posession are two different things.

As long as everyone is legal on both sides of the equation then all is good.

 

[KMaurer]

No FA-10 unless ownership changes. Otherwise I'd spend several hours every month filing FA-10s for every time I borrowed somebody else's gun to try out or somebody borrowed one of mine.

Ken

 

[Len-2A Training]

No FA-10s!

A search here will find info on "borrowing" someone else's gun, etc. (related to question).

If you have LTC (only really needed if you have access however), he can store them with you in a locked cabinet (if you have no access, you don't need any permit) that he controls.

The only part of this I find confusing is this:

is planning to obtain a Mass LTC, but it doesn’t make much sense if he has no place to keep a gun. It was suggested that he could store his gun in my home (I would install a separate gun cabinet for him) and access them as needed from there.

If he doesn't have any MA permit, he can store them with you, but he can't remove them from your home (you could if licensed) until he gets a MA LTC (as a NR, I assume).

Be prepared for the possibility that he'll get denied due to using a college campus physical address (since you can't have them there, "suitability" denial would be easily defensible by CHSB-NR or local chief-Resident).

 

[vellnueve]

If he's an out of state student, I would tell him to apply for an LTC in his home state (assuming it's a friendly or shall-issue state) using his or his parent's home address in that state (since it is in reality his permanent address) and then apply for the NR permit using that address. If he's from in-state, then apply for an LTC using that home address instead of the college campus address which is only a temporary address.

But remember that even with a NR license he will not be able to purchase ammunition or firearms in MA and will have to go north periodically to resupply.

Whatever he chooses, I strongly encourage him to pursue one of these courses of action. My shooting suffered greatly during my time in college here (although it was a great time anyway), and if I could do it again I would definitely have pursued an LTC before coming here for school.

 

[RKG]

There was an earlier thread on this topic, in which I recommended that the arrangement by documented by an agreement setting forth that the person holding the firearm was doing so as an accommodation to the person who owns it and was acquiring no interest in the firearm other than as a gratuitous bailee.

Also, I have advocated that the person holding the firearm for someone else NOT take the gun to the range and shoot it, as if it were his own, as this creates a situation that makes the bailment look like a sham for a de facto transfer.

Finally, how to do you deal with the situation where the person who put the firearm in your possession does not obtain the legal authorization to carry it away later and you're stuck with it?

Bottom line: I've pretty much consistently advised folks to avoid these types of arrangements.

 

[JGG]

Nr Ltc

How many students can afford $100.00 a year for NR-LTC?

 

[MaverickNH]

But remember that even with a NR license he will not be able to purchase ammunition or firearms in MA and will have to go north periodically to resupply.

I guess I never noticed that, as a NH resident with a NR permit, I can't buy ammo in MA. I never tried.

That's creepy - I can carry in MA but not buy ammo...

 

[Len-2A Training]

Maverick, that is correct.