Can my wife carry one of my guns?

M

mike!

New member
Or should we get the FFL paperwork transferred? I have a Kel Tek P3-AT. I am considering the purchase of a P-11 & let my wife carry the P3 for her purse (as soon as she gets her permit). What would be the legal issues with her carrying a gun that I bought under my background check?
I figure since we're married, my guns are hers as well. Should I even be concerned?
 
No problem in florida so long as both of you are legal to own. In fact all you gotta do is hand the gun to another legal owner and say "It is now yours" and the deal is done...
Brent
 
I always laugh at these things, Chris.

Folks don't want to put their city or State in the Location detail for fear of ... what? Yet they will ask a question that can't be answered unless they disclose that very same information?... Which they end up telling us all anyway! :D
 
Someone from Alabama will know the answer Mike.

Just a tidbit: In Michigan you'd have to transfer ownership through the pistol purchase license you get at our local PD.
 
What would be the legal issues with her carrying a gun that I bought under my background check?
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I'm not familiar with AL law, but I'll give you a partial answer. Under federal law, it is legal provided that:
  • She is at least 18 years old
  • She is not prohibited from owning a firearm under the 1968 Gun Control Act (GCA), which prohibits a person from owning a gun if he or she:
    (1) Has been convicted in any court of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding 1 year;

    (2) Is a fugitive from justice;

    (3) Is an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance;

    (4) Has been adjudicated as a mental defective or has been committed to a mental institution;

    (5) Is an alien illegally or unlawfully in the United States or an alien admitted to the United States under a nonimmigrant visa;

    (6) Has been discharged from the Armed Forces under dishonorable conditions;

    (7) Having been a citizen of the United States, has renounced his or her citizenship;

    (8) Is subject to a court order that restrains the person from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner or child of such intimate partner; or

    (9) Has been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence

    (10) Cannot lawfully receive, possess, ship, or transport a firearm.

    A person who is under indictment or information for a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding 1 year cannot lawfully receive a firearm.
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    (culled from the FAQ on the ATF website)

    FWIW "adjudicated as a mental defective" means, in short, that the person is a danger to themselves or others and/or is incapable of living on their own, and that there is a legal order saying so.
  • You did not buy the gun for her with the expectation of receiving compensation in return. This is defined as a "straw purchase". This term can be hard to understand because it's legal under federal law to give someone a gun as a gift, and it's also legal to sell someone a gun. The key to a straw purchase is the intent and the expectations of the people involved; if you buy a gun with the intent to give it to someone else in return for compensation, it's a straw purchase. OTOH if you bought the gun for your own personal use and later decide to give it away or sell it, that's OK under federal law. It's also OK to buy a gun and immediately give it away if there is no expectation of receiving anything in return.
Mandatory disclaimer: I am not an attorney, nor do I play one on TV. ;) This is not official legal advice. YMMV. :)
 
Or should we get the FFL paperwork transferred? I have a Kel Tek P3-AT. I am considering the purchase of a P-11 & let my wife carry the P3 for her purse (as soon as she gets her permit). What would be the legal issues with her carrying a gun that I bought under my background check?
I figure since we're married, my guns are hers as well. Should I even be concerned?
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You need not be concerned about the transfer of the handgun to her in Alabama.

I would be concerned about carrying a gun in a purse for the following reasons:

1. Accessibility: just how fast is she going to be able to retrieve that gun to use it?

2. Negligent Discharge: unless the gun is in a holster with retention inside the purse consider this. How many times does she get into her purse during the day? If the gun is kept loaded in the purse, even with the safety on, what are the possibilites of the safety coming off inside the purse due to contact with other items in there? What are the possibilities of a negligent discharge due to the trigger catching on something in the purse or if she does have to retrieve the gun, doing so in the blind (without her having to look in the purse) and pulling the trigger inadvertantly while doing so.

3. Keeping the gun unloaded in the purse: now, not only do you have the time associated with retrieving the gun from the purse, but in order to fire, she is going to have to drop the purse, or arm through the strap, to have two hands free to rack the slide. Might as well just carry a brick in the purse as an unloaded gun.

4. Purse Snatching: what is the most likely item to get stolen from a woman?

To me, INMHO, purse carry is probably the single most dangerous way to carry a firearm.

Sorry, I know that is not the question that you asked.
 
Thanks, guys! The Brady website was interesting.
As far purse carry goes, I always stress the importance of having a gun holstered (I'll probably look for a conceilment system that will work specifically for that). The time to draw could be a problem, too; I know it would take me hours to find anything in there!
The purse-snatching thing is something that I hadn't really considered, but that is a very good point.

I usually carry loaded, but not chambered; I figure that it doesn't take that long to rack the slide. Safety first!

Anyway, I think she needs to be armed & a .380 is the smallest caliber I would consider for self defense. (Also, I think I'd like a new P-11)!
 
I usually carry loaded, but not chambered; I figure that it doesn't take that long to rack the slide. Safety first!
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Safety first is exactly why I carry with a round chambered. If my weak hand is encumbered by some means such as holding onto a child, or being held by the bad guy, it is much safer in that situation, for all involved except for the bad guy, to have the gun ready to go and be fired with one hand. And I really don't care about the bad guy's safety. :D
 
Safety first is exactly why I carry with a round chambered. If my weak hand is encumbered... it is much safer in that situation, for all involved except for the bad guy, to have the gun ready to go and be fired with one hand.
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+1. I dislike "unloaded" carry for that reason and several others:
  • If firing the gun requires you to complete a complex series of actions involving 2 hands, those actions could be fumbled at the worst possible moment. The simpler it is to get the gun into action, the better. I prefer "just pull the trigger" simple. :) However, IMHO easily-disengaged manual safeties are OK as long as you're willing to repeatedly practice drawing the gun until disengaging the safety is second nature.
  • A nearby BG may grab you by surprise, or may swing a blunt instrument at you. Your other hand may be needed to hold the BG at bay long enough to draw your gun.
  • The assumption that "my gun is unloaded" can lead to complacency, which can lead to unsafe gun handling practices. For instance, if you're concerned that your carry method could lead to the trigger being accidentally pulled, the correct response is to change your carry method, not to carry the gun "unloaded".
 
I usually carry loaded, but not chambered; I figure that it doesn't take that long to rack the slide. Safety first!
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Without getting into that great debate, I do suggest you get some training on one hand manipulation of your firearm...
 
I usually carry loaded, but not chambered; I figure that it doesn't take that long to rack the slide. Safety first!
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Unless you can rack the slide just as fast with one hand... a change would probably be benificial to you. The first thing that's going to happen if the BG is close enough, is that they are going to grab your arm/hand/wrist. Therefore you might as well carry a brick.
 
The KelTec is designed to be carried with a round in the chamber. There is no safety on the gun. The only safety is that a very long and deliberate pull of the trigger is required to get the gun to fire each round, a hammer block that blocks the hammer after firing, and a transfer bar that blocks the hammer from the firing pin. With a 8-9 pound and very long trigger pull you're not going to accidentally pull the trigger. Bounce the thing off a concrete wall all day and it won't fire.
 
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No problem in Ohio.

If she is able to obtain the permit, she should be good to go. My wife carries my S&W Tomcat all the time.

You can always look it up on the BATF or State AG's website.
 
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