funny book flapjack
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Thought I should post this here. I believe in naming names when someone deserves it, so-- Buck's Gun Rack in Daytona, FL apparently has no problems treating their potential customers rudely, while basically telling them to just go commit a felony, because they are busy right now.
I'm pretty mad at these guys right now. We talk a lot here about misinformation spewed by gunshop employees. This one's a bigger deal to me, since:
1. The misinformation would have resulted in my mother-in-law & me commiting a felony.
2. He was extremely rude & arrogant about giving the misinformation to her, & told me to "quit wasting his time & go call the cops if I didn't like it."
Here's the email I sent to the store's contact address, explaining what happened:
Hello,
I just got off of the phone with one one of your salesmen (I didn't get his name). My mother-in-law was just in your store, & your salesman gave her information that, if we followed his advice, would result in her (& me) committing a federal felony.
When she put me on the phone to speak with him, he told me that I was an idiot, & that "he didn't have time to argue with someone who didn't know what they were talking about."
Now-- I don't expect all salesmen to know every firearm law in the country, but this is a pretty big one. Even if he didn't know the answer, he should say he didn't know the answer, instead of providing an incorrect & illegal one.
It is federal law that, if one resident of a state wants to gift or sell a handgun to a resident of a different state, that they must do the transaction through an FFL in the recipient's state of residency as an intermediate.
It is irrelevant that neither Florida (her state of residence) nor Georgia (my state of residence) have state registrations, or require licensing to purchase/own/possess a handgun. A federal law that is stricter than state requirements trumps those states' (any/all states') requirements. It doesn't matter if the two people are relatives, if it's a gift instead of a sale, or if they are currently physically in the same state as one another. If a person wants to sell or gift a handgun to another person, & those two people are residents of different states-- IT IS A FELONY TO DO SO WITHOUT GOING THROUGH AN FFL DEALER OF THE RECIPIENT'S STATE.
From the BATFE website:
[18 U.S.C. 922(a)(3) and (5), 922(b)(3), 27 CFR 478.29 and 478.30]
(B3) May an unlicensed person obtain a firearm from an out-of-State source if the person arranges to obtain the firearm through a licensed dealer in the purchaser’s own state? [Back]
A person not licensed under the GCA and not prohibited from acquiring firearms may purchase a firearm from an out-of-State source and obtain the firearm if an arrangement is made with a licensed dealer in the purchaser's state of residence for the purchaser to obtain the firearm from the dealer.
[18 U.S.C. 922(a)(3) and 922(b)(3)]
Is it a stupid law? Of course it is. But the fact remains-- it is a felony for me to gift or sell a handgun to my mother-in-law, unless that handgun transaction goes through an FFL dealer in her state of residence (Florida).
I don't have time to argue with your salesman any more than he has time to argue with me. I am at work right now as well. But I don't appreciate your salesman giving information to me & my mother-in-law that is a felony, & I certainly don't appreciate your salesman rudely telling me that I am an idiot when I informed him of his mistake. He ended by telling me to "call the cops on him if I don't like it."
Well-- he wasn't doing anything illegal by not doing the transfer, so calling the cops on him would accomplish nothing. But telling us that we needn't do the transfer with a Florida FFL, could have gotten both her & me felony convictions. The BATFE doesn't play games, & your staff need to familiarize themselves with the federal laws that apply to the firearms business.
I am an active member of The High Road, The Firing Line, M1911 Pistol Organazation, & many other websites with readerships of many thousands of people per day. I will be posting this on each of those sites, so I would imagine that by the weekend, somewhere around 50,000 people will have read about the rude, incorrect, & dangerous way that your sales help deals with potential customers.
I'm pretty mad at these guys right now. We talk a lot here about misinformation spewed by gunshop employees. This one's a bigger deal to me, since:
1. The misinformation would have resulted in my mother-in-law & me commiting a felony.
2. He was extremely rude & arrogant about giving the misinformation to her, & told me to "quit wasting his time & go call the cops if I didn't like it."
Here's the email I sent to the store's contact address, explaining what happened:
Hello,
I just got off of the phone with one one of your salesmen (I didn't get his name). My mother-in-law was just in your store, & your salesman gave her information that, if we followed his advice, would result in her (& me) committing a federal felony.
When she put me on the phone to speak with him, he told me that I was an idiot, & that "he didn't have time to argue with someone who didn't know what they were talking about."
Now-- I don't expect all salesmen to know every firearm law in the country, but this is a pretty big one. Even if he didn't know the answer, he should say he didn't know the answer, instead of providing an incorrect & illegal one.
It is federal law that, if one resident of a state wants to gift or sell a handgun to a resident of a different state, that they must do the transaction through an FFL in the recipient's state of residency as an intermediate.
It is irrelevant that neither Florida (her state of residence) nor Georgia (my state of residence) have state registrations, or require licensing to purchase/own/possess a handgun. A federal law that is stricter than state requirements trumps those states' (any/all states') requirements. It doesn't matter if the two people are relatives, if it's a gift instead of a sale, or if they are currently physically in the same state as one another. If a person wants to sell or gift a handgun to another person, & those two people are residents of different states-- IT IS A FELONY TO DO SO WITHOUT GOING THROUGH AN FFL DEALER OF THE RECIPIENT'S STATE.
From the BATFE website:
[18 U.S.C. 922(a)(3) and (5), 922(b)(3), 27 CFR 478.29 and 478.30]
(B3) May an unlicensed person obtain a firearm from an out-of-State source if the person arranges to obtain the firearm through a licensed dealer in the purchaser’s own state? [Back]
A person not licensed under the GCA and not prohibited from acquiring firearms may purchase a firearm from an out-of-State source and obtain the firearm if an arrangement is made with a licensed dealer in the purchaser's state of residence for the purchaser to obtain the firearm from the dealer.
[18 U.S.C. 922(a)(3) and 922(b)(3)]
Is it a stupid law? Of course it is. But the fact remains-- it is a felony for me to gift or sell a handgun to my mother-in-law, unless that handgun transaction goes through an FFL dealer in her state of residence (Florida).
I don't have time to argue with your salesman any more than he has time to argue with me. I am at work right now as well. But I don't appreciate your salesman giving information to me & my mother-in-law that is a felony, & I certainly don't appreciate your salesman rudely telling me that I am an idiot when I informed him of his mistake. He ended by telling me to "call the cops on him if I don't like it."
Well-- he wasn't doing anything illegal by not doing the transfer, so calling the cops on him would accomplish nothing. But telling us that we needn't do the transfer with a Florida FFL, could have gotten both her & me felony convictions. The BATFE doesn't play games, & your staff need to familiarize themselves with the federal laws that apply to the firearms business.
I am an active member of The High Road, The Firing Line, M1911 Pistol Organazation, & many other websites with readerships of many thousands of people per day. I will be posting this on each of those sites, so I would imagine that by the weekend, somewhere around 50,000 people will have read about the rude, incorrect, & dangerous way that your sales help deals with potential customers.
Don't make me come after ya', You will no itz me 'cuz I will be the guy with the one big yeller toof!