Legal issues with regard to discharging a firearm in your garage, backyard, etc.?

F

FUD

Moderator
G35 has put together a [Link to invalid post] (the longest that I have EVER seen ANYWHERE on ANYTHING) on how to do your own ballistic gelatin ammo testing with simple supplies that you can purchase in a regular supermarket. My question is, if I go into my garage & start shooting and neighbors hear gunshots & report it to the police, are there any legal issues that I need to be concerned about? I would suspect "YES" -- firing off a gun within city limits for purposes other than self defense. If that is true, then where can I do this type of ballistic gelatin ammo testing (I don't think that even an outdoor range would permit me to set all of this up and do my own testing)?
FUD
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Share what you know & learn what you don't
 
Do you even know for certain that it is illegal to fire a gun within the city limits? Around here, it is perfectly legal. All I would do is call the Police or Sheriff's dispatcher and let them know you'll be shooting from -:-- to -:--. They may send a cop out a couple of times to see what you're doing, but more than likely, he'll just be there to see how you do it. Not to regulate, but to gawk at your homemade gelatin. Please post the recipe if you have it, I'd like to play too.
 
In NJ, even firing a BB gun in within city limits is akin to discharging a firearm. Nice to know you can, and will be, charged for the same "crime" if you shoot a BB gun, or a 338 win mag in your back yard in that commie state!

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Dead [Black Ops]
 
kjm: go here --> [Link to invalid post] to the 9th post. TFL member G35 has provided the MOST detailed set of instructions that I have EVER seen ANYWHERE on ANYTHING! Thanks G35!

Dead, just curious, what part of Jersey are you in. I grew up in Irvington (a town near Newark) about 4 blocks from Vailsburg -- 1 block from exit 144 on the GSP. Lived there for about a quarter of a century then I spent another another decade over in Middlesex Borough, which is in Middlesex County, about six blocks from the radioactive randon dump along the train tracks right near the Piscataway border before finally moving to the Florida swamps. Just curious where abouts you're from. FUD.

[This message has been edited by FUD (edited September 18, 2000).]
 
Fud, considering your sterling relationship whth your homeowners association, this should get veeery interestipating. Then city, county etc regs. Wonderful if you can pull it off.

Sam...neighbor runnin out of sheep, gotta get some gel.
 
FUD I know where those places are. For the most part I am in Bergen County. Have a small place in PA though :D

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Dead [Black Ops]
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by FUD:
... if I go into my garage & start shooting and neighbors hear gunshots & report it to the police, are there any legal issues that I need to be concerned about? [/quote]

One word: Discretion. Unless your neighbors are throwing a yard party next door, a single shot at midday won't be noticed, and if it is, so what? For all they know, you might be using a power nailer. Likewise, a shot at 10PM on a quiet summer evening might get people's attention. Keep the doors and windows - and your mouth - shut, of course, but since it's YOUR garage, it's nobody else's business. Of course, if there's an LEO standing outside, or if you touch off a fusillade of shots, you might actually get some attention. (If you're still worried, a running gas lawn mower just outside will effectively mask the noise of a pistol shot inside a closed garage.)
 
One thing that you can do is sound proof the garage. I've had some friends that did just that but they did it because they were practicing music, not shooting, and didn't wish to have the neighbors come down on them. With all the wailing of the guiters and beating on the drums, the db level is extreme. But, you walk outside and you don't hear a thing. I don't know what stuff they used but it was expensive from what I understand. After you did this you would have to bullet proof the wall you will be firing toward, just in case the gel doesn't stop the round. You don't want to ventilate your garage. After all this is done, then you don't have to worry about the neighbors or the police. Or, move into the country and just do what you wish :).

USP45usp
 
I would imagine/guess that your city has restrictions. Most do, but some small cities up here in central FL have no rules about discharging firearms.

Just go out in the boonies and shoot to your hearts content - aren't you close to the Everglades? Find a safe backstop, like the far side of a ditch/canal.

Of course, tourists and in-laws work, too :)!

If you are not familiar with FLA law: Click Here

Edited to fix formatting problem. - TBM

[This message has been edited by TheBluesMan (edited September 18, 2000).]
 
FUD :eek: If you move to central Texas I will let you set it up on my so called gun range, and Dennis and I will supervise. "If I can get Dennis to Submit to my insane offer"

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"Defiance"
And yet...it moves
(Galileo Galilie)

"Spay or Nuter your Socialist Pets"
 
pittspilot: Technically, I believe you can, as long as it is on your own property. However, as with everything concerning guns in the PRK, discretion is advised (certainly wouldn't do it in the front yard unless I wanted a visit from "Officer Friendly"). Up in either you neck of the woods or LA last week a man with a gun was seen by children on the playground of a nearby school. According to the radio news reports, the cops couldn't arrest for carrying illegally 'cause he was on his own property - but they got him for threatening the kids based on some remarks he said.

FUD: You may want to get friendly with a farmer, rancher or other large property owner - might be able to work something out.
 
FUd,
Do a search on flssa, florida shooting sports association..........there should be links there to help you locate places to "experiment"....I understand east coast has more ranges then the boonies were Im at...of course there quickly filling in open space they can fine......that durn parkway is coming through from tampa.....fubsy.
 
FUD, you might try this. Build a sound proof "tire tunnel". Get 6 or 7 old tires, drill and bolt (1/4 20 bolts, fender washers) the side walls one to the next. Fire you pistol partly inside the tire tunnel. Along with basic garage soundproofing, the sound heard outside will be minimal to nothing. For cheap garage sound proofing, old cardboard egg cartons opened up and stapled to the walls go a long way to soak up sound also.
 
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