Travel quandry, visiting New York state.. Need a 'gun babysitter'.

[tjobrien21]

Hello all,

I'm from Alabama and will be driving to NY to visit family in a few weeks. I have an Alabama CCW (I carry daily), and it's good in AL, TN, and KY. So going into OH, I'd have to box it up, which sucks but I can deal with it. At least I'll still have it in my hotel room, etc. All is well until I get to NY, which largely ignores the 2nd amendment and you have to have a permit to even OWN or posses a pistol. Great, free ticket to jail and all the trouble that comes with that. :-/

Does anyone know of a place, say maybe a gun shop in Ohio, that would 'babysit' my firearm while I am in NY? I'm one of the law-abiding good guys, and my tendency to abide by the law is most likely going to leave me traveling the highways defenseless. I'd solve the problem by not going anywhere near NY, except that the folks I'm going to see are elderly and can't travel.

Ideas or advice, anyone?

Thanks,
Tim

[Plumbnut]

Maybe when you get to Ohio(or before it becomes illegal for you to have) you could mail the gun back to a dealer in Alabama. Consult the gun dealer in Alabama about the particulars.

[psyfly]

I guess you could stop short of the NY state line and pawn it.

But, I'm not sure how eager the pawn shop would be to "sell it" back to you when you try to redeem it since you're from out of state.

That might be a problem...

Will

[JimDandy]

Depending on the duration of your stay in New York:

http://www.atf.gov/content/firearms-...-firearms-usps

Originally Posted by The BATFE

Yes. A person may ship a firearm to himself or herself in care of another person in the State where he or she intends to hunt or engage in any other lawful activity. The package should be addressed to the owner. Persons other than the owner should not open the package and take possession of the firearm.

[Plumbnut]

So you cant mail a gun to a FFL dealer in your home state if your out of state?

[Aguila Blanca]

You can't "mail" a handgun to anyone, from anywhere, unless YOU are an FFL.

Tim (OP), how do you figure you're good in Ohio? Your final destination is New York, where you are not allowed to possess or even touch a firearm. That means the FOPA does not apply to you at any point on this trip, since the fundamental prerequisite of the FOPA is that your possession of the firearm(s) must be legal in the place where the journey begins AND in the place where the journey will end.

I know that Ohio is an open carry state, but I don't understand your comment about "boxing it up" when you reach Ohio.

[g.willikers]

Ship, yes, mail, no.
The post office will only mail from ffl holders to ffl holders.
But why would the OP do that?
It would leave him without his gun all the way back to Ala.

Boxing it up in Oho probably refers to the Ala permit not being honored in Ohio.

[Plumbnut]

Ok "ship" the gun back to a ffl dealer in Alabama?

I was wondering because I believe some firearm manufactures will have you ship a defective gun to them for repair and they will ship it back to you

Also if you have custom work done by a smithy in a different state I was under the impression you would ship the gun to them and they could ship it back to you if the smithy is a FFL holder.

[Vireye]

Whereabouts in NY will you be? I'm in CT if you get real desperate, about half an hour from NYC.

[Brian Pfleuger]

Originally Posted by Vireye

Whereabouts in NY will you be? I'm in CT if you get real desperate, about half an hour from NYC.

How is he supposed to get to CT without going through NY?

[tjobrien21]

Thanks for the helpful replies folks.

I'm not really looking to ship the firearm, because I'd like to pick it up for the return trip home. I found in PA, getting it back if I left it somewhere would be a problem (you need a valid PA drivers license, or so I was told by the gun stores I called).

@g.willikers - that's exactly what I mean by boxing it up - putting the gun, unloaded, into its box instead of cocked and locked in my holster. My fingers were typing faster than my brain.

@Aguila Blanca, by "I'm good in Ohio", I meant I can posses the gun. I know with my AL permit I can't carry it, but I can have it locked in its box on the car (last I knew, anyway). And I'd like to have it with me staying in a hotel, since I tend to end up spending the night in OH while making this trip.

@JimDandy, I'll be there about a week. I looked at the ATF site you linked, but I don't know what specifically I should look at. Could you give a little guidance?

@Vireye, thank you, but I won't be anywhere near there. But I appreciate it!

We really need uniform firearms laws in this country. Oh wait, we do, in the 2A... We just have states that violate it, some more blatantly than others.

Jeez I wish I didn't have to go to NY!

Thanks, and any ideas are appreciated!

[Tinner666]

I don't live too far off I-95. I could keep it in my safe until your return trip. I'd want to make a copy of your ID and CCW permit if you have one for my protection. I'll give a receipt for the pistol for your protection.
We don't know each other, but I bet you can find out who I am in 10 minutes or less and find all you need to know about me. Post here, or give a call at either number.

[dakota.potts]

If you need to travel with a gun, maybe pick up an airweight or something that you can travel with and then sell it to a shop in Ohio?

[RamItOne]

put it on consignment for 5 times the value - Win Win

pawn it, IIRC they cant sell for a month.

[Brian Pfleuger]

I have an approach that I would call "Pragmatism".

I ask myself a bunch of questions.

Do I prefer to carry my gun every day? Yes.

Have I ever needed it? No.

Have I ever known anyone who needed one? No.

Do I ever not carry it? Yes.

How many folks engage in interstate travel every day? Tens of millions.

How many of them need firearms every day? Most days, probably none. Certainly very few. Tiny fractions of one percent, no question.

Does violence happen in random, unpredictable places? Yes.

Does most violence happen in relatively predictable places at relatively predictable times and for relatively predictable reasons? Yes it does.

Can I do a lot to avoid potential violence, such as avoiding inner city gas stations, questionable neighborhoods and so forth? Yes.

Will my cross-country trip take me to those places? No.

Are there major inconveniences associated with carrying the gun on this trip? Yes.

Are there potential legal pitfalls, which I may ultimately win but which could get very expensive and time consuming in the mean time? Yes.

My answers and the probabilities associated with them cause me to conclude:

I would not carry my gun on this trip.

[BumbleBug]

May be this can help:

http://www.manta.com/mb_45_A10637N9_36/safe_deposit_companies/ohio

...bug

[tjobrien21]

Originally Posted by Brian Pfleuger

I have an approach that I would call "Pragmatism".

I ask myself a bunch of questions

That's a great approach, and it's ultimately what I'm doing. The fact is, I'll probably have to go unarmed - though I'd prefer not to. I'm a firm believer in the second amendment and on principal, this travel situation burns my tail. If there's a simple, clear, jail-free way around it, I'd like to do that. Just because, I guess.

I find it ironic, since I believe I'm in more real danger traveling than I ever am in my day to day life, where I carry all the time. In daily life I always do things to mitigate the danger: Avoid bad areas (a bit harder to do in unfamiliar places), keep my mouth shut, stay aware of surroundings, leave if a situation "feels" bad, etc. But there are times where you're thrust into danger (car breakdown or whatnot) and I just want to be as prepared as possible.

Even unarmed, the state of NY can't remove my other defensive training, which would be used first to stop threats. I'm more of a 'last resort' kind of guy when if comes to firearm defense. I just like having it as part of the 'defense vocabulary', so to speak.

[Brian Pfleuger]

I agree and it sounds like you have a good process/approach.

[jnichols2]

tjobrien21,

I'm in pretty much the same boat as you. I leave Friday for New York from Texas. Then on to Ohio, Germany, and back to Texas.

I have family in Ohio I could leave it with while in Germany. But I'm just not willing to risk New York.

I guess that's what is meant by "infringement"?

One more thing; if you have a 32 oz. drink cup, get rid of it too.

[2ndsojourn]

From jnichols:
"One more thing; if you have a 32 oz. drink cup, get rid of it too."

Nah. That got repealed.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/12/us/new...large-soda-ban

[Frank Ettin]

Originally Posted by Plumbnut

...I was wondering because I believe some firearm manufactures will have you ship a defective gun to them for repair and they will ship it back to you

Also if you have custom work done by a smithy in a different state I was under the impression you would ship the gun to them and they could ship it back to you if the smithy is a FFL holder.

That's true, but that's also not what's happening here.

It might be possible for the OP to make arrangements to ship the gun back to a cooperating FFL in Alabama. Can't be sure that an FFL would be willing to go along, so it's the sort of thing that should be worked out in detail ahead of time.

Originally Posted by BumbleBug

Private Safety Deposit Boxes...

Renting a safe deposit box along the way might be doable and could be the best idea if one really needs to take a gun.

[Corrections Cop]

I agree with Brian, I would not take it, it sounds like to much of a hassle trying to find a place to store it. I would just carry a good knife. One thought I had for you was maybe contact a police department, and see if you can leave it with them. I like to carry as much as possible, but if its to big a hassle I don't. Most of the time a carry a knife as well as my sidearm, just carry a knife and call it good. That's my 2 cents.

[Nathan]

I once rented a storage garage for this issue. Don't tell them what you are storing and keep it a foot off the floor. Frankly, I would tell nobody what you are doing. Just put it in a big box or put some other junk in the unit with it so it doesn't look weird on the surveillance video. You should be GTG for a week or so.

Might consider insuring your gun. I'm not a lawyer but I see no OH law which forbids this.

[Frank Ettin]

Originally Posted by Corrections Cop

...just carry a knife and call it good...

One thing, however. I believe that New York also has some pretty strict knife laws. The OP should do some research before he carries a knife in New York, especially New York City.

[stephen426]

I'm not advocating that you break the law, but I have travelled through certain places that severely restrict firearms. I disassembled the gun and locked it in the trunk. I drove carefully and obeyed all traffic laws.

I can certainly understand you wanting to carry while you are on the road. I would certainly consider Tinner's offer so you can have the gun on your way home too.

PS. I agree with Frank. Knife laws get crazy in the northeast. If you really choose to go without your gun, carry a mini maglight that holds 2AA batteries. It makes a decent kubaton in a pinch. Better than nothing I guess. Besides, it helps you see in the dark! ;-)