Having the serial #'s run on your concealed carry weapon

There is a website where people can check - it's free and anonymous. The only downside is it's a database of voluntarily submitted serial numbers, so a no-hits lookup isn't really definitive.

https://www.hotgunz.com/

davethedog said:

In my case i was pulled to the side at a DL checkpoint for a criminal investigation because i wouldn't answer questions.

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Sounds like it would have been just as wise to answer their questions.

I noticed when my LGS gets a trade in. It takes a few days before he list it on his site. I asked him why. He tries to find out if it's stolen.

buck460XVR said:

Sounds like it would have been just as wise to answer their questions.

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Uh....NO.


The illusion continues.

Don't ever say it couldn't ever happen to you. Arrested. | The High Road

Why a second thread about the same thing? 17 posts and you start two threads about the same exact thing, urging gun owners to give out their serial numbers to the government or on the web.

trackskippy said:

Uh....NO.


The illusion continues.

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Really? You honestly think that the questions being asked at a DL checkpoint are evil and diabolical? Would answering "Is this your current address, Mr. Smith?" have gotten the OP in more trouble that what happened when he didn't comply? Why would anyone with an ounce of intelligence, intentionally try to act suspicious when carrying a CWC?

trackskippy said:

Uh....NO.


The illusion continues.

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What does that mean?

What's to stop a person getting the serial number ran at a police station after purchase, and subsequently the owner whom the firearm was stolen from then finds out it was stolen and reports it. Then 5 years down the road you get pulled over the serial number is ran and comes up stolen. You were operating under the premise that it was a clean firearm due. Should we go in every few years and get the serial ran?

How about keeping ones receipts, bill of sale, etc. of firearm purchases to present in a case where this happens?

Do we prosecute a buyer who purchases unknowingly a piece of stolen equipment such as tractor, skid steer, farming implement, etc.?

buck460XVR said:

Really? You honestly think that the questions being asked at a DL checkpoint are evil and diabolical? Would answering "Is this your current address, Mr. Smith?" have gotten the OP in more trouble that what happened when he didn't comply? Why would anyone with an ounce of intelligence, intentionally try to act suspicious when carrying a CWC?

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Contrary to what many seem to think or believe, you dont have to answer any questions. Ask them why am I being stopped? Am I being detained? And if not, am I free to go? That should be your litany.

"Checkpoints" are basically illegal as it is, bit that's a whole other thing. But of course, we get what we put up with and allow.

Elkins45 said:

What does that mean?

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It means that the illusion of us having rights continues.

If I bought the gun new I don't worry about it. I've had LE friends run numbers on guns I've bought used just to be safe. Even if it gets reported later as stolen I at least have a witness, and evidence to back it up that I made an attempt to verify the gun was clean.

And stuff like this does happen. It isn't unusual for people who have had their homes broken into to lie about how much was stolen, and it's value, in order to get a bigger insurance settlement. I have lists of every gun I've owned along with a description and SN for every gun I've owned for the last 20 years. Many have been bought and sold FTF with no paperwork to/from unknown individuals at gunshows etc.

I could easily claim some of those guns were stolen if my home were burglarized to get more money out of my insurance company even though I haven't owned the gun for 10-15 years. The chances of the guy who now owns it getting caught with it are near zero. And if he does, all he can do is say he bought it from some random guy at a gun show 10 years ago.

How about keeping ones receipts, bill of sale, etc. of firearm purchases to present in a case where this happens?

Do we prosecute a buyer who purchases unknowingly a piece of equipment?

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That is fine and having proof will clear you. Eventually. But until you can document that you bought a gun in good faith and are in fact a crime victim too this can cause headaches for you. I travel, and I don't want to have to try to explain things to a LE officer 2000 miles from home. I might have to spend a few hours, maybe days in jail until things can be worked out.

Having the numbers run goes a long way to eliminate problems but may not entirely if you bought used. If you bought new then it really simplifies things.

I do keep meticulous records of every gun I own, as to when and where purchased, make model serial, and even round count and repair or upgrade activity. But it has never once come to mind that I should be concerned about ordinary police contact, except to follow the rules.

I keep receipts and bills of sale for every firearm I buy or sell, indefinitely. If someone doesn’t want to present ID and sign a bill of sale in a FTF transaction, then no deal.

So you freely give out your serial numbers to the government BUT REFUSE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS AT A DRIVER LISCENSE CHECK POINT......

I have gone through d.u.i , insurance, dl check points all across Kentucky and they only ask for ID, insurance, registration of vehicle, and where your going.

You got so much backwards dude it's not funny

davethedog said:

I know there are some people who would adamantly refuse to do this as they don't want anyone to know what kind of firearm they own. Everyone is entitled to their opinion but i think it's wise to do so. From now on anything i carry will have the numbers ran on it for a stolen firearm. I was arrested recently and charged with a felony at a DL checkpoint for a stolen firearm i had owned and carried for 17 years purchased new from a FFL dealer. No criminal record, legal carry permit, senior citizen. If it can happen to me it can happen to anyone. You just never know if someone entered a serial # one digit off or if the firearm was actually stolen and resold through a FFL. If it's in your possession even though you didn't know it, don't assume they will let you go. This is one of those horror stories that falls under the category of "This could never happen to you". Yes it can. Ask any of the thousands of people in the US who were innocent and charged with crimes they had nothing to do with. Law enforcement simply will not believe you and will charge you no matter what you say. It was dismissed in court of course but all it takes is one bad small town "officer' to ruin the reputation of all the good cops out there. In my case i was pulled to the side at a DL checkpoint for a criminal investigation because i wouldn't answer questions.

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buck460XVR said:

Sounds like it would have been just as wise to answer their questions.

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Never say a single word to LE without a lawyer. Ever. Period.

Everyone has a cell phone with a camera, if you sell a gun take a photo of their DL. If they don't want you to do that guess what you don't get the gun. I will not get into selling a gun to a stranger is pretty darn stupid.

Quite a bit of other....well flat wrong....info here by jail house lawyers.

To the OP, if it was a key error, one number off from a stolen gun.....wow what are the odds. But the guy on the street only knows about the gun what his dispatchers are telling him, if they say it is stolen and you have it on your person...well the math is pretty simple from there. Bad luck sure, but "out to get you" nope.

Not sure on every agencies policy but I bet most will not take a call from john q public and run a number to see if it is stolen.....LOTS of other issues happen if it happens to be and they (da fuzz) does not have the item in hand. Does not matter if it is a gun, car, or track hoe.

My carry guns, heck all my guns, we bought new in a FFL dealer.

First, good luck running a serial number to check to see if it was ever reported stolen. There is no publicly accessible national database of stolen firearms. Yes, I know about hotgunz.com and its next to useless.

There is the NCIC, a national database run by the FBI that does list stolen property.....but access to it is highly restricted to law enforcement officers on official business only. And by official business I mean pursuant to a criminal investigation. Any officer who agrees to run your serial# as a favor is violating his NCIC user agreement. If he gets caught, he loses his access.



I've been an FFL since 2008. I get at least one ATF trace request a month. Traces aren't always on stolen firearms.
In that time I've had 3-4 traces where the requesting agency screwed up.
- one request was for a "Kahr MP6 pistol"....... no such model ever. There is a "Kahr PM9".
- one request was for a Glock 26.....the frame was in my safe. Requesting agency ran the serial# of the slide. (seller had parted out a Glock, selling slide and frame separately. This should be a warning to those building their own Glocks from aftermarket parts)
- another request was a handgun that I knew was in the possession of the original buyer. I asked him to take a photo showing serial# on the front page of that days Dallas Morning News. Another error by the requesting agency.

Those were ATF National Tracing Center trace requests......how all traces are supposed to be handled. Sometimes a LE agency like Frisco, TX PD decides to do its own thing and run the serial# through NCIC. Thats how a customer of mine was jammed up like the OP.
My customer calls me with a story nearly identical to the one in the OP. Customer had bought a new in box Century Arms AK.....yet when the Frisco PD ran the serial# it was reported stolen decades earlier in Georgia if my memory serves me. Officer didn't believe me when I told him HIS info was wrong. I asked if he had run the gun through ATF and he said it wasn't necessary. I told him he better ask his boss if it was necessary. He did. My customer got his AK back.

TL/DR version......databases are only as good as the info that is submitted.

buck460XVR said:

Sounds like it would have been just as wise to answer their questions.

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Keep your mouth shut, don't answer any questions. The only thing you should maybe say give is a statement "I have owned that gun for x years and I did not steal it, if you have any further questions talk to my lawyer".
If you don't have a lawyer on retainer you are wrong. It's hard to find a lawyer when they cuf you. If you can afford a gun or a case of ammo or a case of primers you can put a retainer on a lawyer.

trackskippy said:

Contrary to what many seem to think or believe, you don't have to answer any questions. Ask them why am I being stopped? Am I being detained? And if not, am I free to go? That should be your litany.

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Being confrontational with the police is generally not a wise policy. At least appear to be cooperative. A little courtesy goes a long way, even if you don't say anything of substance. The last thing you want to do is classify yourself as a "sovereign citizen" type.

I'm fairly libertarian and agree that most of these kinds of "checkpoints" are unconstitutional. And yes, refusing to answer <edit> "some" </edit> LEO questions also is a constitutional right. But what do you think is going to happen if you go through a checkpoint and refuse to speak? No cop is going to say "Oh, he's a 'sovereign citizen'. Let's just let him through."

So yes, if you really want to stand on principle and believe that resistance will result in change, then go for it. Plan on being detained at best, and arrest is likely. You then can plan on months if not years of legal headaches, and good luck getting your gun back.

I'm sure it will get me labeled as "sheeple" by a certain kind of gun owner, but my method is to be mild, pleasant, and cooperative, even in the face of the occasional obnoxious LEO. That doesn't mean I spill my life story, of course, but "Yes sir, what can I do for you?" has so far kept me out of all legal trouble.