Moral dilemma about rifle. Need advice.

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C-grunt

C-grunt

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Long story short. Had a friend who got into some trouble a while back and gave me his guns. Moral of the story is, if you pull a handgun against several hostile people you should call the cops about it. Because if you just go home and give the hostile group time to collaborate a story against you for the cops, you kinda look like the bad guy. He took a plea to a much lesser charge but was still a felony. He gave me the firearms and was in the process of moving across the country last time I saw him. Since the incident he has kinda become reclusive from our group and just spends time with family.

So one of the guns is a nice condition (shooter not collector) pre war Winchester M70 in 30-06 that I posted about in the rifle section. Has some wear and is missing the safety that a previous owner removed to mount a scope (dont ask me, I have no idea why). But overall in decent condition.

Thing is I have NO use for the rifle. I dont hunt and would much rather target shoot with my less recoiling and cheaper to feed Stevens .223.

Some really nice opportunities have come up for possible trades or maybe sales for the rifle and Im torn about it.

I hate to recieve this nice rifle from a friend and just turn around and get rid of it. If he was able to get his rights back and contacted me, I would give him back the rifle. But he told me he has no plans of ever trying to get these weapons back from me.

What do you guys think?
 
how many rifles did he give you? maybe send him some money, tell him it was for the guns. you could help a friend out and put your mind at ease.
 
People are different so it is hard to say how your friend might feel regarding the issue, but from my moral standpoint the gun is yours and therefore you are free to sell or trade it.
I recognize the struggle though as my brother passed away this last July and I ended up with a gun of his that I would just as soon trade for something I like better, or would get more use from. I still have the gun :confused:
 
Its been about 6 months since he gave me the guns. He also gave me a New Haven bolt action single shot .410 and a H&R double action .22 handgun.

I havent talked to him since and cant get ahold of him. He could get ahold of me easily though as we were friends through a national Subaru car club that Im an active member of.

Pancakes... The thing is I do want to get rid of the gun, I just feel bad about it incase of the unlikely chance he finds out or wants it back.
 
if it's only been 6 months I'd hold onto them awhile longer. He may calm down and come around wanting them back.
 
if he eventually concerns himself with re-establishing his right to possess a firearm, it'll cost him a lot more than ALL of those firearms are worth. he can then move forward with aquiring firearms. the ones you have are your property to do with as you wish. if you have no use for them, dispose of them as you see fit. they're yours.
my point of view.
 
why don't you sell them and then give him the money. that way if he gets his rights back, he can buy replacements, or if not, he can buy something he can use?

(perhaps a accessport for his subaru? I've always toyed with getting one for my sti)
 
(perhaps a accessport for his subaru? I've always toyed with getting one for my sti)
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ok I was gonna be a good girl and refrain but since you opened the door......... I wanna see the Chevelle mentioned in his signature!
 
Bad pics. She is down right now, needs a new fuel cell and has a phantom electric drain somewhere. Soon as she is up and running good its time for a photoshoot. Discaimer... I did not build this car. My friend did and when he told me he was selling it I got the loan that afternoon I was in such a hurry to scoop it up.

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NOLAEMT said:
why don't you sell them and then give him the money. that way if he gets his rights back, he can buy replacements, or if not, he can buy something he can use?

(perhaps a accessport for his subaru? I've always toyed with getting one for my sti)
Click to expand...
I tried to pay him the day I picked them up. He flat out refused my money.
 
C-grunt said:
Bad pics. She is down right now, needs a new fuel cell and has a phantom electric drain somewhere. Soon as she is up and running good its time for a photoshoot. Discaimer... I did not build this car. My friend did and when he told me he was selling it I got the loan that afternoon I was in such a hurry to scoop it up.
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NICE!!!!!!
What'll she do???
 
Edit: Well, that was rendered irrelevant when I went back and read the entire thread. Sorry. :eek:

I'd trade it and send him a nice Christmas present when you get in touch.

Or, you might try this website, though it tends to have lots of old addresses.
--

Ask him. Tell him you don't have much use for this particular rifle. Offer to give whatever money you can get from selling it, if he'd like. He may accept money if you're selling the rifle, rather than keeping it. Maybe he'll insist that you keep the money, in which case you should send him a particularly nice Christmas gift or something.

Can't felons own blackpowder weapons? Perhaps you should check if it is legal (don't screw this bit up, obviously) and consider using the funds to buy him a nice blackpowder rifle, if he'd like that (though it of course depends on whether or not he would be interested in that. I'd check first, personally).
 
Legally, you don't want to be merely "holding" firearms for a convicted felon. It's a mistake to take them with some kind of ambiguity hanging over them. I would sell them and keep the money. Whatever problems he's got they're not yours, and they *can't* be yours. Do not attempt to buy him some kind of substitute arm. The laws are not at all friendly when it comes to this sort of thing.

The real moral here is be very careful before taking a plea for a "lesser" felony. THERE IS NO SUCH THING! All felonies carry a mark of Cain with them that is virtually impossible to clean off. Think long and hard and get some quality legal advice before doing it. Personally I'd drive the gladius through my chest before doing it.
 
No moral dilemma, he gave you the guns and you tried to pay for them, you did the right thing. I'd sell them if you wanted and just hold the cash until you see him next. It would be perfectly OK to take a small percentage for the time and expense it takes to sell them. The next time he contacts you, send him a check, he can decide if he wants to cash it or not. You are an honest fellow and your friend sounds like a regular guy also.

Thanx, Russ
 
Cosmoline said:
Legally, you don't want to be merely "holding" firearms for a convicted felon. It's a mistake to take them with some kind of ambiguity hanging over them. I would sell them and keep the money. Whatever problems he's got they're not yours, and they *can't* be yours. Do not attempt to buy him some kind of substitute arm. The laws are not at all friendly when it comes to this sort of thing.

The real moral here is be very careful before taking a plea for a "lesser" felony. THERE IS NO SUCH THING! All felonies carry a mark of Cain with them that is virtually impossible to clean off. Think long and hard and get some quality legal advice before doing it. Personally I'd drive the gladius through my chest before doing it.
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He was carefull when taking the plea. If he had lost the trial, he was facing almost 15 years in prison. The plea was a class 6 felony with probation and fines.

He had a decent case. But it was like 4 against 1 and like I said, they all collaborated their stories before they called 911.
 
".........and gave me his guns." Sounds to me like you "own " those guns.
Do the right thing(what ever that is) and you`ll come out ok.
 
Wait a year. Try to contact him. Or contact his family and ask them to get ahold of him. If no contact then they are yours to do whatever.
 
He probably doesn't even wish to talk about the guns and just wants them out of his life right now.....they are your guns....
Since you opened the door....here is my last build....a 2004 Pontiac (Holden) GTO.....408 Iron Block Stroker Motor...FinishLine Trannie/Kaaz Rear End....Extreme Performance drive shaft....on and on :)
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He's put you in a pretty tough spot. They're his guns, but he cant reclaim them because of his felony conviction. You give them back, you get into trouble as well. You keep them, sell them off, etc, you feel guilty about screwin a friend.

Bottom line, you two need to figure this out.

BTW, nice cars fellas. Makes me want to get out there and work on mine, but I get as far as laying in the mud/gravel and have had enough. At the moment, I'm just collecting tools and parts till I have a concrete floor to work on.
 
Cosmoline's advice is solid: SELL the guns.

Obviously, you feel some sort of conflict over the role of a friend in a situation like this--I know I would. But, to remove any legal ambiguity about ownership, the sale by you ends any potential legal problems.

Jim H.
 
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