Automobile trip to the North East with a handgun

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Rick O'Shay

Rick O'Shay

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Central West Texas
Hello, everyone..! Although this is only my second post, I've been a member since 2009. I have gained a lot of insight & learned new perspectives about a multitude of different subjects. My father taught me "Keep your mouth shut and your ears open and you will learn a whole lot more". It's been good advice.

Now comes my reason for this post. I have had my Texas CHL for the past 17 years, so I'm not exactly new to CC. We are planning an automobile trip to visit some friends in NE PA & spend some time at their vacation home on the NJ shore. I'm familiar with the reciprocity agreements for all states heading that direction, but I'm not sure what the laws are regarding traveling with a handgun in D.C., Maryland & NJ. I have no intention of carrying in those states, just want to have one in my car only to be taken out when we are in a Motel.
We took a trip a couple of years ago to San Frisco to drive the Pacific Coast highway to LA. In my research for that trip, I learned I could travel with a firearm as long as it was unloaded & locked in a separate container from the ammo, which also had to be locked & not accessible. I used a Pelican hard case. Worked out great. Hoping I can do the same in the NE trip.

I would like to draw on the experiences of members who are knowledgeable
about traveling through D.C. MD & NJ. Especially spending a few days in NJ with friends.

Thanks in advance,
Rick
 
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Maybe the best approach would be is to take a picture of your handgun.....and then bring the picture with you when you visit the Northeast and leave the actual gun at home.

While you will be disarmed, you will save yourself a ton of money in legal fees and years behind the wire.

Will FOPA protect you?

Remember that man from Florida who was stopped by police in Maryland while passing through who left his conceal carry gun at home and still had his vehicle search by police, his family separated and put in separate patrol cars. And the man left his gun home. Imagine the world trouble if the man had his gun in the car???

http://www.guns.com/2014/01/21/mary...rida-family-insisting-father-gun-even-though/

In New Jersey, you might get a pardon. That is if you don't mind thousands in legal fees and time behind the wire and your name in the paper as the latest casualty of New Jersey's outdated draconian gun laws. You might be free and clear in a year or so, or maybe not.

Not worth it.
.
 
If I had to pick three places to not have a gun, it would be D.C., MD, and NJ. Seriously, just don't. People have been arrested in MD because police found a single empty brass case in the car. Are you sure you didn't lose one somewhere in your car?

I'd also be careful about PA, but only because their reciprocity agreements have been moving towards not giving reciprocity to non-resident permits. If they honor Texas, you're ok, but otherwise you need to check the PA list just before you leave. Also, Philadelphia has its own rules regarding guns; they don't have to follow the PA exemption law.
 
Unless you have been subject to some very specific threat (your testimony sent the capo di capi to prison), leave the gun at home. The only legal way you can carry in a car is unloaded and locked up, so it will be useless on the road. (Also, NJ police reportedly don't honor the FOPA; they arrest and let "the suits" sweat the details; spending a week in jail is no way to enjoy a vacation even if you eventually get off.)

As for an overnight motel stopover, if you leave the motel room, a maid or custodian can find the gun and report you. If you take the gun with you, you are violating the state's carry law. (Even taking the gun from the car to the motel or vice versa is carrying.)

In short, leave the gun at home. The chances are extremely remote that you would need it; there is a greater chance of having it discovered by the police and going to prison.

Jim
 
DC is no go, practically speaking, even driving through. Better to drive around the city traffic wise, anyway.

Firearm must be properly secured in a locked container while transiting through Maryland, and do not make any stops

New Jersey is a total non starter. Fuggedaboutit.
 
We follow a map route of reciprocating states as far as carry licensing is concerned, and follow each state's laws as to storage and transport as we pass through. We're lucky enough we always seem to find a good route. Some places we just no longer visit and we're good with that. Totalitarian states can exist without our money and I'm sure they appreciate our efforts.
 
I'm pretty sure you DON'T need an FID card to possess a handgun in NJ. You only need one for purchase or carry. You will be severely restricted in terms of what you could do with the handgun. IE Home or Range only.

The best way to know for sure is to call up the NJ State Police. Also, call up MD state Police. They will tell you what you need to know. Get the name of the LEO you spoke to on the phone, write down their name.

NJ is not NY. You CAN bring guns into the state.

MD has an AWB. No permit to own, only to purchase.

Forget DC.

Contrary to what some will lead you to believe, mere possession of a handgun in these states will not result in Hillary Clinton descending from the heavens in a UN marked helicopter for the sole purpose of confiscating your gun and putting a CIA produced chip in your brain, forever monitoring your impure thoughts.
 
MD has no allowance for keeping a handgun in your car other than a specific list of activities. FOPA won't protect you if you stop in MD, as that becomes a destination.

See statute 4-203 in the MD code.

leave your gun at home IMO.
 
Even NJ residents who HAVE the FID are only allowed to bring their handguns to the range and back with "no deviations". This is even then the handgun locked in the trunk separated from the ammo.

http://njgunforums.com/forum/index.php/topic/45375-pa-resident-wanting-to-shoot-at-nj-range/


It is my contention that Christie could have eased some of the draconian rules even though he could not eliminate them. In the above scenario, with the no deviations rule means that in NJ you have your FID, you are registered at the range (and the police have a copy of the names of the members). Then you can transport your handgun to the range from your home, and back again. Which means you cannot stop to pickup your buddy to go shooting with you, you cannot stop at the store and buy ammo, you cannot stop at the supermarket on the way home.

You must go to the range and then directly home again. You might be able to stop for gas, change a flat or take a necessary detour as allowed by law. But those are the only exemptions.


Also

http://www.state.nj.us/njsp/about/fire_trans.html

"Shall be carried unloaded and contained in a closed and fastened case, gunbox, securely tied package, or locked in the trunk of the automobile in which it is being transported, and in the course of travel, shall include only such deviations as are reasonably necessary under the circumstances. "




Also

http://www.njsp.org/about/fire_hollow.html


"Activities contained in N.J.S.A 26:39-6f. can be broken down as follows:

A member of a rifle or pistol club organized under rules of the National Board for the Promotion of Rifle Practice and which filed its charter with the State Police;
A person engaged in hunting or target practice with a firearm legal for hunting in this State;
A person going directly to a target range, and;
A person going directly to an authorized place for "practice, match, target, trap or skeet shooting exhibitions."
"
.
 
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Have your friends come down to Texas and take them to the Gulf for a day or so. Better than going to New Jersey.
 
Bring your gun to NJ= go to jail
Bring your gun to NY=go to jail
Bring your gun to Mass= go to jail
Bring your gun to DC= go to jail
and I'm pretty sure Connecticut, Maryland, Rhode Island, and Delaware would give you a hard time as well .
 
FLNT4EVR said:
Bring your gun to NJ= go to jail
Bring your gun to NY=go to jail
Bring your gun to Mass= go to jail
Bring your gun to DC= go to jail
and I'm pretty sure Connecticut, Maryland, Rhode Island, and Delaware would give you a hard time as well .
Click to expand...

Officers are part of the population who make the state and local laws. Gun Laws reflect how the population feels about guns and present a problem for those law abiding citizens who want to own guns. An officer who stops an out of state vehicle and feels that citizens have no business with arms, that's a bigger problem.

chuck
 
I haven't posted here in a while. NJ Resident here.

FOPA covers you going to destination. My suggestion is to leave the gun in PA.

I can go over all of the technicalities but basically you can only travel to or from your home, place of business, or a gun range / store / smith with only "reasonable" deviations.

The shore isn't a reasonable deviation. Don't bring your pistol to NJ.
 
oneounceload said:
If your friend has a gun safe at his PA home, leave it there while you go to the shore and then get it when you go back to head home.
Click to expand...

Excellent idea. I have done this more than once, leaving my gun with cousins in Bangor,PA, which is directly across the Delaware River from NJ. I then cross over and visit relatives in NJ and NY.

Retrieve the gun on the way back to Florida. This leaves only a very small stretch of Maryland to maneuver. Gun in the trunk, using FOPA 1986, on to Virginia and home.
 
Bring your gun to NJ= go to jail
Bring your gun to NY=go to jail
Bring your gun to Mass= go to jail
Bring your gun to DC= go to jail
and I'm pretty sure Connecticut, Maryland, Rhode Island, and Delaware would give you a hard time as well .
Click to expand...

This is all a blanket statement and incorrect.

You CAN bring a pistol into NY for a sanctioned shooting competition (which he's not), you can get a non-resident permit in Mass for $100. You can also bring a handgun into any of the other states you've mentioned. He can't CARRY in most instances (except with Mass non-res Class A). DC is the only no-go.

I wish people would quit parroting what everyone on the internet says. The states you mentioned all have bad gun laws, but it still is possible to bring a handgun into most of those states for defense purposes (barring NY and DC).
 
I think some folks need to read the FOPA before depending on it to protect them from serious problems if they choose to travel with a gun. Here it is (18 USC 926A):

Notwithstanding any other provision of any law or any rule or regulation of a State or any political subdivision thereof, any person who is not otherwise prohibited by this chapter from transporting, shipping, or receiving a firearm shall be entitled to transport a firearm for any lawful purpose from any place where he may lawfully possess and carry such firearm to any other place where he may lawfully possess and carry such firearm if, during such transportation the firearm is unloaded, and neither the firearm nor any ammunition being transported is readily accessible or is directly accessible from the passenger compartment of such transporting vehicle: Provided, That in the case of a vehicle without a compartment separate from the driver’s compartment the firearm or ammunition shall be contained in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console.

The original purpose of the law was to allow competitors in sanctioned matches to carry their firearms THROUGH restrictive states. It does also provide some protection for other gun owners while travelling with a firearm.

But I strongly suggest reading the FOPA before thinking it will allow you to swagger down Broadway with your Glock on your hip.

Jim
 
post #14, cops ...

In response to post #14, many law enforcement officers seek out the vehicles with out of state tags in a effort to find drugs & guns. :uhoh:

Many areas have asset forfeiture or seizure laws, :rolleyes: .
They may see the traffic stop as a way to find any illegal drugs or make a gun collar.
Arrests and seizures mean more $$$ which means the agencies get bigger budgets, ;) .

It may seem unfair or unethical but that's what it is.
 
NJ is no go unless you are traveling between range and home. Not hotel. Not friends house. So for all practical purposes you cant possess at all there at all. Felony level offense. 10 years in prison max. Hollow point ammo is also felony unless in home or back and forth from the range, which would not apply to you. Forget NJ.
 
and Delaware would give you a hard time as well .
Click to expand...
W.T.Heck? Why would anyone include Delaware in a list of gun-unfriendly states? DE's just fine and recognizes carry permits from a lot of states.
 
Countless stories about firearm arrests in N.J. and it isn't getting much better no matter what the current Governor may say.

I can't even bring my air rifle there to shoot with friends as far as I know. Not willing to take the chance either. Out of state car license you know.
 
Buy a shotgun and bring that. Load up the butt cuff or side saddle with slugs, and move on with your life.
 
long gun

+1 on suggestion for a shotgun in the trunk for unfree states. how about a pawn shop $100 special, single shottie, cleaned up and cut down to legal minimum length, with a butt cuff of ammo? check out youtube: with a bit of practice they can be run fast and effective. 20ga offers best compromise of low recoil and effectiveness. being untacticool, an unloaded, properly secured single in the trunk flies mostly under the legal radar, but nj is still no-go. remember this every time chris christie opens his mouth.
 
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