Home defense shooting; are ALL your guns taken away?
- Thread starter DHart
- Start date
- Status
Langenator
Member
Here's another branch of the original question:
What if some of the guns in the household belong to someone other than the shooter?
Example: two of the guns in my house (an SKS and a Kimber Ultra Carry) belong to my wife. If I shot an intruder and the local PD decided they needed to take all my guns, would they leave my wife's?
I'm sure it probably depends, again, on the locals.
What if some of the guns in the household belong to someone other than the shooter?
Example: two of the guns in my house (an SKS and a Kimber Ultra Carry) belong to my wife. If I shot an intruder and the local PD decided they needed to take all my guns, would they leave my wife's?
I'm sure it probably depends, again, on the locals.
CAS700850
Member
I've yet to be involved in the investigation/prosecution of a home defense scenario. Just hasn't happened around here while I've been with the office. Now, we have had a few that, at first glance, appeared to be a H.D. situation, but a little investiation showed much more was going on. (Recent case appeared to be H.D., but turned out to be a drug deal gone bad. Matched the home owner's shoe to the shoe print on the door, found 10 pounds of marihunana in the house.)
Anyways, I would suspect that it depends greatly on the situation. THere are obviously clear-cut situations where H.D. will be apparent from the first minute. In those types of cases, where the defender is cooperative, the weapon involved is recovered immediately, etc., other guns will be irrelevant. However, if there is anything the least bit hinky about the situation, I expect most of the guns will be taken, but only after a search warrant has been obtained. And, most judges will allow for this in tyhe course of a shooting investigation.
An earlier post advised you call your lawyer, then call the police. I advise you change the order of those phone calls. Call your lawyer first, and you're looking like you have something to hide, which will make the police dig all the more, take your guns, etc.
At least here in central Ohio, if we take a gun during an investigation, and either no charges are filed or you are charged and acquitted, you get the gun back, so long as you are legal to own and/or possess it.
Anyways, I would suspect that it depends greatly on the situation. THere are obviously clear-cut situations where H.D. will be apparent from the first minute. In those types of cases, where the defender is cooperative, the weapon involved is recovered immediately, etc., other guns will be irrelevant. However, if there is anything the least bit hinky about the situation, I expect most of the guns will be taken, but only after a search warrant has been obtained. And, most judges will allow for this in tyhe course of a shooting investigation.
An earlier post advised you call your lawyer, then call the police. I advise you change the order of those phone calls. Call your lawyer first, and you're looking like you have something to hide, which will make the police dig all the more, take your guns, etc.
At least here in central Ohio, if we take a gun during an investigation, and either no charges are filed or you are charged and acquitted, you get the gun back, so long as you are legal to own and/or possess it.
HankB
Member
In some places, it's my understanding that calling 911 will tie up your line . . . you will NOT be able to call anyone else if you call 911 first. That kind of limits your options.
I've heard that in the case of a self-defense shooting, if there's someone else with you - spouse, son, best friend, whoever - who was NOT directly involved, then that person should make himself scarce. If it's a family member, that family member should not talk to police until THEY have also "lawyered up."
Remember it is NOT necessarily the police you have to worry about - heck, in a lot of places a genuinely good shoot will win you accolades from the cops, even if they're "unofficial." But anything you say WILL most likely be used by your assailant's next of kin in a civil suit.
Ol' Badger
Member
Do you mention the other weapons at all? If a LEO asked "Do you have any other fire arms in the house?" thats one thing. But if I pop a BG and the MAN arrives I know I out one pistol for evidence reasons. But why bring up the subject and lose the rest.
armoredman
Member
Do remember most if not all banks forbid storing of firearms in safe deposit boxes. No, they aren't going to be able to get into it for any reason, but just be aware of it.
A good friend, who is not likely to pop his cork, is a good spot to drop off that old Makarov.....
A good friend, who is not likely to pop his cork, is a good spot to drop off that old Makarov.....
geekWithA.45
Moderator Emeritus
Slightly different situation in PRNJ
I got this story first hand from the participant, a widow whose husband killed himself with her favorite revolver.
The police naturally took the suicide gun as evidence, and wanted to take all her other guns "for her safety", implying the emotionality of the incident would cause her to take her own life, and possibly her kids.
After much wrangling, she negotiated having a friend hold them.
About a year later, she went through great pains to get her favorite revolver back, which she ultimately did. It came back in a strange holster, and had clearly been used...a lot.
It was pretty clear to her that they figured she'd not want anything to do with the gun anymore, and was counting on her to be an ignorant and hysterical female to cover their attempted theft.
I got this story first hand from the participant, a widow whose husband killed himself with her favorite revolver.
The police naturally took the suicide gun as evidence, and wanted to take all her other guns "for her safety", implying the emotionality of the incident would cause her to take her own life, and possibly her kids.
After much wrangling, she negotiated having a friend hold them.
About a year later, she went through great pains to get her favorite revolver back, which she ultimately did. It came back in a strange holster, and had clearly been used...a lot.
It was pretty clear to her that they figured she'd not want anything to do with the gun anymore, and was counting on her to be an ignorant and hysterical female to cover their attempted theft.
CAS700850
Member
Sometimes, I'm actually glad to live in this part of the world. Not only are we bound by law to return a firearm unless a Court orders otherwise, but we must take "reasonable measures" to ensure that it is in the same or substantially same condition as when it was removed from the possession of teh rightful owner. Meaning, other than testing for evidentiary purposes (prints, test-fire for function), we have to actually take care of it. Lab guys will usually complete testing, then give it a quick wipe down/oil before putting it in the "gun room", a secured evidence room with dehumidiefiers to inhibit rust.
Sometimes, I wish I could "borrow" a gun from evidence. I've seen some really nice stuff...
Sometimes, I wish I could "borrow" a gun from evidence. I've seen some really nice stuff...
Byron Quick
Moderator In Memoriam
Move to a free county in a free (mostly) state. Like Georgia.
Friend shot one of the three thugs who were trying to strong arm rob his business. One grabbed him in a bear hug. He's a little guy. He just looked over to his wife and said,"Give it here, baby." She opened a drawer and slapped his revolver in his hand. Bear hugger decided to let go and boogy. So did the other two. He was right behind tail end Charlie. He shot once into the ground while yelling,"Stop, or I'll shoot you." The thug stopped, turned, and lunged for my buddy's gun while saying,"I'll make you eat that gun." Buddy said,"Eat this!"as he fired one round. The bullet entered the thug's left upper chest and exited around the right short ribs. After traversing both lungs, the heart, and the liver.
Thug was DRT.
Buddy was taken down to the station. They talked with him for about two hours and released him. No charges filed. No gun or guns confiscated. No lawyers hired. The thug's family tried to find a lawyer to file a wrongful death lawsuit. Every lawyer they talked to said,"Sure, I'll file the suit, my fee is $XXXX, payable in cash, in advance." No suit was ever filed.
Gun confiscation after a shooting depends on circumstances and jurisdiction.
Friend shot one of the three thugs who were trying to strong arm rob his business. One grabbed him in a bear hug. He's a little guy. He just looked over to his wife and said,"Give it here, baby." She opened a drawer and slapped his revolver in his hand. Bear hugger decided to let go and boogy. So did the other two. He was right behind tail end Charlie. He shot once into the ground while yelling,"Stop, or I'll shoot you." The thug stopped, turned, and lunged for my buddy's gun while saying,"I'll make you eat that gun." Buddy said,"Eat this!"as he fired one round. The bullet entered the thug's left upper chest and exited around the right short ribs. After traversing both lungs, the heart, and the liver.
Thug was DRT.
Buddy was taken down to the station. They talked with him for about two hours and released him. No charges filed. No gun or guns confiscated. No lawyers hired. The thug's family tried to find a lawyer to file a wrongful death lawsuit. Every lawyer they talked to said,"Sure, I'll file the suit, my fee is $XXXX, payable in cash, in advance." No suit was ever filed.
Gun confiscation after a shooting depends on circumstances and jurisdiction.
C. H. Luke
Member
"What about all the other guns a home owner may have on the premises?"
FWIW, at a weekend Handgun Seminar a fellow had his gun go off after it was holstered which promptly punched a hole in and out thru his right cheek. 9 mm bullet went 3" into the ground after.
County Sheriff's Deputy had to come before ambulance carted him off to the ER. {Tough old guy didn't bleed much once plugged}
Deputy's main purpose seemed to be determining that someone else did not shoot him. {Thru the Arse!}
Deputy: "Sorry, but I need to look for powder burns, you have to drop your Levi's one more time?"
{In front of female EMT's}
Unfortunately, for this guy, another Deputy who was taking the same class was shooting right next to him in line. He had a less than a flattering opinion of this fellows gun handling ability. so had unfavorable comments added to the deposition.
Guy had his NYS Pistol Permit pulled plus they went to his house and confiscated ALL of his guns: Rifles, Shotguns, everything.
He got both his permit and guns back but had to gather a number of letters from friends and members of the Gun Club, whose grass he bled on, stating he was "Safe", etc., an "experienced" handgun shooter, annnnd..... a long time RO at this Club! Got his guns back long before his two Arse-holes healed good.
Humorous part of the story is that he bought a Glock 17 within one month and canned the POS pistola he had been CCW'ing for a 'Coons Age.
FWIW, at a weekend Handgun Seminar a fellow had his gun go off after it was holstered which promptly punched a hole in and out thru his right cheek. 9 mm bullet went 3" into the ground after.
County Sheriff's Deputy had to come before ambulance carted him off to the ER. {Tough old guy didn't bleed much once plugged}
Deputy's main purpose seemed to be determining that someone else did not shoot him. {Thru the Arse!}
Deputy: "Sorry, but I need to look for powder burns, you have to drop your Levi's one more time?"
{In front of female EMT's}Unfortunately, for this guy, another Deputy who was taking the same class was shooting right next to him in line. He had a less than a flattering opinion of this fellows gun handling ability. so had unfavorable comments added to the deposition.
Guy had his NYS Pistol Permit pulled plus they went to his house and confiscated ALL of his guns: Rifles, Shotguns, everything.
He got both his permit and guns back but had to gather a number of letters from friends and members of the Gun Club, whose grass he bled on, stating he was "Safe", etc., an "experienced" handgun shooter, annnnd..... a long time RO at this Club! Got his guns back long before his two Arse-holes healed good.
Humorous part of the story is that he bought a Glock 17 within one month and canned the POS pistola he had been CCW'ing for a 'Coons Age.
JoeWang
Member
What if you get murdered by someone else's gun in your own home?
My wife's father was murdered by his GF ex-BF and his thug buddies.
Cops confiscated his shotgun collection as "evidence."
Ex-BF and thug buddies were let go turning state's evidence, my wife's family was told to "fuhgettahboutit" when they asked the cops to return the firearms.
This was 10+ years ago.
If you live in IL, be thankful you are paying the salaries and/or retirement benefits for the theiving LEOs involved.
My wife's father was murdered by his GF ex-BF and his thug buddies.
Cops confiscated his shotgun collection as "evidence."
Ex-BF and thug buddies were let go turning state's evidence, my wife's family was told to "fuhgettahboutit" when they asked the cops to return the firearms.
This was 10+ years ago.
If you live in IL, be thankful you are paying the salaries and/or retirement benefits for the theiving LEOs involved.
Girl at work had a NIB Glock 21 taken by the police. She has been trying to get it back for months - has a court order. They told her to come and get it last week. When she went to the property room , they could not find it. They think it has been destroyed. Someone has a nice Christmas gift
biere
Member
Someone asked about other folks in the same dwelling.
Here in ohio I have heard a few things. Mostly if comes down to owning a safe that the "accussed" person does not know the combination too. Of course the best way to proove this is to either buy it or have it changed by locksmith after the problem gets rolling.
The only decent answer is to never keep all of your eggs in one basket.
Here in ohio I have heard a few things. Mostly if comes down to owning a safe that the "accussed" person does not know the combination too. Of course the best way to proove this is to either buy it or have it changed by locksmith after the problem gets rolling.
The only decent answer is to never keep all of your eggs in one basket.
cops are not your friend.
long story short, i had four guns confiscated by police for a reason i will not discuss. the pending case that took my guns away was dropped. i was told by the court that i could have my guns back. i was instructed to call my arresting officer and had to ask him if i could have my guns back. i guess the choice was left to him. i kind of felt it was odd procedure, but oh well, he's the law. i tried calling him on multiple occasions leaving a message every single time. he called two weeks later. he claimed he was on vacation. funny thing was, i had called his station, and i was informed i could not speak to him because he was out on patrol in the middle of his shift. when i did finally talk to him, he said to come pick my guns up. hurray!!!!! i got my guns back, rust on all the carbon steel parts. all four guns were lnib and clean when they were confiscated. when i got them back, two actually had freakin holster wear on them. and every single gun was shot a lot. powder burns everywhere, grimy, rusty. i realize they probably would shoot each one for ballistics and other little things, but mine looked like they were taken to the range on a day off and made to digest a couple hundred bullets. oh yeah three mags magically dissappeared.
long story short, i had four guns confiscated by police for a reason i will not discuss. the pending case that took my guns away was dropped. i was told by the court that i could have my guns back. i was instructed to call my arresting officer and had to ask him if i could have my guns back. i guess the choice was left to him. i kind of felt it was odd procedure, but oh well, he's the law. i tried calling him on multiple occasions leaving a message every single time. he called two weeks later. he claimed he was on vacation. funny thing was, i had called his station, and i was informed i could not speak to him because he was out on patrol in the middle of his shift. when i did finally talk to him, he said to come pick my guns up. hurray!!!!! i got my guns back, rust on all the carbon steel parts. all four guns were lnib and clean when they were confiscated. when i got them back, two actually had freakin holster wear on them. and every single gun was shot a lot. powder burns everywhere, grimy, rusty. i realize they probably would shoot each one for ballistics and other little things, but mine looked like they were taken to the range on a day off and made to digest a couple hundred bullets. oh yeah three mags magically dissappeared.
marauder220
Member
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2003
- Messages
- 26
Many years ago I was involved in a home defense situation. The weapon was a Sig P220. The shoot was righteous by all accords, took about 3 months to finally get the P220 back, and it did have both case and crime lab numbers engraved on the top of the slide. Everyone involved from start to finish was very nice and professional, so the only complaint was the engraving of my poor Sig. The Officers on scene never asked about any other guns, weapons, etc that were in the house, they were just concerned with the gun that was used directly. I eventually sent the Sig back to the factory and had it done over in K-kote since the slide tended to rust where the engraving was done, they couldn't do anything about the engraving, but at least it looks a little better.
seeker_two
Member
Thanks for starting this thread. Now it's got me thinking....
Maybe that Firestar 9mm I thought I wanted to sell is going into a safe-deposit box for those "just-in-case" moments instead....
Maybe that Firestar 9mm I thought I wanted to sell is going into a safe-deposit box for those "just-in-case" moments instead....
Powderman
Member
Moopheus, I don't know the details of your case. But, here's some advice:
Don't give up!
At least, give it a shot. Petition the Court to have your rights restored. What the heck--the very worst thing that can happen this way is that they'll say no. And, at first they might.
But--persistense pays off in the long run.
Here's a few suggestions:
1. Key here is to show that you have been rehabilitated, and a productive menber of society. Volunteer your time to some community service organizations; get something together to improve your neighborhood. Anything you can think of to help, do it!
2. Read, read, read. You seem to be an intelligent person. Therefore, find any and everything you can get concerning your State's law, and Federal law concerning firearms and the restoration of your civil rights.
3. Again, be persistent! Be the squeaky wheel, and don't let up. Go as long as you can, and as long as possible.
Good luck with your quest; I sincerely hope that it works out for you.
Don't give up!
At least, give it a shot. Petition the Court to have your rights restored. What the heck--the very worst thing that can happen this way is that they'll say no. And, at first they might.
But--persistense pays off in the long run.
Here's a few suggestions:
1. Key here is to show that you have been rehabilitated, and a productive menber of society. Volunteer your time to some community service organizations; get something together to improve your neighborhood. Anything you can think of to help, do it!
2. Read, read, read. You seem to be an intelligent person. Therefore, find any and everything you can get concerning your State's law, and Federal law concerning firearms and the restoration of your civil rights.
3. Again, be persistent! Be the squeaky wheel, and don't let up. Go as long as you can, and as long as possible.
Good luck with your quest; I sincerely hope that it works out for you.
bamawrx
Member
Gabe Suarez has a lecture on the aftermath of a gunfiight, which includes detailed instructions on how to handle all of these issues. I took the class and he really has this topic covered. It teaches you all the do and don'ts and many things to do that you will never have thought of on your own. What I learned at the class is the difference between spending the night in white pj's with black stripes or sleeping in my own bed.
The issue of gun confiscation is covered, but that is a minor worry given the other issues at play. I really hope you guys will take the class because it is the most important gun class I have ever had. Hope this helps.
PS. Gabe is a great guy too, and has a good sense of humor.
The issue of gun confiscation is covered, but that is a minor worry given the other issues at play. I really hope you guys will take the class because it is the most important gun class I have ever had. Hope this helps.
PS. Gabe is a great guy too, and has a good sense of humor.
- Status
