Nope, just not sympathetic to people that break the law and then want to hide it. Sorry, but thats the way I see it.
He is not asking how to get legal, he is asking how to get rid of the gun without anybody trying to track it. Look carefully at every single post Twoblink has made about this. None of them have said he was “young and dumb†and now wants to rectify it. Look at the sequence of events here. He decides he wants to get rid of an illegal gun. So he calls the cops to see what they will do when they get it. After being told they would run ballistics test on it he decides to run it through an acid bath. Does that sound like somebody that made a mistake as a kid and now wants to make it right? It sounds like somebody that made quite a few mistakes with an illegal gun and doesn’t want the gun around anymore. Perhaps he really is trying to go legit, doesn’t change the fact that there appears to be a lot more going on than a simple sawed off barrel. Even if it is a simple sawed off barrel I would bet you good money that he could have called up the DA and tried to find out what would happen. Based on the information provided he hasn’t made one single solitary effort to try and do the right thing. He has made lots of effort to try and get rid of the gun and not let anybody (law enforcement wise) know it was his. Where is the “trying to go right†in that?Any evidence of victimization of anyone? No. If the guy was out killing people with it or even robbing with it do you really think he'd be asking around about how to get legal with the gun?
Why don’t you ask me how many times I have tried to get out of a ticket. Go ahead ask me. When I make a mistake (even when its an unintentional speeding mistake) I take the punishment for it. I don’t hide it. I don’t run from it. I don’t ask my friends if they know how to skirt the law.
No offence taken at all. I think there are a lot of people taking this different than I did. Even so, assuming best case scenario (dumb kid sawed it off and now wants to do the right thing and get rid of it by giving it to the cops) why not suggest he try calling the police or the DA (the response he had to being told they'd run a ballistics test is a big hint to the situation...)? See if they really would do anything. See if he could take it in, tell what he did and get some relatively minor ticket. I’m no cop but I bet you real good money that if he came in nicely dressed (not looking like a punk) and talking politely they would be pretty dang understanding. Cops aren’t too interested in going after the good guys. Granted, I have never interacted with CA police so maybe they're different out there. Doubt it though.
No need to apologize. You just asked for clarification of what my thinking was.
How so? The question (as presented to us) had nothing to do with “doing right†but everything to do with getting rid of an illegal item without suffering any consequences for owning it. Big difference, no?
Not necessarily anywhere. “Humanity†and “compassion†don’t necessarily have anything to do with my recommendation either. The question was what should he do. My answer has been repeated several times. If the question were “how should we treat this person†my answer would have been the polar opposite. If the question was actually a complaint about how this guy made a mistake as a kid and now faces potentially severe consequences for what was essentially a victimless crime (assuming the only crime was a sawed off barrel) then my response would have been just as sympathetic as you could imagine. However, none of those scenarios are what we have here.
When (on rare occasions) I have been in a position of authority I am more than willing to be lenient with others. When I am not, my recommendations cannot be to skirt the law or blatantly break it (especially when it seems likely there is far more going on). The only proper recommendation can be to do what is right.
I’m not judging him, I am stating what I think the proper course of action is to right the wrong that he did.
The guy wants to do something with it. He cares enough to ask, to try. If he didn't care he'd just pitch it in the dumpster. This is worth workin with the guy. Maybe they wouldn't make him do time over it but they sure would set him up a payment plan and for what? Tryin to do the right thing after the fact? Pffft. Sometimes tryin to do the right thing is like panning for gold dust in sewer water. Paying the State isn't going to make anything right. Besides, if you want to get right down to it, theres no such thing as an illegal gun. Just a bunch of deception and intimidation. 
