MI CPL/Pistol Registration question

[cdpruden]

Greetings;

This question is specific to MI --

We have pistol registration in MI, called a "safety inspection". We also are required to have a permit to purchase a handgun, unless we have a concealed pistol license. With the purchase permit, it's required to have the pistol inspected within 10 days.

I've got a CPL, and bought a handgun last Friday (7/1) on that. I went into my local police department thinking they would still be open for it on Tuesday (7/5) (this is the first pistol I've purchased since I moved to this township (Redford)) -- they weren't. Their hours are a rather limited 9 - 11:30 and 12:30 - 3, on Tuesdays only.

The big problem being, next Tuesday is more than 10 days after I purchased the pistol.

The Michigan Colition for Responsible Gun Owners has this to say (from http://www.mcrgo.org/mcrgo/d_ccwfaq2.asp ):
Q:> I recently purchased a handgun with my CCW permit. My question is how many days do I have to bring my new handgun to the proper authorities for a safety inspection from the purchase date?
A:> There is no time period specified in the statute. The "safety inspection" statute was seen as complementary to the "license to purchase" statute and that statute requires a person to return the completed license to the issuing agency within 10 days of the purchase. I think that the legislature envisioned the safety inspection being done at that time. Since you are exempt from the license to purchase requirements, there is no specified time for the safety inspection. The law would presume that you must do it within a reasonable timewhatever that is. I would suggest that you do it within ten days, but that is advice and not "law". !

I've also sent the question off to their legal advice office, but not heard back yet.

From everything I see there, I should be okay. My concern is that I might not be able to convince the local police of that.

What I'm curious of, is if any CPL holders in MI (and specifically in Redford) have waited longer than 10 days to register a pistol, and what (if anything) was said/done by the police? Should I expect the worst? Get an attorney on retainer right away? Expect to lose my CPL and handgun/have to go to court to keep it?

I don't tend to think of Redford as especially anti -- we are rather close to Detroit, though, and the rather short period of time to comply with the law makes me wonder if that's what is going on here.

Thanks for any thoughts.

 

[Gung-Ho]

Thanks for any thoughts.

Trust me on this.....you don't want my thoughts. You REALLY don't want my thoughts.

 

[Barbara]

You should be fine. Just take it in as quickly as possible.

If you want to be reassured, you can call this attorney:
Jim Simmons 586-566-1900. Tell him I gave him your number and he'll tell you what you need to know, without charge most times as long as its just a quick phone consult. He's in Shelby Township, and it might be a good idea to keep his number in your wallet anyway.

Also, I think what you wrote up there was written by Dan Bambery who is also an excellent pro-gun attorney (and like most people..no longer with MCRGO)..there's some question about the 10 day rule, but I don't think you'll find any Michigan Attorneys better versed in gun law than Jim or Dan or Carol Bambery.

 

[cdpruden]

You should be fine. Just take it in as quickly as possible.

Thanks, Barbara -- that's what I've been wanting to hear. I'll contact him, just to make sure. My biggest concern is just that the local police won't understand/believe that there isn't a time limit for it. This kind of a gray area makes me more than a little nervous.

Trust me on this.....you don't want my thoughts. You REALLY don't want my thoughts.

Quite. I seem to recall that a year or two ago, the state and local police (in Kalamazoo, back then) were quite adament about not calling it registration. Now the MI State Police have the word registration all over the place on their website, the local police call it registration, too... an interesting change for about a year and a half, with no change in the law about it...

6 of one, half-dozen of another -- if it's a "safety inspection" they need zero information about *me* on the inspection certificate.

 

[Ryder]

I've not heard of anyone being charged for being late. This beyond 10 days thing has happened to me before because of their limited availability. I think it was like 14 days before I was able to take it in for registration. Now if you think "working days" and remember that we just went through this big holiday you probably are not yet past 10 days.

 

[Eric Bryant]

I, um, have a friend who was once a few days late getting a "safety inspection" due to the Christmas and New Year holidays. There was no problem whatsoever with the local PD.

 

[Sergeant Bob]

6 of one, half-dozen of another -- if it's a "safety inspection" they need zero information about *me* on the inspection certificate.

Yeah, what a joke. I once took a Ballister Molena (Argentinian Colt clone) 1911 in to the Jackson Co. Sheriff's office for a "safety inspection".
They (two different cops) couldn't figure out where the serial number (of course, everyone knows a gun cannot be safe without the cops knowing the serial #) which was PROMINENTLY in two separate locations, and neither could they figure out the "safety" mechanism (the Argentinians left off the grip safety and it had only a halfcock safety). That I also had to show them.

Safety inspection indeed.

 

[Ryder]

I've registered guns that were absolutely unsafe and told them so. Bought them as fixer uppers. They don't even pretend to inspect the gun for anything but the serial number these days.