Michigan/Federal Law question

[mgregg85]

I am buying a sub-2000 here in michigan. The state's laws require them to be registered with a pistol purchase permit, this is the reason why I want the gun, to use it as a truck gun under my CPL.

My question is, can I mount a forward vertical grip on the sub-2000 without being in violation of federal law? I know you cannot legally mount a forward vertical grip on a pistol under federal law, but is the sub-2000 considered a pistol under federal law?

Here is the excerpt from the michigan state police website explaining why the sub-2000 must be registered.

3. Do rifles or shotguns with collapsible/folding stocks have to be registered in Michigan?

MCL 750.222 Yes, provided the rifle or shotgun is 30 inches or less in overall length with the stock collapsed/folded but at least 26 inches and the barrel length is at least 16 inches and 18 inches respectively. Attorney General's opinion #6280: if the firearm is less than 26 inches in overall length or the barrel is less than 16 or 18 inches respectively, the firearm is considered a short-barreled rifle or shotgun and is illegal to possess. MCL 750.224d There is an exception for short-barreled shotguns and short-barreled rifles which the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms has found to be a curio, relic, antique, museum piece, or collector's item not likely to be used as a weapon.



The possessor must comply with Section 2 (License to Purchase) and Section 9 (Safety Inspection Certificate/registration) of Act 372.

 

[Trebor]

I do not know if mounting a front pistol grip would be a violation of Michigan law or not.

Under Federal law though, it is a rifle, so a front pistol grip is OK. The feds don't care that our screwy Michigan law makes us register it as a pistol.

Disclaimer: I'm not an attorney. If you go to jail, it's your own fault for listening to dumb ***** like me on the internet.

 

[esq_stu]

Nothing in MI law precludes a pistol grip.

But be very careful about having a long gun visible in the passenger compartment. Rifles in the passenger compartment are illegal unless they are in that 26" to 30" range. But an LEO will see a rifle, not a pistol, no matter whether you have a CPL or not and no matter whether you paint the length on the stock in day-glo numbers.

I asked the same of LEOs regarding a folding stock shotgun that would be less than 30 inch and legal as a pistol since I have a CPL. More than one said if they saw it, they would draw their weapon and approach me as if it was illegal.

For the same reason, I keep my concealed pistol concealed.

 

[bsf]

….But be very careful about having a long gun visible in the passenger compartment. Rifles in the passenger compartment are illegal unless they are in that 26" to 30" range. But an LEO will see a rifle, not a pistol, no matter whether you have a CPL or not and no matter whether you paint the length on the stock in day-glo numbers.

I asked the same of LEOs regarding a folding stock shotgun that would be less than 30 inch and legal as a pistol since I have a CPL. More than one said if they saw it, they would draw their weapon and approach me as if it was illegal…...

I believe there to be wisdom in this post. I have a theory that it is not always the fastest and strongest that survive, but that often it is the smart, sneaky ones that never bite off more than they can chew. Kind of like the scrawny buck that will mate with a doe in estrus while two other monster bucks are battling it out to see who is going to get it on with said doe. Now if you want to see how well LE knows the law, or take it upon yourself to educate them, go for it. It is no skin off my back, and maybe you will help “the cause”. I am not paying all your legal fees; compensating you for inconvenience if arrested or detained; or bailing you out of jail, though. I may give you a figurative pat on the back and a few dollars for your legal expenses if I think it would serve to advance the RKBA.

Frankenstein never scared me. Cops do. Because they’re fast (and can make your life miserable if they are incompetent, having a bad day, or just plain bad).

 

[Barbara]

http://www.firearmsalliance.org/phpBB2/index.php

Post the question and Jim Simmons will come along and answer it.

 

[mgregg85]

Thank you all for the help, I don't intend to leave it out in the open like on a gun rack but rather in a backpack in the back seat area of my truck.