Moving to California

[Quiet]

There is no registration of non-assault weapon long arms (rifles and shotguns) in CA.

Assault weapon registration ended years ago and you can no longer register an assault weapon (there are a few exemptions for LE and active-duty military).

When you purchase/transfer a long arm (rifle/shotgun) in CA, the DROS does not list the serial number for the long arm. All the DROS is indicating to CA DOJ is you transfered a rifle/shotgun. Nothing is registered.

Handguns do get registered when you purchase/transfer/aquire in CA. Make/model/serial #s are indicated on the DROS that CA DOJ gets.

In CA, ARs with a fixed 10 round magazine are just rifles, not assault weapons (except ARs listed as a Category 1 & 2 assault weapon by make/model).
If you bought a fixed mag AR in CA, you bought a rifle, nothing was registered with CA DOJ, because it's just a rifle.

 

[orionengnr]

..shall not be infringed...much. :banghead:

 

[Zoogster]

The gun shop I buy from sells CA legal AR's. If you get a ten round mag and lock it in the mag well it is CA legal. I have been in the store when cops are there and they not only dont care but buy weapons from the guy.

Something which is very different from advising someone coming from out of state. Most CA FFLs are not going to stock ARs which are on the banned list of assault weapons, like some ARs and other weapons are.
Someone coming from out of state could have any number of makes and models of AR variants, some of which are assault weapons by name.

From what ive been told, its not a AW if the mag is locked in the weapon. So your not registering an AW, just a rifle.

You do not have to register a rifle which is not an AW, and cannot register one which is outside a short time frame after a ban, so if you did so it was completely voluntary and did not change any legal status.

There is 4 different ways a weapon can become an assault weapon in CA:
1. Banned by name by the Roberti-Roos act.
2.Banned by name by the CA Attorney General, which has added numerous names to the list.
3. Banned by a list of features.
4. Is chambered in .50 BMG

You are refering to number 3, which is the most encompassing of them, and the one people must work around.
Weapons sold by a CA FFL to a mere commoner will (if they are following the law) not be banned by number 1 or 2, and will be in a configuration that complies with number 3.
Weapons sold out of state may indeed be banned by 1-2, by name alone, regardless of whether they comply with number 3 or not. Those on the banned list are assault weapons period, whether or not they are modified to comply with the feature ban.

That means installing a locked magazine on a weapon on the banned by name list does not change its legal status, and it would still be an assault weapon.
It must be an "off list" weapon and comply with the features ban.

If it was not an assault weapon you did not need to register it, and simply gave the state a permanent record of where that firearm is located because you wanted to.

If it was an assault weapon registering it did not make it legal because the window for registration is usualy short, and I can't think of any the AG recently added to the by name list, so no registrations should be open for such a model.

There is no registration of non-assault weapon long arms (rifles and shotguns) in CA.

There is no required registration or automatic registration. There is in fact optional registration for any and all firearms a person wishes to register with a Firearm Ownership Record form.
As ArmedBear said there is more reason to fear the state taking away firearms than anyone else, so that option is not likely to be used.
It is however an option.
An option appearantly used by Darthbauer whether he realized it was voluntary or not.

 

[Librarian]

You do not have to register a rifle which is not an AW, and cannot register one which is outside a short time frame after a ban, so if you did so it was completely voluntary and did not change any legal status.

And whatever he did, it was not 'register an assault weapon'. Many California owners of 'California assault weapons' misunderstood the DROS purchase process to be the same as the separate 'aw registration' required by Roberti-Roos and SB-23.

 

[Nate C.]

I lived in CA for several years. It's crazy out there. 2AD issues aside (and there are many), it is expensive, the lunatics run the asylum, and it is overcrowded.

My advice: Just say no. Refuse to move out there. Tell the family to come live with you.

On the up side: the weather's nice....

 

[Bendutro]

I live 100 miles north of Sacramento. For all the problems this state has, it has amazingly beautiful geography, some of the best wine in the world, lots of business opportunities and the only official 1000 yard rifle range in CA is near Sacramento. It may have crazies, but it's worth fighting for.

 

[schloe]

this thread is hilarious

 

[Darthbauer]

the DROS does not list the serial number for the long arm.

Then why did they need the serial number to start the DROS?


Im not trying to but heads with anyone here, just trying to make sence of all of this.

this thread is hilarious

Yep.

 

[bruss01]

5th - if you have any AR or AK series fun guns, (basically anything semi-auto with a pistol grip) then you need a friend or a storage locker outside CA to keep them for you until you move out of state.

This is simply not true. If you have certain ones that are banned by name, you have to do this. If you have others, they can be modified cheaply and easily. You may find it a bit strange, shooting your AR with a Bullet Button and a 10-rounder, but you can do this and many of us do.

ArmedBear, if you had quoted me completely it should have been:

5th - if you have any AR or AK series fun guns, (basically anything semi-auto with a pistol grip) then you need a friend or a storage locker outside CA to keep them for you until you move out of state.

There are some other technicalities, as someone else recommended, check www.calguns.net for the gory details.

I felt that Off List Lowers were one of the "technicalities" that I did not care to delve into with someone totally new to the concepts of what hoops we have to deal with in CA. I simply mentioned there were additional "gotchas" and "ahas" and referred him to a site for the specifics. The statement I make in "5th" is true in general with the allusion to the fact that there are exceptions. I would hate for someone totally new to CA gun law to make a minor mistake, thinking he was following the law, and end up with a felony charge (costing him firearms rights for life) over an innocent oversight. For instance, showing up at the local PD to register his OLL "assault weapon" because he heard they had to be registered, forgetting to remove the flash suppressor or some such. Better to err on the side of safety and point him to the information to get educated and make his own judgement about what he wants to bring.

 

[SoCalShooter]

BTW if they are not on the drop test you are not going to be able to dross them you need to leave them in nevada cause you will be foreced to dross 1 gun per 31 days. Its just not worth it, leave the guns in nevada somehow maybe take 1 or two with you but do not dross them here.

 

[ArmedBear]

BTW if they are not on the drop test you are not going to be able to dross them you need to leave them in nevada cause you will be foreced to dross 1 gun per 31 days. Its just not worth it, leave the guns in nevada somehow maybe take 1 or two with you but do not dross them here.

Huh?

As a "personal importer" you can bring in your whole collection of handguns and register them. Not that I'm necessarily recommending that, especially for a temporary resident. But DROS? Not even part of the process.

 

[billwiese]

Bruss_01, ArmedBear, Librarian and maybe one or two more Calif guys beat me here, with correct information.

This thread is a perfect example of why I wish non-CA folks would refrain from answering questions about CA matters - because such responses most likely fall into one of the categories (1) bashing ("you're stupid for moving to CA"), (2) outdated information (3) incorrect info based on a translation of a translation of a rumor...



Bill Wiese
San Jose CA

 

[billwiese]

As a "personal importer" you can bring in your whole collection of handguns and register them. Not that I'm necessarily recommending that, especially for a temporary resident. But DROS? Not even part of the process.

The effect of filing papers w/DOJ as a 'personal handgun importer' on moving into CA has the same end result as DROSing a handgun - same database, essentially the same record.


Bill Wiese
San Jose CA

 

[brighamr]

I have a question...

All the cases I ever heard of regarding OLLs ended up with the person getting arrested, paying $$$ and never getting their guns back.

Can anyone cite a case in CA where someone with an OLL was arrested for possession of an assault weapon, had their weapon confiscated, and at the end of the case received $$$ for legal fees as well as recieved their OLL back?

just curious...

 

[CountGlockula]

Here you go brighamr: http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=324345&highlight=matthew+corwin

 

[W.E.G.]

 

[Trebor]

What if I keep my Nevada ID and DL but live in California and bring them with me without registering them in CA. I'm not planning to be a permanent resident of CA. Just a short period of time 1-2 years at most.

Bad idea. Very, very bad idea.

Trying that sort of argument can get you in trouble in SOOO many ways, not even including the whole firearms issue. States don't like it when you try to get around their laws by claiming residency in another state.

It's a common dodge people try to do to save on things like vehicle registrations, state income taxes, etc, and it does often come back to bite them in the butt.

It's never a good idea and even worse when the potential for a felony firearms violation is there as well.

Don't get "cute" with your residency. If you move into a state, change your DL and follow that states laws. There are generally exceptions for college students and the like, but don't stretch it too far.

 

[ArmedBear]

The effect of filing papers w/DOJ as a 'personal handgun importer' on moving into CA has the same end result as DROSing a handgun - same database, essentially the same record.

Well, that's true.

What I was responding to was the assertion that one would have to go through the standard DROS process, wait 30 days between handguns, etc.

The serial number ends up in the same database as if it were purchased in-state, but everything else, including the fees, process, and conditions are totally different.

 

[AF_INT1N0]

I lived in CA for several years. It's crazy out there. 2AD issues aside (and there are many), it is expensive, the lunatics run the asylum, and it is overcrowded.

My advice: Just say no. Refuse to move out there. Tell the family to come live with you.

On the up side: the weather's nice....

Been between the San Fran and SAC (technically just outside of East Bay) for 2 years now. I agree most heartily with Nate C, and will add as bad as it is now, it stands to get a whole lot worse (and probably will).

 

[littlegator]

There was one guy who had a house in southern Oregon and commuted every week to southern California and he had to fight to keep his Oregon driver's license.

That probably also had to do with sales tax - none in Oregon.

 

[Librarian]

All the cases I ever heard of regarding OLLs ended up with the person getting arrested, paying $$$ and never getting their guns back.

Can anyone cite a case in CA where someone with an OLL was arrested for possession of an assault weapon, had their weapon confiscated, and at the end of the case received $$$ for legal fees as well as recieved their OLL back?

just curious...

We're not doing so well with the last bit.

Matt is indeed the most prominent example, and the DA kept his guns. Turns out the legal fees for pursuing their return - which seems like the likely end result - were just a whole bunch higher than the cost to replace them. CALGUNS (members, leading lights, all-around White Knights or some such) managed to donate some guns to replace a few of the kept ones.

OTOH, there are many thousands of the OLLs in place since 2006, and just a few (erroneous) prosecutions. It's tough to hand a DA his *ss in a case when s/he is spending public money. It's pretty clear that the cost to defend these is being used as a weapon by the DAs.

 

[mljdeckard]

I'm in CA on military orders. I left mine at home, not worth the trouble.

 

[Prince Yamato]

Seriously, take your pistols and go! It's about your family. You're still afforded the protection that some of your weapons inventory will give you. Yeah, the registration stinks. Yes, the mag and gun limits are unconstitutional. You know what though? All that stuff will probably be overturned after Heller (well, the bans will, the registration, probably not). We all need to fight this crap. In part because it's unconstitutional and also because it's simply ridiculous that I can't live in California (or NYC for that matter) and have an AK-47 or a Glock with an extended magazine. If another civil right were being denied in these areas (say like the right of black people to vote), we wouldn't be saying, "well, you should just move out of there." We'd go into action mode and remedy the situation. Well, there's a segment of our community that enjoys their guns with In "N' Out Burger on the side. One day soon, we'll all meet for a MG shoot in San Francisco.

some of the best wine in the world

Texas is catching up to you on that... yeah Spicewood Springs and Llano! Though, San Francisco beat us to the Absinthe market .

 

[Smithers]

Here's the skinny

Here are the basics of bringing in your firearms into California.

1.) No high-cap mags (10+ rounds), leave them in Nevada.

2.) No assault weapons.

3.) Register your non-assault weapon pistols.

That's about it.

Now the problem is, what is an assault weapon according to California?

1.) Anything on this list: http://ag.ca.gov/firearms/awlist.htm

2.) Anything on this list: http://ag.ca.gov/firearms/infobuls/kaslist.pdf

3.) Anything that has these characteristics: http://ag.ca.gov/firearms/regs/genchar2.php

Confused yet? It gets even trickier.

 

[Smithers]

For pistols

Basically for a pistol to be an assault weapon it must have these characteristics:

* A semiautomatic pistol that has the capacity to accept a detachable magazine and any one of the following:

1. A threaded barrel, capable of accepting a flash suppressor, forward handgrip, or silencer.
2. (B) A second handgrip.
3. A shroud that is attached to, or partially or completely encircles, the barrel that allows the bearer to fire the weapon without burning his or her hand, except a slide that encloses the barrel.
4. The capacity to accept a detachable magazine at some location outside of the pistol grip.

* A semiautomatic pistol with a fixed magazine that has the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds.


So HK Mk. 23 would be an assault weapon since it has a threaded barrel.
An AR-15, AK-47 pistol would be an assault weapon since the magazine is forward of the grip and they have a threaded barrel.

However, if these guns don't have assault weapon characteristics, they can be brought in. If you switch the threaded barrel with a non-threaded barrel on the HK Mk. 23, you can bring it in. For an AR-15 or AK-47 pistol, you can use a magazine lock to make your pistol non-detachable, this will allow them to be brought in (HOWEVER, make sure it's a 10 round magazine or less.)