Should my wife have to do transfer to her name?

[CZ-75BD]

I'm looking for a legal advise.
I bought a gun for my wife but transfer on my name.
Question is: If something bad happens and she would be force to use this gun would it be considered as an illegal possession?
She has valid IL FOID card.

 

[Art Eatman]

I don't see any reason for a problem. Certainly, in the home, any legal person therein can use whatever's available for self defense.

 

[4evernbljns]

should consider rewording your post or delete. possible straw purchase violation

 

[buckhorn_cortez]

Purchasing a gun for your wife as a gift is not a straw purchase. The ATF allows transfers of guns between unlicensed individuals, through both purchases (private gun sales) and as gifts.

As noted on Form 4473 -

As expressly noted in the instructions on the Form 4473 for Section 11.a. Actual Transferee/Buyer:

For purposes of this form, you are the actual transferee/buyer if you are purchasing the firearm for yourself or otherwise acquiring the firearm for yourself (e.g., redeeming the firearm from pawn/retrieving it from consignment, firearm raffle winner). You are also the actual transferee/buyer if you are legitimately purchasing the firearm as a gift for a third party

In Ambramski v. United States, the ruling of a straw purchase was because the nephew was acting as an agent using his uncle's money to purchase the gun.

If you use your own money to purchase the gun, you meet the requirements of Question 11.a on form 4473 because you are the actual buyer and are legitimately buying it as a gift.

However, there may be individual state laws that require a transfer through an FFL even as a gift - but, that is a state-by-state requirement and not part of the ATF regulations or federal laws.

 

[Hanzo581]

As knowledgeable as people are on this site and they still don't understand the difference in a straw purchase and buying a gift for a family member?

 

[au_prospector]

His tag says Illinois. On that assumption, here is Illinois Code.

430 Ill. Comp. Stat. 65/3(a-15)(2)

As I read it, he is good to go. But I am not a legal expert, just someone who spent about 2 minutes on google looking up the code.

 

[4evernbljns]

HANZO,did you have to go there? I presented a thought as a possible--not an absolute fact.

 

[Hanzo581]

Didn't mean anything offensive, just don't like people being frightened for no reason. My apologies.

 

[4evernbljns]

No worry and thanks,Proven to be a gentleman.

 

[buckhorn_cortez]

I presented a thought as a possible--not an absolute fact.

No, you presented a straw purchase as pure speculation on your part. That's one of the problems with the Internet, people would rather speculate than present facts. You'd have been better off not responding at all, rather than presenting two, totally false, unhelpful, speculative posts (one of which has been deleted).

 

[Art Eatman]

The opening question was about the use of a gun which on paper was owned by another person. Not about the legality of the purchase, and there was no mention of a gift.

Quit with the wasting of bandwidth!

 

[Sav .250]

Seems to me you created your own(possible) problem by buying the weapon for her.

 

[FL-NC]

Why would it be a problem? I let my wife use my guns. We live in the same house, and even use each others cars. We kind of share everything, being a couple and all. I just wish she would stop using my tools or at least learn to put them back.

 

[bikemutt]

I just wish she would stop using my tools or at least learn to put them back.

After 25 years, I got a taste of my own medicine earlier today. Yup, I put her pruning shears back in the wrong spot

The good news is she'll never know I was using them to cut some wire

 

[flphotog]

Watch out for that first question on the 4473. If you stated that the purchase was for you, I do believe you committed a federal crime.

 

[Art Eatman]

flphotog, read Post #11.

 

[steve4102]

The opening question was about the use of a gun which on paper was owned by another person. Not about the legality of the purchase, and there was no mention of a gift.

Quit with the wasting of bandwidth!

Here is the original post.

I'm looking for a legal advise.
I bought a gun for my wife but transfer on my name.
Question is: If something bad happens and she would be force to use this gun would it be considered as an illegal possession?
She has valid IL FOID card.

If that is NOT a gift, what is it?

 

[Sam1911]

Watch out for that first question on the 4473. If you stated that the purchase was for you, I do believe you committed a federal crime.

As we covered in post 4:

If you are buying a gun as a gift -- meaning you aren't accepting any payment or consideration in exchange for providing that gun to the recipient -- then YOU are the actual purchaser. The explanation of the question, provided on the form itself, goes over this exact point.

So, federally, if the OP is buying a gun for his wife (or anyone else) -- unless she's giving him money and telling him to go buy her a gun -- then he's completely acting within federal law.

So the question then goes to Illinois law.

Illinois law says that the usual hooplah about verifying someone's FOID is not needed in cases of a gift between certain family members, such as husband and wife.

So the OP would seem to be completely covered for any questions related to who's gun it was in the event that a defensive shooting took place.

Beyond that, as Art said, if she needed to defend herself, within the home, and grabbed a gun to do so, questions of that constituting a transfer would seem moot.

 

[Neo-Luddite]

While I'm not a lawyer or any such thing---In IL as described, you'd be fine by a country mile. Now if your wife was to be carrying the gun as her own very often, you might consider transferring the gun to her by 1) OK ing her FOID on the ISP site (we know it's good, but that's the law now) 2) creating a record of her FOID info, the gun's info, etc. as required (to keep for 10 years should LE ask for it). Then it's just plain her gun. Just an idea.

 

[FL-NC]

I say its the OP's gun and his wife is borrowing it. Couples use each others things all the time. Right now I'm on my wife's computer.

 

[Spats McGee]

I say its the OP's gun and his wife is borrowing it. Couples use each others things all the time. Right now I'm on my wife's computer.

The bolded part is utterly irrelevant to the OP's question.

 

[phil dirt]

Here in the Washington State Peoples Soviet Socialist Republic we have the loony Michael (Nanny) Bloomberg financed anti-gun, catch 22, Initiative I-594, gun law. So I too am wondering if I can buy a gun for my wife.

 

[Blackbeard]

One of the factors they look at to determine if a straw purchase has occurred is if the end recipient gave the buyer money to purchase the gun and/or directed the buyer on which gun to get. From the OP it doesn't sound like either of those is true, so it is likely not a straw purchase.

Disclaimer: I'm not a lawyer and this is not legal advice.

 

[CZ-75BD]

To make things more clear.
We are leaving in same household.My wife have IL FOID card. I bought that gun myself, transferred on my name, but later decided that it will be present to her. I paid with mine own money. I believe that covers all details.
Thank you for all comments.

 

[Arizona_Mike]

1. Gifts are not straw purposes.
2. There is no legal for it to be a suprise gift. The giftee can be present, can offer input, etc.
3. A person buying a gun for themselves can also legally have person present to give advice.

Blackbeard's second factor is not a crime.

Mike