Taking a firearm back home from a purchase

[pheenix42]

Someone has offered me a nice 9mm pistol, and I'm seriously considering buying it...question is, when I travel there from my home, make the buy and return home, will I need any sort of permit just to bring it back home? I seem to remember there being some sort of law regarding transporting a firearm here in Indiana.

What's the deal, and what do I have to do?

[dburkhead]

Originally Posted by pheenix42

Someone has offered me a nice 9mm pistol, and I'm seriously considering buying it...question is, when I travel there from my home, make the buy and return home, will I need any sort of permit just to bring it back home? I seem to remember there being some sort of law regarding transporting a firearm here in Indiana.

What's the deal, and what do I have to do?

Indiana law gives a handful of exceptions to the no carry without a license provisions. One of those is taking the firearm home from a place of purchase. Just make sure you go home, go directly to home, do not pass "Go" do not collect $200, or you could well end up in the other "do not pass 'Go'" situation.

[Scutter01]

And keep the firearm inaccessible. The statute requires a "secure wrapper" but does not define what that is. Presumably, a locked hard-shelled case out of reach of the passengers.

(11) any person while carrying a handgun unloaded and in a secure wrapper from the place of purchase to his dwelling or fixed place of business, or to a place of repair or back to his dwelling or fixed place of business, or in moving from one dwelling or business to another.

[right winger]

Originally Posted by Scutter01

And keep the firearm inaccessible. The statute requires a "secure wrapper" but does not define what that is. Presumably, a locked hard-shelled case out of reach of the passengers.

Amen.

[shawkpilot]

You mean having it in your hand and looking at it as you drive down the highway isn't acceptable? I almost drew on a guy that I passed who was doing exactly that. Probably should have to drive the point home, since I figured that his was empty, and he was just in awe of how he spent his money.

[45calibre]

yup go straight home dont fondle it on the way there. put it in the trunk, that will classify as a secure wrapper.

[dburkhead]

Also note that these restrictions apply to handguns. Indiana state law places no particular restrictions on long arms (shotguns and rifles).

In those cases the main law you need to worry about is the Federal "gun free school zone" act, which prohibits firearms within 1000' of a school except in certain cases:
- Private property not part of the school grounds
- You have a state issued firearms license (which looks to me like a LTCH would cover that for all arms from the Federal law perspective)
- Firearm not loaded and in a locked container (would a locked car, while driving, count I wonder?)
- Used in a program approved by the school
- Acting in accordance with a contract with the school to provide security
- Law enforcement officer in an official capacity
- Passing through school grounds to reach lands open to hunting (firearm unloaded) provided permission of school authority obtained

This is a bit different from Indiana's school property restriction, which only allows having a firearm during "pick up" or "drop off" of children at the school and one must remain in the car with the firearm if on school property (or "preschool"--which is why I have to park across the street from my daughter's daycare).

In any case, best bet is to have it unloaded in a "secure wrapper"/"locked container" (such as the trunk) and to go straight from point of purchase to home.

Let me that this opportunity also to recommend Bryan Ciyou's Indiana Handgun Law. It goes into the various issues in some detail but is still fairly easy to understand.

[Yamaha]

if you're really all that worried, disassemble the weapon, and make sure to not have any bullets in the car. Heck, as long as it is broken down, it is not a firearm, just parts

[kludge]

Originally Posted by Yamaha

if you're really all that worried, disassemble the weapon, and make sure to not have any bullets in the car. Heck, as long as it is broken down, it is not a firearm, just parts

The law does not say disassembled; the law says secure wrapper.

Try to tell the ATF that parts are not a firearm.

[G McBride]

To ease your mind just have one of your friends that have a LTCH ride along with you when you pick it up. That would eliminate any problem as he or she would be allowed to posses that gun legally with your permission.