Wednesday, July 29, 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                         (865)376-0793
Keep Guns Out of the Wrong Hands
Know that your buyer is allowed to own a firearm. Free Gun Transfers at Frontier Firearms
Kingston, TN July 28, 2015
“With the growing number of mass shootings, private gun sales are coming under greater scrutiny” says Brant Williams, President of Frontier Firearms in Kingston, TN.  “As a result, it is more important than ever for individuals selling a firearm to know if the buyer is legal to own a gun”
In order to help private gun sellers avoid running afoul of laws restricting who may legally be sold a gun, Frontier Firearms will waive their normal fee and perform gun transfers at no charge for individuals selling their firearm (there is a $10 Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, TBI, fee for running a background check on the buyer).
“There is growing sentiment that private sellers should do more to ensure guns don’t fall in the hands of the wrong people. Both in Congress and out there are calls for new laws that will hold private gun sellers more accountable when they sell to a person who is prohibited from owing a firearm. As is the problem now without running a background check, a private seller has no way of knowing if the buyer person is legal or not,” states Williams.
“That’s why Frontier Firearms decided to conduct gun private gun transfers for free. We want to help sellers make certain their guns remain in responsible hands,” Williams continued.
Williams says the process is simple and takes only a few minutes.  The buyer and the seller along with the firearm being sold go to Frontier Firearms. Frontier then makes sure the gun transfer meets the strictest standards of Federal and State laws. The firearm is recorded into Frontier’s Acquisition and Disposition Book and the buyer undergoes a TBI Instant Check or background check. Afterwards the seller may rest easy knowing the gun they just sold went to a person legal to own a firearm.
More….
Background
Currently a private individual may sell their firearm to whomever they wish so long as the buyer meets certain criteria. Federal law now reads:
"A person may sell a firearm to an unlicensed resident of his State, if he does not know or have reasonable cause to believe the person is prohibited from receiving or possessing firearms under Federal law. A person may loan or rent a firearm to a resident of any State for temporary use for lawful sporting purposes, if he does not know or have reasonable cause to believe the person is prohibited from receiving or possessing firearms under Federal law."
[18 U.S.C. 922(a)(3) and (5), 922(d), 27 CFR 478.29 and 478.30]
The key is that the seller "does not know or have reasonable cause to believe the person [buyer] is prohibited from receiving or possessing firearms under Federal law.  
There are many Federal and State restrictions on sales, trades, gifts or other transfers of firearms:
·        It is against the law for anyone to transfer a firearm or ammunition to anyone known or believed to be prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition.
·        It is against the law (with rare exceptions) for anyone to transfer a handgun, rifle or shotgun or to a non-dealer who resides in another state.
·        It is illegal for anyone to provide a handgun to or allow a juvenile (person under age 18) to have a handgun; and juveniles are prohibited from possessing handguns, with limited exceptions.  [https://www.nraila.org/articles/20130117/private-sales-restrictions-and-gun-registration]
Thus, Federal law prohibits anyone from selling a firearm to minors, people out of state and people who fall within certain categories, such as convicted felons, domestic abusers, and people with specific kinds of mental health histories including those who have been convicted of violent or gun-related misdemeanors; those with a history of abusing alcohol or drugs; those convicted of juvenile offenses; and additional people who have suffered from severe mental illness.
Only by running a background check can a private seller be certain the intended buyer is legal to buy and possess the firearm being sold.
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