Claiming luggage while transporting guns can put travelers at risk

July 30, 9:35 AMGun Rights ExaminerDavid Codrea

Previous Next

10 comments Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Gun Rights Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

  (AP Photo/Don Ryan)

Karen McNutt of Women & Guns has a warning for travelers.

You could be traveling by airline with a declared and checked-in gun in your baggage, all perfectly legal, and think you've done everything required of you. Then say something compels you to claim your luggage at a layover airport: perhaps your flight was rerouted, or perhaps there was a delay and they're going to shuttle you to a hotel or an alternate terminal...

Don't assume it's safe to claim your suitcase. That could put you in a world of hurt.

I came across McNutt's article--one I missed when it first came out--in a forwarded email from Firearmsregprof, a "discussion list for scholars specializing in firearms."

Here's part of what she had to say:

Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey are particularly bad states to pass through. If you check your luggage in, then find because of some delay that the airline is asking you to claim your luggage, do not do so. As soon as you take possession you could be arrested. Go to the baggage counter or to customer service. Explain that the baggage cannot leave airline custody. If that results in the bag missing the connection and arriving late, so be it. If they insist you take the bag, tell the clerk that he may be violating the law, could be arrested for the unlawful transfer of a firearm. That should get his or her attention. Ask for a supervisor. If you have to, ask for airport security. Explain to them that you can not take possession of the bag. Ask them to instruct you as to what you should do.

Read the whole thing and pass it on. It's another example of agenda-driven "law" entrapping citizens trying their hardest to jump through all the hoops, but nonetheless at risk of having their lives destroyed.

I guess it's easier and safer than going after real criminals.

The Firearmsregprof discussion includes a note of hope from Stephen P. Halbrook:

18 USC 926A entitles a person to transport a firearm in this situation. NY is apparently the only state where passengers are arrested when they comply with TSA procedures to transport firearms by air. We are litigating this policy in the US Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit...We have had oral argument and are awaiting a decision.

Isn't it amazing that this is even an issue?

------------

The village may be missing an idi...uh...representative member...

...but at least he hasn't lost his voice.

"Gun Rights Examiner" David Codrea rages...

Codrea ends in dismay...

Yesterday's column was actually an exercise in optimism, Roy. There's an opportunity for a small victory there that could have larger implications, not the least of which could be to constipate Furious Mike.

------------

Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!

Anchorage Libertarian Examiner Kevin Wilmeth wants to arrange a hunting safari for a self-identified expert.

"Airdrop Deputy Chief Moore" sounds like a great bumper sticker or T-shirt slogan.

------------

Writer's guide

From Buckeye Firearms Association:

Download your FREE Writer's Guide to Firearms and Ammunition

If you're like most journalists, you want to be accurate when reporting a story that involves guns. However, you don't have the time or the inclination to become an expert on firearms.

That's why we're pleased to offer you The Writer's Guide to Firearms and Ammunition by the National Shooting Sports Foundation. This guide can help you better understand and report on firearms and gun-related issues.

There's no technical jargon or political hype. This is a plain English glossary of firearms terms and at-a-glance fact sheets you can use when you're writing a firearms-related story. It includes...

 

• Overview of Firearms Industry Regulations
• Statistical Data on Gun Homicides, Suicides, and Accidents
• Penalties for Violating Firearm Laws
• Examples of Inaccurate or Misleading Coverage
• Glossary, Pictures, and Additional Resources

Click here to access their media contact page and to download the guide.