From: watt-alan@net.yale.edu (Alan Watt)
Subject: Re: Waiting period == harassment
Originator: swatt@mickey.CS.Yale.Edu
Organization: Yale University, Computing & Information Systems
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1992 14:56:23 GMT


In article <1992Oct2.161640.12332@Firewall.Nielsen.Com>, jkapson@ad-29.Naitc.Com (John Kapson) writes:
|> In article <1992Oct2.155109.10631@news.yale.edu> watt-alan@net.yale.edu (Alan Watt) writes:
|> [snip]
|> >I don't think departments necessarily have a "make them wait as long
|> >as possible" policy,
|> 
|> Come to Chicago and find out.  What possible reason is there for it
|> taking six weeks to get a FOID card form the State Police if not simply
|> to harass me?

I was posting about the "waiting period" involved in the transfer of
firearms to the purchaser.  The FIOD card in Illinois seems to be one of
those cases of "you must have it, but we don't have to fund the department
which issues it" kind of situation, and a generally hostile bureaucracy.

Perhaps I should have been a bit more clear: it depends on how the law
implementing the "waiting period" is written.  In Connecticut, the
state/local agencies have a set period of time to disapprove a purchase.
Once the time has expired, the seller is legally allowed to transfer the
gun.  The police agencies therefore have an incentive to do the background
check promptly enough that they can actually stop transfers to inelligible
buyers.  Otherwise, it makes them look bad (felon buys gun, commits crime,
newspapers say department OK'd purchase).

If the law is written such that the seller cannot transfer the firearm
until a positive authorization is received from the state, then there is
no incentive to act on it promptly.  From what I've read, this is the
case with the Illinois FOID; they are "supposed" to be issued within
a set period of time, but there is no way to enforce that except civil
suit.  Further, you have to have a valid FOID to purchase ammunition,
ammunition components, or firearms.  I've also heard that if your
FOID expires, you have to go through the entire application process
again, not just the renewal process, and the state somehow doesn't
get around to mailing out renewal forms until months after they've
expired.  There was a case decided by the Illinois Supreme court
several years ago that threw out the conviction of a man found guilty
of unlawful possession of a firearm after his FOID had expired.  The
court handed down the narrow ruling that the law required a valid FOID
only at the time the gun was acquired; since he had one at the time,
and had not become inelligible to be issued a FOID, his possession of
a firearm was not a violation of the act.

It's worth noting that the Illinois system is almost exactly what
the pro-control forces would describe as "reasonable" gun control.
That is, the kind of gun-control that if we'd only accept it, they'd
stop bugging us.  Illinois has had this system for over 20 years now,
and guess what state now has towns and cities starting to enact
total bans on handgun possession?  This rather repressive system
has neither reduced criminal use of firearms, nor lessened pressure
for even more restrictive gun control.

In Connecticut there is a Board of Firearms Examiners, which functions
as an administrative review panel for CCW permits and firearms transfers.
I've had no dealings with them, but have heard from one or two people
that they act promptly and do follow the law.  They have authority to
over-rule the state or municipality on CCW permit issuance and firearm
transfers.

With such a review panel, assuming it's not taken over by incompetants
or actively hostile people, the waiting period/CCW system functions here
pretty much as written:  it doesn't solve any problems, but it doesn't
create any insurmountable barriers either.  Considering that CT is
surrounded by New York and Massachussetts, this is a miracle.

I grew up in Illinois (Winnetka, even!), but I wouldn't live there now.
You might consider moving to Indiana, logistics permitting.
-- 
  Alan S. Watt
  Yale University			Computing and Information Systems
  Box 2112 Yale Station			(203) 432-6602
  New Haven, CT  06520-2112		Watt-Alan@Yale.Edu
Newsgroups: talk.politics.guns,alt.society.civil-disob