Moving a PA AR-15 into MD?

"All laws which are repugnant to the Constitution, are null and void." Chief Justice Marshall, Marbury v. Madison, 5, U.S. (Cranch) 137, 174,176

Amendment II
A well regulated Militia (not the illegal federally funded & militarized state forces or the multitude of illegal federal forces), being necessary to the security of a free State (pertaining to the 50 separate sovereign state entities), {this comma is the same as the word "and"} the right of the PEOPLE to keep (own and/or possess) and bear (wear and/or carry) Arms, shall not be infringed.

infringe
v infringe [inˈfrindʒ]
to break (a law etc) or interfere with (a person's freedom or rights).
n inˈfringement

Verb 1. infringe - go against, as of rules and laws; "He ran afoul of the law"; "This behavior conflicts with our rules"
Syn. contravene, run afoul, conflict
Related breach, infract, transgress, violate, go against, offend, break - act in disregard of laws, rules, contracts, or promises; "offend all laws of humanity"; "violate the basic laws or human civilization"; "break a law"; "break a promise"

Verb 2. infringe - advance beyond the usual limit
Syn. encroach, impinge

NEED ANY MORE BE SAID IN REGARD TO THIS TOPIC?

.....or about any other question pertaining to the legality of ANY firearm, explosive, destructive device, munition, armor (personnel & land, air, and/or sea vehicle), surveillance & communications equipment, or any other item that this rogue government that has hijacked & destroyed our Republic does not want us to have.

redacted due to the lawyer.

kalister1 said:

The Regulated rifle is a Maryland thing. Buying a Rifle in a State that you do NOT reside in and having to abide by BOTH states laws is a Federal thing.

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Not giving legal advice here, but OP may have a problem. I suggest you contact legal counsel. Under Federal law, a FFL in PA can sell a long gun to a MD resident only as long as that purchase would be legal in both PA and MD.

The federal statute is 18 usc 922(a)

First you got to look at 922(a)(3) which provides:
It shall be unlawful:

for any person, other than a licensed importer, licensed manufacturer, licensed dealer, or licensed collector to transport into or receive in the State where he resides (or if the person is a corporation or other business entity, the State where it maintains a place of business) any firearm purchased or otherwise obtained by such person outside that State, except that this paragraph (A) shall not preclude any person who lawfully acquires a
firearm by bequest or intestate succession in a State other than his State of residence from transporting the firearm into or receiving it in that State, if it is lawful for such person to purchase or possess such firearm in that State, (B) shall not apply to the transportation or receipt of a firearm obtained in conformity with subsection (b)(3) of this section,

The cross reference to (b)(3) then becomes determinative and it provides as follows:
It shall be unlawful for any licensed importer, licensed manufacturer, licensed dealer, or licensed collector to sell or deliver--
* * * *
(3) any firearm to any person who the licensee knows or has reasonable cause to believe does not reside in (or if the person is a corporation or other business entity, does not maintain a place of business in) the State in which the licensee's place of business is located, except that this paragraph (A) shall not apply to the sale or delivery of any rifle or shotgun to a resident of a State other than a State in which the licensee's place of business is located if the transferee meets in person with the transferor to accomplish the transfer, and the sale, delivery, and receipt fully comply with the legal conditions of sale in both such States (and any licensed manufacturer, importer or dealer shall be presumed, for purposes of this subparagraph, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, to have had actual knowledge of the State laws and published ordinances of both States), and (B) shall not apply to the loan or rental of a firearm to any person for temporary use for lawful sporting purposes;


The upshot of this is that the PA dealer must comply "with the legal conditions of sale in both such States" in selling even a long gun to a MD resident.

Moreover, since the sale did not comply with (b)(3) exception, the ban on "any person" in (a)(3) would apply and that bans "any person" from transporting the firearm from out of state into the state of residence.

Again, I am not giving legal advice here, but if it were me, I would leave it in PA forever.

Andras said:

Buy 1 HBAR upper from an online vendor, no need for BCG or sights.

Take HBAR upper to PA, install on 1 AR lower along with bolt group. Ta-Da, it's not a regulated rifle. Import into MD. Restore original upper. Repeat with 3 remaining rifles.

IANAL.

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I would not recommend this approach......

I might be way off here but, if he bought from a PA FFL he would have to have filled out the paperwork with assuming a MD ID. Wouldn't that make it a legal purchase that he could just bring into MD. My only other question is what did state police say when you asked to register? Was it no just because or a no because you don't need to? I know calling them is a crap shoot as far as the answers are concerned but I think you'd be ok just bringing them down. Just my opinion tho. Def not legal advise.

since the OP doesn't seem to want to provide any more details, the only thing that makes any kind of sense here is that he bought HBAR rifles in PA. anything else seems like it would be illegal.

Eastcoasttj said:

I might be way off here but, if he bought from a PA FFL he would have to have filled out the paperwork with assuming a MD ID. Wouldn't that make it a legal purchase that he could just bring into MD. My only other question is what did state police say when you asked to register? Was it no just because or a no because you don't need to? I know calling them is a crap shoot as far as the answers are concerned but I think you'd be ok just bringing them down. Just my opinion tho. Def not legal advise.

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No, it would not. A NON HBAR ar15 is a regulated firearm, just like a handgun, and different forms and different rules (e.g., waiting period) apply to buy a regulated firearm under MD law. And since this is a federal crime, State Police are not going to give you the right answer necessarily.

So i guess my next question would be how does he file in Maryland if he already owns it? Doesn't the state police manage that? Not being smart, genuinely curious.

JMangle said:

I'm just leaving them in PA for the time being, and sometime I'll buy stripped MD lowers and switch everything over.

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Why would you do this? Just bring your firearms home and enjoy them.

If the police show up to take your guns we are ALL probably getting the same visit.

Eastcoasttj said:

So i guess my next question would be how does he file in Maryland if he already owns it? Doesn't the state police manage that? Not being smart, genuinely curious.

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He needs to consult counsel. *If* the original sale was in violation of federal law, it is hard to see how he can now fix it so as to bring the AR 15s into MD, as (b)(3) exception would not apply, which means that a transport of the AR15 into MD could violate 922(a)(3). MD law controls the sale and the sale has already been fully consummated. Hard to see how you get a Mulligan on this. In short, *if* the original sale did not comply with MD law, then PA dealer did the OP no favors by selling him (a MD resident) the AR15s in a manner that did not comply with MD law.

As to those who argue that the OP should just go ahead and bring the AR15s into MD, I suggest they read U.S. v. Decastro, 682 F.3d 160 (2d Cir. 2012) (federal conviction for violation of 922(a)(3) sustained as against a 2d Amendment challenge). A willful violation of 922(a)(3) is a felony and such person "shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than five years, or both." 18 U.S.C. 924(1)(D). A felony conviction also means you lose your guns and ammo for the rest of your life under 18 U.S.C. 922(g). Worth the risk? It wouldn't be for me.

Just to throw more dirt on the pile. I know someone who has always been a MD resident, but lived in PA for a short period of time. During that period of time, said person purchased an AR-15 cash and carry from a PA FFL. Before returning to residence in MD,(still a legal MD resident) sold said AR-15 as regulated to private party using MSP to do the transfer. I do not recall the barrel being stamped HBAR.

drewhall said:

Just to throw more dirt on the pile. I know someone who has always been a MD resident, but lived in PA for a short period of time. During that period of time, said person purchased an AR-15 cash and carry from a PA FFL. Before returning to residence in MD,(still a legal MD resident) sold said AR-15 as regulated to private party using MSP to do the transfer. I do not recall the barrel being stamped HBAR.

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Perfectly legal if he was a PA resident when he purchased the ar15.

esqappellate said:

Perfectly legal if he was a PA resident when he purchased the ar15.

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What if he wasn't? Current owner is also MD resident.

drewhall said:

What if he wasn't? Current owner is also MD resident.

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If the buyer in PA was a MD resident and the PA seller sold him a AR15 in PA that was not a HBAR, then he would have been in the position as the OP in this thread -- that is to say fully subject to 922(a)(3). A current MD resident can sell a regulated firearm to another MD resident by either going through a FFL dealer or going through the MSP. Same rules apply. Read 922(a)(3), it regulates interstate sales and how firearms may be transported into the buyer's state of residence.

If the rifles in question are HBARs you are ok to bring into MD

right, because a HBAR AR15 is not a regulated firearm and is thus treated like any other long gun under 922(b)(3). See Md Crim. Code 5-101 which lists as regulated firearms
(xv) Colt AR-15, CAR-15, and all imitations except Colt AR-15 Sporter H-BAR rifle;

That is what confused me about the deal I know of. I don't remember there being H-BAR stamped anywhere on the barrel, even though it had the typical info stamped on. I may be mistaken.