Didn’t exactly learned this “today” but the first time I heard of this, I was kinda surprised at this fact. I thought y’all should know since there is a case in the news that people are calling for Jury Nullification or Pardons. That could get a bit tricky considering this Dual Sovereignty Doctrine.
I’m not a lawyer, but I’m pretty sure his gun was illegal, and he carried it across state lines. Those gun charges are probably prosecutable under federal laws. The murder tho, I’m not really sure.
Generally speaking, homemade guns are legal at the federal level as long as they aren’t otherwise prohibited (eg, full auto) and have enough metal to be picked up on a metal detector.
Feds usually only get involved in murder for things like serial killers or hate crimes.
Don’t you have to serialize them though? I understood you could use any scheme you like, and they don’t have to be registered, but it must have some sort of serial number.
You don’t have to serialize firearms you make* for your own personal use. You also don’t need to register them either*. In fact there’s restrictions on the federal government’s ability to keep a registry of guns. 18 USC 926(a)(3). From a policy perspective it’d just be creating another possession based crime that’s almost impossible to enforce. Because you could just pop a “1” on the side and claim that you sent in your registration paperwork but the government screwed up.
*True for title 1 firearms (most handguns, shotguns, and rifles) not certain other classes like those that machineguns or silencers fall into.
https://www.atf.gov/firearms/qa/how-does-person-register-firearm-or-remove-name-firearms-registration
Ah! Love your sub BTW! Been meaning to contribute.