Right now, your neighbors could be stockpiling weapons in their homes–and it’s perfectly legal. In light of recent violence, some question whether the law makes it too easy to do so.
The only thing that should concern anyone, in regards to their neighbor stockpiling guns, is if you’re one of those “Keeping up with the Joneses” types and are worried his collection might make yours look sad by comparison. I’ve never understood what the panic is about the number of guns people have. You can only carry so many with you. How many cases of mass shooting have occurred where someone has amassed an “arsenal” and then took it with them? Of course, most reporters think if you have more than one gun, you have an arsenal, so I guess that’s the answer.
Alsobrooks prosecuted Prescott. She believes Maryland gun laws should be re-examined to weed out people who shouldn’t have a collector’s permit, including people with mental illness.
I’m always amazed by this pre-crime Majority Report mentality, like if we just tweak the laws the right way, no one who is a bit off kilter and no one who is just a flaming asshole will ever get their hands on a gun again. The prescription almost always is to make guns harder to buy and possess in general, in the hopes that maybe a few loons will be discouraged. But you know, it never seems to be the loons who are discouraged.
This woman believes that the MD Collectors Permit is what allows people to amass “arsenals”. Sigh, doesn’t even know the law. All the MD Collectors Permit does is register you with the state as a bonafide firearms collector and waives the “1 regulated firearm a month” rule. That’s it. That’s all it does.
There is nothing stopping anyone from buying multiple non-regulated firearms as desired and the state will never know about it since non-regulated transfers are not registered with the Maryland State Police. Or not having the permit and staggering your purchases of regulated firearms. So amassing an “arsenal” is merely contingent on the desire of the person. The Collector permit has nothing to do with it save for telling the state in brighter lights than usual that “I have guns!”.
Stopping or weeding out undesirables from holding the Collectors permit wouldn’t do a thing. As far as the state of MD is concerned, I own only two firearms. The two regulated transfers I’ve had to do under state law. Yet I am sure someone in nearby Baltimore would be stunned at what I actually own and no registration or Collectors permit in sight.
Why do think we call ’em Balti-morons?