Man Misses Flight Because He Had Gun In His Luggage

A Georgia man wound up missing his flight home last week after admitting to a luggage handler that he had a .357-caliber handgun stashed in his bag. Authorities also found 15 rounds of hollow-point ammunition in a locked gun box. However, the TSA says guns are permitted in checked luggage, as long as they are "unloaded, packed in a locked hard-sided container, and declared to the airline at check-in," which it seems was everything this man did. It's unclear if he was detained or if the airport authorities were just slow to check his baggage, but, to quote the Post, the whole situation seemed "just plane dumb."

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By Jaya Saxena in News on August 22, 2010 11:07 AM

Comments [rss]

jaycjay

"It's unclear if he was detained or if the airport authorities were just slow to check his baggage,"

No, it's clear that he was arrested by the NYPD. Otherwise the incident wouldn't have been in the Post's "NYPD Daily Blotter".

jaycjay

It doesn't matter what the TSA says. The airport is in New York, so the possessing the gun was illegal. The TSA and airlines allow guns to be transported, but the implication is that you have to legally allowed to have the gun wherever you happen to be in the first place.

exnyer

Federal interstate laws allow you to transport a gun across state lines as long as procedures are followed, declared, unloaded, separate from ammo and in a locked case is correct.

If relocating to NY you must abide by the State law.

jaycjay

The federal law, FOPA, does not supersede state or local law. Many localities will still enforce their local gun laws on out-of-state travelers, and it's certainly not surprising that NYC is well known as one of those localities. That he followed federal guidelines while violating local law may be useful as an affirmative defense at trial, but doesn't mean that he can not be charged.

A significant factor will be where he was staying while he was here. The article says he was "returning" to Georgia. If he was in a different state where his gun would be legal and just came to LGA while returning home, FOPA can be applicable. If he spent a vacation in NYC, he's not travelling through and has no FOPA protection.

And again, the "Daily Blotter" is taken from arrest reports.