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Owning a handgun under 21 in Missouri

56K views 31 replies 20 participants last post by  Browning191122 
#1 ·
So I've been doing research on Missouri's gun laws, and I"m more confused than when I started. Can anyone clear them up for me? I'm 20 years old, is there any way for me to own a handgun legally?
 
#2 ·
Only if it is a gift, or you inherit it. The gift gets hazy especially if you are not living at home with an adult over the age of 21. Same for it being inheritted .

Sorry but you really need to be 21 to stay clear of legal issues like going to the range etc. Most ranges require an adult of 21 to even allow you to shoot a handgun.

Hang in there..A year isn't quite as long as it seems.

Be Safe:cool:
 
#3 ·
Sorry Shootist2121, but you are incorrect. That only applies to a juvenile, and a juvenile is defined as anyone under 18.

http://www.moga.mo.gov/statutes/C500-599/5710000080.HTM
http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/uscode/18/I/44/922

Perfectly fine if you obtain it by a private sale. You simply can't buy one from a dealer. For some stupid reason, you can OWN a handgun if you are 18, but you can't BUY one from a FFL dealer unless you are 21. That's why the NRA is currently suing the ATF.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/37107009/D-Cruz-v-BATFE-Complaint
 
#5 ·
You can legally own a handgun if you are 18 years old. You just can't buy one from a dealer. My son legally owns a Beretta 92fs that I gave him. The reason for a Beretta is that next year he goes to the Air Force. He is going in as Security for the first two years then transfering to paralegal. As far as buying ammo for a pistol there is a way around the law. If asked "is this for a pistol" tell them no for a rifle. There are plenty of rifles that shoot pistol calibers. If it's a 45acp you do own a Thompson right? :rolleyes:

There is a instructor here who teaches a Utah CCW class and says you get a Utah CCW permit and carry when you are 18. I'm not really sure about this as the classes I instruct are MO only.
 
#7 ·
The reason for a Beretta is that next year he goes to the Air Force. He is going in as Security for the first two years then transfering to paralegal.
Does he have that written in his contract? If he does i'd be surprised. Cross training to a new job as far as i'm aware isn't always guaranteed. When someone submits a package they are usually recommended to list more then one job in case the one they want gets dissaproved....AF needs come first.

On Topic: I'm moving to Missouri soon...can't wait to finally leave Cali :biglaugh:
 
#21 · (Edited)
Here in Utah you can purchase a handgun via private sale at 18. Sounds similar to the laws in MO


There is a instructor here who teaches a Utah CCW class and says you get a Utah CCW permit and carry when you are 18. I'm not really sure about this as the classes I instruct are MO only.
You are incorrect about the Utah permit. You must be 21 to obtain one. The permit you are thinking of is from Maine as long as your state recognizes the non resident Maine permit then you should be fine.
 
#9 ·
I would think you should be fine as long as you keep it unloaded and either in plain sight or in a secure box or whatever the law says you need to do to transport it.
 
#8 ·
I scanned NRA-ILA and it doesn't say anything about ages. So I would assume you would be Ok to posess if you were going to the range or something.

I bought... I mean my dad bought... my first handgun when I was 19. In MN its legal to posess and go to the range unsupervised and all that fun stuff. Don't flirt with carrying though unless you are dead nuts sure of the laws.

You won't be able to buy ammo, but you can buy all the reloading components you want!! I was loading 9mm and 45ACP two years before I could buy it factory new.
 
#12 ·
Legally..Yes he can own a handgun.. As I stated he can have it gifted or inheritted and yes even a private sale...Problem is purchasing ammo, transport and having it in his possession without and adult at age 21 or older..

You have to be 21 to carry the firearm in the confines of the car/truck cabin..If you transport in the trunk, unloaded and secure..You are still in trouble if found by LE..Unless an adult is with you and knowing you are tranporting the firearm in the trunk.

Having the firearm in a private residence..eg: an apartment without an adult and is discovered by LE you will be charge with pocession of a firearm till you can legally prove ownership and even then you will be harassed about it being in you possession with out an adult living there...

Yes this is wrong from legal ownership point of view ..But it is reality...How often does this happen?...A fair amount according to my LE contacts here in St. Louis and St. Charles..Usually because somebody snitches..The firearm is confiscated and then a pain to resolve..

My brother had a Ruger Single Six..At eighteen..Living at home with my mother... Neioghbor saw him walk from the house to the car and placing it in his trunk to go to friends farm to shoot..She called the LE and before he got the car out of the garage they had him blocked in and took the firearm even though he showed proof of ownership..My mother had to go get the firearm from the local LE's...Now that was years ago.. I mean years..Like 20...

Unfortunately this still happens. We've created such fear in people that any common sense has disappeared..Remember when teenagers use to go hunting right after school for rabbits and such...Now they have to go home retrive their shotgun/22 and then go and hopefully hunt on friendly property and not be seen by some urbanite who's moved from the big city to enjoy nature..

Modrunner..I'm just trying to keep you from the crap that comes with firearm ownership till you are 21...I know it sucks.. I was shooting competition at your age and luckily I had my father with me almost every outing.. I was stopped perhaps three times from the age of 18 to 21 to prove ownership, etc..Mostly at ranges I might note..If you live in more rural setting.. I would hope it be less..

Last week up at Logan Range near Troy.. The Highway patrol and the Missouri conservation dept were screaning folks..This is a unmanned shooting range by the Missouri conservation Dept. I was there with a student..This was the first time I even saw any LE at the range doing this.. Hope this doesn't become the norm..

Just my two cents:cool:
 
#14 ·
Be patient grasshopper. Good things come to those who wait. In the next 12 months (likely less) keep doing research and keep saving $$. The more you have saved, the better gun you can buy, the more magazines, the more holsters/belts/mag carriers. Owning a handgun can get expensive quickly.

The hassle of technicalities (as well as uninformed LEO's should you have a run in with the law) is not worth the pain.
 
#19 ·
parallax:
I know there is no law covering supervision...Try telling that to a LE..Yes they maybe exposing themselves to a lawsuit..They don't care!...Because few if any are every filed because of the cost of litigation...

I'm not trying to fight with you or argue... I'm well aware of the statutes and how often LE work around them..

Most ranges require adult supervision from a liability issue from their insurance carriers...

Good God...I was just trying to keep the guy from stepping into a pile of crap..You can quote the law till you are blue in the face.. Try it the next time someone discovers you carrying in a ill mark prohibited place (You have CCW card)..By law you are suppose to be asked to leave..Right? Even though the prohibit sign is illegal...I had four independent Restuarant managers tell me they'll just call the Cops.. The least you will get out of that is a summons for disturbing the Peace.

I've done my home work too! ...There is the law and then there is reality!
I'm not going to banter this any further..You do as you please...

Be safe:cool:
 
#22 ·
parallax:
I know there is no law covering supervision...Try telling that to a LE..Yes they maybe exposing themselves to a lawsuit..They don't care!...Because few if any are every filed because of the cost of litigation...
So...we should just let the police do whatever they want because if they violate your rights, most people won't sue? Sorry, but that's not the America I live in.

I'm not trying to fight with you or argue...
But you're doing a pretty good job of it.

I'm well aware of the statutes and how often LE work around them..
Again, not in the America I live in.

Most ranges require adult supervision from a liability issue from their insurance carriers...
Most ranges are private and can do whatever they want. One range I belong to requires that you be a NRA member. They can require you to be 100 and purple if they wanted. A private club can do whatever they want. Even a range that is open to the public has the right to refuse service to anyone they want.

Good God...I was just trying to keep the guy from stepping into a pile of crap..You can quote the law till you are blue in the face.. Try it the next time someone discovers you carrying in a ill mark prohibited place (You have CCW card)..By law you are suppose to be asked to leave..Right? Even though the prohibit sign is illegal...I had four independent Restuarant managers tell me they'll just call the Cops.. The least you will get out of that is a summons for disturbing the Peace.
Legal signage not withstanding, if the owner asks you to leave, you leave. Oh, and even if they call the police first, you won't get cited for trespassing unless you refuse to leave when the police tell you too.

Not sure what "pile of crap" he's going to step in if he follows that law. The cop who harasses him maybe, but not him.

I've done my home work too! ...
And yet you posted opinion, not fact. The fact is, as long as he follows the law, he's ok.

There is the law and then there is reality!
Like a said above, that not the America I live in!

Seriously, if you're going to try to answer the guy's question, you should answer him with facts, not opinion or hear-say.
 
#20 ·
Alot of illegal(fullauto conversion) and stupid shooting goes on up at Logan. Without supervision that's what they get. When I lived in Troy I use to go up there to shoot, then I found the St. Louis Benchrest Rifle and Pistol Club. Much safer and saner, and just as close to Troy. As far asthe question of the OP. Don't take the chance, please wait until you are 21 years old. You could wind up with a hard nose prosecutor and end up with a felony and then you are done. No firearms ownership, no right to vote. All it takes is a hard case Leo and D.A. and you are screwed.
 
#23 ·
Thanks for all the info/opinions guys. I really do appreciate it. I think I'll wait to purchase and just be content to go shooting with my grandpa every month or so until I'm 21. One more question, Missouri law states that I have to be 23 to have my CCW, can I still own the handgun at 21 and safely transport it to ranges without legal trouble?
 
#27 ·
Wouldnt this be the answer to the question...

18 U.S.C. § 922 : US Code - Section 922: Unlawful acts

http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/uscode/18/I/44/922

******************
(9) for any person, other than a licensed importer, licensed
manufacturer, licensed dealer, or licensed collector, who does
not reside in any State to receive any firearms unless such
receipt is for lawful sporting purposes.
(b) It shall be unlawful for any licensed importer, licensed
manufacturer, licensed dealer, or licensed collector to sell or
deliver -
(1) any firearm or ammunition to any individual who the
licensee knows or has reasonable cause to believe is less than
eighteen years of age, and, if the firearm, or ammunition is
other than a shotgun or rifle, or ammunition for a shotgun or
rifle, to any individual who the licensee knows or has reasonable
cause to believe is less than twenty-one years of age;
******************
(1) the transferee submits to the transferor a sworn statement
in the following form:
"Subject to penalties provided by law, I swear that, in the
case of any firearm other than a shotgun or a rifle, I am
twenty-one years or more of age, or that, in the case of a
shotgun or a rifle, I am eighteen years or more of age; that I
am not prohibited by the provisions of chapter 44 of title 18,
United States Code, from receiving a firearm in interstate or
foreign commerce; and that my receipt of this firearm will not
be in violation of any statute of the State and published
ordinance applicable to the locality in which I reside.
Further, the true title, name, and address of the principal law
enforcement officer of the locality to which the firearm will
be delivered are ____________
_______________________
Signature _________ Date ____."
and containing blank spaces for the attachment of a true copy of
any permit or other information required pursuant to such statute
or published ordinance;
 
#30 ·
Yes there are a lot of Missouri residents on this forum.

Some food for thought on the out of state CCW permits for residents. I wouldn't count on out of state permits for residents staying legal. Out of state CCW permits were done as an end around the counties that refused to issue regardless of the new law. IMHO the out of state CCW permits for Missouri Residents should Not be allowed anymore, now that every county is issuing. It was a loop hole in the law that got over looked when the law was drafted, but I am looking for the law to be revised accordingly.
I do think that they will continue to honor out of state CCW permits from states with reciprocity and will add more as time goes on. Out of state CCW permits for residents is kinda like moving to Missouri and not get a Missouri drivers license and getting Missouri plates on your car within 30 days of moving into the state. Sorry it's two of my pet pevies, I don't believe in working the system loopholes, there's no real reason too. I get off the soapbox now.
 
#31 ·
you can own handguns legally ammo is a bitch however i have my uncle buy mine and i give him the money to pay for it i have done extensive research on this and on milling your own gun my next gun will be a 1911 that i will mill myself most likely a model 80 i'm not quite sure which one i prefer:scratch:
 
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