Remember the ATF’s assertion that no one is coming for your firearms and no one is keeping track of them? Possibly, they are.
Several sections of the 1968 Gun Control Act permit the ATF to walk up unexpectedly without a warrant and demand to inspect the firearms you purchased. The National Firearms Act of 1934’s provision for unannounced inspections of National Firearms Act (NFA) licensees (ATF can show up without a warrant once a year to check company premises), but the federal government needs a justification and a judge-signed warrant. Even with an NFT, it appears people retain their Fourth Amendment rights. The Gun Control Act applies to Federal Guns Licensees, but private households are not subject to inspections of documents, firearms, or premises. This likely needs a warrant.
VIDEO: ATF conducts surprise firearm inspection at gun owner’s home without search warrant. @aarmark @eb454 @2AFDN @CCRKBArms @TheGunFeed @FloridaCarryInc #Delaware #ATF #WarOnGuns https://t.co/jw6VxN9cqO
— Lee Williams (@HT_GunWriter) July 18, 2022
ATF may, and evidently will, step up unannounced to the private houses of gun owners and want to inspect their guns. This does not come from dystopian fiction or the fevered fantasies of Biden nominees. According to an exclusive report and video by Armed American News, it occurred in Delaware. Most law-abiding individuals become agitated when men with badges and firearms interrogate them. Even being pulled over for a broken taillight might frighten individuals, but if six armed guys knock on your door and demand to see your guns, you may feel threatened.
Local police and agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms recently visited a guy in Delaware. He is a law-abiding gun owner, not a criminal suspect. The police and agents were all armed. ATF wanted to inspect his firearms. Since 2020, the guy has made a series of purchases involving firearms. ATF lacked a warrant; they only had a list of his firearm transactions and wanted to view the guns he had purchased.
This procedure was included in the Gun Control Act. For example, if you acquire two handguns simultaneously, the FFL must file a document notifying ATF of the transaction. You are then placed on a list, and the ATF may knock on your house with a list requesting to inspect your firearms. There are (supposedly) three motives for ATF to invite your previous transactions.
One is tracing.
The ATF will interrogate you if your lawfully acquired firearm is subsequently stolen and used in a crime. This appears very reasonable. It was investigating multiple purchases of weapons. That is what occurred in Delaware. The owner purchased his firearms, the FFL completed the necessary papers, and AFT arrived at his residence.
And another reason was to perform a welfare check.
Do you have to let the ATF and local police into your home if they come up accompanied by local law enforcement? No, not without justification. And if they have a warrant, they must provide you with a copy. Are you required to display the weapons you purchased? No, not without a warranty, and the order must be explicit enough to allow for that.
The Delaware owner picked the “I have nothing to conceal” path, which was the correct path for him to follow. The agents were kind and did not demand to see other weapons. They did not require entry into the home and departed pleased.
Don’t be shocked if the ATF knocks on your home if you acquire many firearms simultaneously.