Gun owner in court for having more ammunition than allowed

[Heym SR20]

I keep my ammunition in factory boxes of 20, including all my reloads.

In my cabinet the ammo locker takes a stack of 5 to 6 boxes. I keep a stack for each calibre. I thus have a very clear idea of how much I have and I know I am under my limits on all calibres I have.

Have any rifle or rifle ammunition for which you don’t have legal authority is a breach of the Firearms Act, and a breach is likely to result in prosecution. I don’t the Police nor Procurators Fiscal or CPS have much wriggle room these days for any breaches of the Act.

In this case the individual pleaded guilty and the Sheriff accepted that it was an oversight rather than anything sinister.

Most will have ammunition that we have tried but doesn’t work in your rifle. Treat this as “free ammo” and go and do some plinking - you will learn a lot from doing so.

 

[fixedwheel]

There but for the grace of God...!

Does anyone actually count their ammo, other than once every five years, just before the FEO visit for your renewal?
I doubt it.
You know what your imposed limit is, and you know roughly how much you've got, give or take a box or two, and if the two are relatively close you don't worry about it.
That's just real life.

I have spreadsheets for each calibre, and each one has tabs for each type of ammo, so SK Match, SK Long Range, RWS R50, RWS Subs, etc

Mainly so the multiple types of .22LR don't add up to the point they exceed my permitted allowance.

If I shoot multiple types at the club evening, I tend to take photos as I put hem back in the ammo safe, and enter up the usage on the spreadsheet the following day.

More so I know how many I can purchase, if I am in a RFD that has stock of what I want.

 

[timbrayford]

Of course, if you were a determined malcontent you'd have your excess ammo hidden anyway, so notwithstanding any security from theft issues what useful purpose does the ammunition restriction serve?

 

[fixedwheel]

Of course, if you were a determined malcontent you'd have your excess ammo hidden anyway, so notwithstanding any security from theft issues what useful purpose does the ammunition restriction serve?

Amongst other things, the FEO would want to know you have sufficient storage space for the Sec1 ammo allowances you have.

Previously I had 500 x 12 bore slug on my ticket, I don't think that would have fitted in the integral ammo compartment in a lot of safes, never mind the other calibres.

 

[Sinistral]

Anyone subscribe to the East Lothian echo or have better Google skills than me and can find out about this story?

Paywalls are usually childsplay, but you do have the wrong newspaper title.

East Lothian Courier

Court Haddington By Court Reporter
Edinburgh Sheriff Court

A GUN owner has appeared in court after he was found to be in possession of more ammunition than he was legally allowed.

Edinburgh Sheriff Court was told that Adam McNair was the legal holder of a firearms licence and, as part of the strict conditions, he was allowed to possess 250 rounds of ammunition. But when police officers arrived at his home at Abbeymill Farm, near Haddington, on a matter no longer before the courts, it was discovered that McNair held a total of 298 rounds of ammo.

He was charged with the offence under the Firearms Act and appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court.

The court was told that police officers had turned up at the county farm to speak to the 44-year-old on December 11, 2022, and had asked to view the ammunition he kept.

Lawyer Julia McPartland said that her client was the proper legal holder of a licence for the firearm and had a valid legal certificate for the ammunition that was safely locked away in a safe. But the solicitor added that McNair had been given the extra ammunition by a relative and he was pleading guilty to the charge.

Sheriff Kenneth Campbell KC said that he was “satisfied this is a matter of a lack of paying attention” rather than anything sinister and agreed to the defence motion to admonish McNair.

 

[VSS]

Last time I renewed my FAC every single round was counted.

Sure, but how many times in the intervening 5 years did you count them all? Not many, I bet!
Just once, the night before the renewal visit, and shifted any surplus into your sock drawer until after the FEO had gone....

 

[Rake Aboot]

I’ve never had ammo counted
I’m not even sure if I’ve let the feo see a cabinet with more than my allowance in it !!

 

[timbrayford]

Amongst other things, the FEO would want to know you have sufficient storage space for the Sec1 ammo allowances you have.

Previously I had 500 x 12 bore slug on my ticket, I don't think that would have fitted in the integral ammo compartment in a lot of safes, never mind the other calibres.

Sort of what I'm getting at, provided you can keep the ammo stored securely as the Firearms Act requires what difference does it make how much you have?

 

[fixedwheel]

The crazy thing is he went over his limit by accepting ammo from a family member.

Now, that could be down to someone giving up their FAC, or expecting it to be revoked, or even after the death of a FAC holder.

Whatever the reason, McNair should have been aware of how much he had in stock, and the additional should have been filled in on Table 2

Should have either refused any excess that would take him over his allowance, or taken some of his existing for storage at RFD before accepting, or get disposing FAC holder to drop off at RFD, or even done a FoC variation to increase permitted quantity.

 

[fixedwheel]

Sort of what I'm getting at, provided you can keep the ammo stored securely as the Firearms Act requires what difference does it make how much you have?

I suppose the simplest thing is that it shows that he is not complying with the conditions of his FAC?

 

[VSS]

I have spreadsheets for each calibre, and each one has tabs for each type of ammo, so SK Match, SK Long Range, RWS R50, RWS Subs, etc

Mainly so the multiple types of .22LR don't add up to the point they exceed my permitted allowance.

If I shoot multiple types at the club evening, I tend to take photos as I put hem back in the ammo safe, and enter up the usage on the spreadsheet the following day.

I'm not sure if you're being serious, or whether you're just pulling my leg...

 

[fixedwheel]

I'm not sure if you're being serious, or whether you're just pulling my leg...

Nope, serious, at the moment I have 16 different types of .22LR in the safe, and there has been another 6 or 7 that I no longer have.

Target shooters, especially small bore, can burn through far more options. When I started off, even for considered benchrest shooting, I could still do 150 rounds in an evening. Fun with a 15/22 and a brick would disappear before getting bored with loading the mags!

On my vermin rifles I don't tend to change around so much, and I don't pull the trigger anywhere near as much.

 

[VSS]

Nope, serious, at the moment I have 16 different types of .22LR in the safe, and there has been another 6 or 7 that I no longer have.

Target shooters, especially small bore, can burn through far more options. When I started off, even for considered benchrest shooting, I could still do 150 rounds in an evening. Fun with a 15/22 and a brick would disappear before getting bored with loading the mags!

On my vermin rifles I don't tend to change around so much, and I don't pull the trigger anywhere near as much.

Blimey.
I thought I was getting extravagant with 2 types of .243 ammo, 2 types of .22lr ammo, and one type of .270 ammo cluttering up the sock drawer ammo safe, plus a few random .222 rounds for a rifle I haven't got.

 

[fixedwheel]

Just opened the spreadsheet, these are the various .22LR ammo that I have shot over the last 3 years.

 

[fixedwheel]

Blimey.
I thought I was getting extravagant with 2 types of .243 ammo, 2 types of .22lr ammo, and one type of .270 ammo cluttering up the sock drawer ammo safe, plus a few random .222 rounds for a rifle I haven't got.

Time to get out and buy a nice triple deuce then!

 

[rocketdogbert]

IF there was any occasion when it’s possible I could be over my allowance, in THEORY I could drop at my local friendly RFD for them to look after and dispense to me as I shoot and my possession stays within my allowance.

 

[Jagged77]

Just totted mine up, combined 10k with only 2.5k rimfire! I think I have a little headroom….

 

[Rake Aboot]

I suppose the simplest thing is that it shows that he is not complying with the conditions of his FAC?

I’m not sure most folk take it that seriously.

In all honestly it’s not even that big an issue , it happens and I’d bet 90% on here have went over be it 1 or 100 and it’s not a public safety issue .

He had something else going on and this was a way for the cops to get another bite at the apple

 

[Feugh]

Sure, but how many times in the intervening 5 years did you count them all? Not many, I bet!
Just once, the night before the renewal visit, and shifted any surplus into your sock drawer until after the FEO had gone....

I reload nowadays so I don’t need to worry about having enough ammunition. The only one I have to worry about is the HMR, but as long as I have five boxes or less then I’m fine.

 

[fixedwheel]

He had something else going on and this was a way for the cops to get another bite at the apple

Always the most likely scenario.