Gun found in car

[Stupid]

What kind of trouble would I be in if the dealer who changes my oil finds a gun in my car? would there be any difference if the gun is in a locked box or not?

[budroux2w]

I wouldn't keep anything in my truck that I wouldn't expect stolen when getting an oil change. Plus I always hang out there with them.

[Teamless]

that I wouldn't expect stolen when getting an oil change

or a car wash, or any time someone other than me or my family were in the car.

[garcia946]

That happens to me all the time where I work. I find it amazing how people are clueless about leaving their handgun in their car/truck when it gets something done to it. I can count several times last week that I pull a car/truck in and look down in door pouch and see a handgun. People can be too trustworthy or just plain stupid.

[troglodyte]

Not a good idea. The secretary at church left her's in her car and it ended up being stolen, in the time it took for her to turn around and get back to the dealership when she remembered. It was later found at a crime scene a couple of hundred miles away. Even though it was not used in the crime and the police called her they found her gun it took over two years for it to go through the system and get returned to her.

They call them "stealerships" for more than one reason.

[Stupid]

Sorry, i know it's not a good idea. I just wonder what kind of legal trouble if any i would be in.

[C-dub]

Maybe a little if it is stolen and then used in a crime?

[HankB]

What kind of trouble would I be in if the dealer who changes my oil finds a gun in my car? would there be any difference if the gun is in a locked box or not?

if the gun is in a lockbox, it wouldn't be just a casual thief who would swipe it on impulse, but a determined criminal.

I personally don't leave guns in my vehicles when I take them in for service - heck, I don't leave guns in vehicles if I know they're going to be parked or unattended for any length of time.

But I remember meeting one old codger with a very different viewpoint - he kept a (broken) gun in his car 24/7. He'd been a victim of car theft or car burglary more than once, and said that if a car were stolen or broken into, usually the cops wouldn't bother doing more than filling out a report - if that. But tell them A GUN had been stolen, and suddenly the case got moved to the top of the pile.

[The Annoyed Man]

Maybe a little if it is stolen and then used in a crime?

Nope. Texas law does not hold the victim of a crime to be responsible for the subsequent crimes of the perpetrator. I don't know chapter and verse, but I've seen it quoted here on this forum - a Texas gun owner is not subject to any criminal liability if their stolen gun is used in another crime.

My guess is that the same would be true about civil liability if your gun were stolen, used in another crime, found, traced back to your ownership, and then you were sued by the other victim's family for not having adequately secured your gun. I don't believe any Texas jury would buy that one.

[jester]

That makes sense. It's should be the same if someone steals your car and uses it in a crime.

[suthdj]

Maybe a little if it is stolen and then used in a crime?

Nope. Texas law does not hold the victim of a crime to be responsible for the subsequent crimes of the perpetrator. I don't know chapter and verse, but I've seen it quoted here on this forum - a Texas gun owner is not subject to any criminal liability if their stolen gun is used in another crime.

My guess is that the same would be true about civil liability if your gun were stolen, used in another crime, found, traced back to your ownership, and then you were sued by the other victim's family for not having adequately secured your gun. I don't believe any Texas jury would buy that one.

"What if" The person caring for your car(clean,lube etc..) is a minor and you left it unsecured. I believe there is criminal charges in that case due to the person being a minor and having access to the weapon and I guess also used to injure someone.

[The Annoyed Man]

Maybe a little if it is stolen and then used in a crime?

Nope. Texas law does not hold the victim of a crime to be responsible for the subsequent crimes of the perpetrator. I don't know chapter and verse, but I've seen it quoted here on this forum - a Texas gun owner is not subject to any criminal liability if their stolen gun is used in another crime.

My guess is that the same would be true about civil liability if your gun were stolen, used in another crime, found, traced back to your ownership, and then you were sued by the other victim's family for not having adequately secured your gun. I don't believe any Texas jury would buy that one.

"What if" The person caring for your car(clean,lube etc..) is a minor and you left it unsecured. I believe there is criminal charges in that case due to the person being a minor and having access to the weapon and I guess also used to injure someone.

Then yes, that would probably be a violation of the law, as far as I can see, but the charge would be one of making a gun available to a minor. I'm pretty sure that there would be no criminal legal consequence to you pertaining to that minor's subsequent use of the gun to commit a crime. I guess my response assumes the thief is not a minor employed by a car wash.

In any case, it is foolish to not secure your weapon in a lock box, which can be anchored by a steel cable to your seat struts, if you are going to leave your gun in the car. They cost all of $29.95 to $39.95, depending on the size of your gun, and given the price of a gun and the cost of any possible legal consequences to you, it is cheap insurance.

[C-dub]

That's kind of what I was thinking about. Either a minor or a felon or some type of negligence due to being unsecured. Being in a locked vehicle that is broken into is one thing, but giving someone access to your vehicle I thought could be treated differently.

[suthdj]

Maybe a little if it is stolen and then used in a crime?

Nope. Texas law does not hold the victim of a crime to be responsible for the subsequent crimes of the perpetrator. I don't know chapter and verse, but I've seen it quoted here on this forum - a Texas gun owner is not subject to any criminal liability if their stolen gun is used in another crime.

My guess is that the same would be true about civil liability if your gun were stolen, used in another crime, found, traced back to your ownership, and then you were sued by the other victim's family for not having adequately secured your gun. I don't believe any Texas jury would buy that one.

"What if" The person caring for your car(clean,lube etc..) is a minor and you left it unsecured. I believe there is criminal charges in that case due to the person being a minor and having access to the weapon and I guess also used to injure someone.

Then yes, that would probably be a violation of the law, as far as I can see, but the charge would be one of making a gun available to a minor. I'm pretty sure that there would be no criminal legal consequence to you pertaining to that minor's subsequent use of the gun to commit a crime. I guess my response assumes the thief is not a minor employed by a car wash.

In any case, it is foolish to not secure your weapon in a lock box, which can be anchored by a steel cable to your seat struts, if you are going to leave your gun in the car. They cost all of $29.95 to $39.95, depending on the size of your gun, and given the price of a gun and the cost of any possible legal consequences to you, it is cheap insurance.

[Stupid]

So what are the legal consequences?
a, if I didn't secure the gun, or
b, if i secured the gun but they just found it in my car.