I'm bored at work (at a bar) and we've spent some time earlier tonight BSing about gun stuff. All of the people who know me know I regularly buy stuff and sell stuff when I see something I want or get bored of something, and a lot of the guns I buy are through private sales. The question of accidentally buying a stolen gun came up, and an hour or so of internet research wasn't very helpful. I understand bills of sale and I'm not asking about that. My specific question is regarding whether or not it is possible to for a non-LEO to have a serial number run before a sale to determine if the firearm has been registered as stolen. Google yielded a lot of conflicting information, not to mention a bunch of BS fear-mongering. Pretty much everything I was able to find came from posts in other forums. Some responses said its possible to call in the serial number to a law enforcement agency and they'll run it through an ATF/FBI database of stolen property. Some responses said the agencies won't do that without having physical possession of the gun in case it does turn up as stolen and has to be confiscated, because a scan of a stolen serial number will send a flag to whichever agency it is who has the database and they'll want to know the gun has been taken in. Some said FFLs can run the serial number through the same database. Some said FFLs can't. A couple places said for Florida there's a website/phone number to check a serial number to see if its been reported stolen, but nobody posted a web address or phone number, or whether or not it contained records from the whole country or just Florida. There were other various responses when other people posted similar questions, but you get the idea.
I realize that with a bill of sale and emails, internet forum posts, and phone records (which I keep for everything I buy and sell) that I should be in the clear legally if somehow something I buy later gets found out to be stolen. Its my understanding though that the gun will be taken from me and I'll most likely be out the money. If it turns out there is some way to check beforehand I'll still generally continue doing things the way I've been doing them anyway.
With all that being said I'm posting here, because I'm more annoyed at not being able to find an answer to my question than I am concerned about the actual answer itself (although I am still curious). There's enough other misinformation already online. Please don't respond with something you heard or something I "should" be able to do.
TL;DR: Is there any way for a non-LEO to have the serial number of a firearm being sold through private sale checked to see if it has been reported stolen, preferably before the sale?
I realize that with a bill of sale and emails, internet forum posts, and phone records (which I keep for everything I buy and sell) that I should be in the clear legally if somehow something I buy later gets found out to be stolen. Its my understanding though that the gun will be taken from me and I'll most likely be out the money. If it turns out there is some way to check beforehand I'll still generally continue doing things the way I've been doing them anyway.
With all that being said I'm posting here, because I'm more annoyed at not being able to find an answer to my question than I am concerned about the actual answer itself (although I am still curious). There's enough other misinformation already online. Please don't respond with something you heard or something I "should" be able to do.
TL;DR: Is there any way for a non-LEO to have the serial number of a firearm being sold through private sale checked to see if it has been reported stolen, preferably before the sale?
