Does modifying the trigger really cause legal problems?

[Ed L.]

Once you are unlucky enough to be indicted and on trial, then you better believe that the prosecutor will use whatever crass act of subversion and sabotage against you that they can get their hands on, from the way your gun looks, to the trigger on your gun, to the caliber, to the bullets you use, to the video games you play, to the movies in your movie collection.

This could certainly happen. But are you going to build your choice of defensive firearms and ammo around it? If that's the case you might as well sell all of your ARs and semiauto battle rifles, lest owning them might make you look bad, and rely on an over and under shotgun loaded with birdshot for home defense. That way you can pretend that you are on your way to a sporting clays match when someone broke into your house. You may not even have to worry about the legal aftermath because you might not survive the violent encounter itself.

In this day and age, it would be pretty weak for a prosecution to point to a high cap handgun/AR/or ammo to try to make you look bad when these weapons can be found on the persons and in the cars of virtually every police agency in the nation.

As long as the gun is legal to own for the average person and is legally owned by you, it should be good to go in most places. This does eliminate ARs in some places like New York City & Chicago. Hell, in New York City ARs and such are banned and you cannot legally own a new longarm that has more than a 5 round magazine capacity (I don't know if this applies retroactively or not).

In a place where I was on less secure legal footing with regards to a long gun for home defense, I might use a 12 gauge shotgun with an extended magazine (if legal) or an M1 Carbine with the right ammo (if legal).