View Full Version : Info needed re moving with weapons from Arizona to Ft Benning via Ohio
SeriousStudent
04-25-16, 19:10
A new member here named Firefox asked me to post a request for information. He does not have enough posts for GD. He's graduating from college in Arizona, and moving to Fort Benning to accept a commission as an Infantry officer. A big tip of the Stetson to the young man, for his service to our country.
Here's his query, unedited. Be nice.
Hello everyone,
As a preface, I realize I don't enough posts to be in the GD. As such, I’ve contacted SeriousStudent to post this on my behalf and have permission to respond in this thread to answer my questions. I spend much more time reading than posting on the boards. I am thankful for any help you can offer me.
I am currently an Army ROTC cadet in who is commissioning as an active duty infantry officer in May. I will be going back home to Ohio for a few months then on to Ft. Benning for more training. I want to take my weapons with me as I will be driving but I have never traveled across the country in a car let alone with weapons. During my trip, I am concerned about laws transporting my weapons state to state as I travel to my final destination. Namely, having to either reconfigure how they are locked up or in some situations, avoiding states entirely seeing as how I have mainly ARs and what many ban states would deem "assault rifles/weapons".
Based on the research I have done, FOPA protects me as a lawful firearms owner traveling from one state to another where my weapons are legal at my final destination. With that, I was reading in some states (names were not given) that FOPA is an “affirmative defense” in that it is only valid after I have been arrested and charged with a crime. As someone who has not traveled across the country with weapons this is concerning and there appears to be a lot of grey area in lawfully transporting firearms between states. My tentative plan of action as of now is to lock all of my weapons unloaded in hard cases and any ammunition will also be locked in a separate container. Everything will be in a u-haul trailer pulled by my Jeep so the weapons among my other belongings are not in the same compartment as the driver/occupants of the vehicle.
For those of you who have traveled across the country in a car with weapons, what should be I be aware of and what additional actions should I take to ensure I do not run into any legal trouble? Are there any areas in my route planning from AZ to Ohio to Benning that I should avoid? Additionally, what should I expect? Would it be reasonable to expect to have to declare firearms at state borders or have my uhaul searched for compliance? I apologize if some of these seem like elementary questions but I rather have everything in order so I don’t end up finding myself in some bad legal trouble on accident.
Thanks again in advance for any constructive input.
Made the trip from Phx to Benning many a time. Never had a problem. I just kept all my guns in cases in the back seat and kept a handgun or two loaded up front with me. Being an officer I'm assuming you are living off post and therefore bringing them on post is a non issue. If you are bringing them on post you need to declare them at the gate with the MPs and they will instruct you what to do.
I always took the I10 or the I20 and never ran into any sort of border issue with the states. I did run into some Border Patrol checkpointso but was waived through every time.
If you have any more questions feel free to PM me. Just know that it's been about 9 years since I ever been back that way so things most likely have changed somewhat.
I don't know of any issues that you might have in the southeast (TN, AL, GA, MS). I've never had any issues moving handguns, shotguns, or rifles between any of those states. If you want to shoot USPSA, IDPA, 3 Gun, Steel Challenge, or go to a range, look up East AL Gun Club. It's about 20-30 min from Benning and is a great outdoor range. There are a lot of guys from Benning who are members and I'm a member. I'll be glad to meet you there and show you around. Just shoot me a pm when you get here.
SomeOtherGuy
04-25-16, 20:08
1) Make sure your guns and accessories (mags) are legal where you're living in Georgia and where you're staying in Ohio. I don't know of any significant restrictions there, but I'm not an expert on Georgia law. Ohio used to have some magazine restrictions, and some cities may have other restrictions, so look into that.
2) FOPA protects you IN THEORY but some states ignore it - mostly New York and New Jersey, possibly other east coast states. I haven't heard of any states between Arizona and Georgia being an issue for this, but I would try to avoid Illinois just in case. Southern Illinois is supposedly perfectly RKBA-friendly, but I've never tested it and don't want to.
3) How many guns are we talking about? 10 or fewer wouldn't worry me much, but 50+ might get some unwanted attention if you're stopped. It's still perfectly legal, but legal and hassle-free aren't always the same thing.
4) If you have a CCW/CPL that's valid in states you're crossing, you could have one handgun loaded and with you or near you. Only do this if you are certain it's valid in a given location. It is possible to carry it loaded where legal and then lock it up where not legal.
5) Other than a legally carried handgun, everything should be locked up somehow, separately from ammunition. Sounds like you are already planning on this.
6) Make sure you look like who you are if you get stopped. That means current and valid ID, a copy of your military orders, paperwork for any rental vehicle like a UHAUL, etc. You don't want to have 10k in cash and no ID.
7) On that note, large amounts of cash will get you more unwanted attention than the guns, so carry enough cash for your trip (a few hundred or whatever) and transfer greater amounts by bank check or other non-cash means. There are too many horror stories about cash seizures from innocent people.
Follow this list and I think it will be a non-issue.
FromMyColdDeadHand
04-25-16, 20:19
Illinois is the only one that gives me a little pause. The good new is that there aren't that many places to stay overnight on 70 or 64... Go thru Tenn and up 65 to visit the Corvette museum and the Bourbon Trail. I think the main issue is that you have your CCW unloaded and magazine separate when not in a reciprocity state. (A must in IL, or at least it was before some form of CCW became legal there). I also check to see if there is a requirement to notify a LEO if pulled over about a CCW on your person.
Ohio had some goofy law about loaded magazines awhile back. I think it and the 30 round limit were dropped.
ETA- a golf travel case is my favorite way to move long guns. I use a soft sided one where I can fit 2-3 rifle cases in there. It has wheels for easy moving into and out of hotels with out anyone batting an eye. I do this for classes and travel with the family. We do a CO-WY-ID-UT-CO 1200 mile road trip every summer and I don't leave home for something like like with an AR, a spare and 1000 rounds. And a couple of M&Ps, and 22s for the kids to shoot....
Assuming that you are going to Ft. Benning to attend IBOLC, Airborne School, and then Ranger School I strongly suggest that you not bring personal weapons with you to GA. I say this as someone who faced your exact situation (albeit over 15 years ago) and spent the past 10 years back and forth to Benning / Columbus for various training, events, and deployment. My advice is predicated on the fact that the most perilous portion of your journey will not be interstate travel, but the rules regulating the possession of weapons once you arrive at your temporary duty station. Here they are:
http://www.benning.army.mil/content/pdf/Concealed%20Weapons%20and%20Open%20Firearms%20Carry%20Guide.pdf
Unless you are prepared to register all of your weapons and turn them over to the instillation, your best bet is to have a family member secure them while your getting your ass kicked for the better part of 6 months. ;)
SeriousStudent
04-25-16, 20:49
Sensei has a very good point. A lot of current/prior military have horror stories about somebody checking a personally-owned firearm into a military armory.
I have two of them, myself. :(
Having done the east-to-west (and reverse) PCS routine many, many times I'll agree with most of the comments here.
Have a CCW (or whatever Arizona calls it). Lock the U-Haul with a discus lock (they are very secure). Chain and lock the trailer to the vehicle.
Nobody stops and searches vehicles unless there's probable cause (like driving drunk at 120 pulling a U-Haul, throwing beer bottles out the windows while sucking on a bong).
If leaving the weapons in Ohio is an option, do it -- otherwise rent an off-post apartment to minimize ass-pain...and buy a heavy safe.
For the record.. The document you sign when renting a truck of trailer states clearly that you are not permitted to transport ammunition or firearms in their equipment. I'm with Sensei. Leave them at home until you get settled somewhere.
Is this a PCS move? If the .mil is moving you, they will transport firearms (not ammo). Of course there are horror stories about that too.
Having done the east-to-west (and reverse) PCS routine many, many times I'll agree with most of the comments here.
Have a CCW (or whatever Arizona calls it). Lock the U-Haul with a discus lock (they are very secure). Chain and lock the trailer to the vehicle.
Nobody stops and searches vehicles unless there's probable cause (like driving drunk at 120 pulling a U-Haul, throwing beer bottles out the windows while sucking on a bong).
If leaving the weapons in Ohio is an option, do it -- otherwise rent an off-post apartment to minimize ass-pain...and buy a heavy safe.
It sounds like he headed for IBOLC (the newish name for what was once called Infantry Officers Basic Course). Since virtually all graduates will head over to Harmony Church for Ranger School, I think that a little ass pain is unavoidable. Yep, Nostradamus predicts that he's going to get it right in the crack. ;)
Unless things have changed dramatically, there is no off-post housing option for this training.
Is this a PCS move? If the .mil is moving you, they will transport firearms (not ammo). Of course there are horror stories about that too.
This will be TDY for training if he is headed to IBOLC.
Assuming that you are going to Ft. Benning to attend IBOLC, Airborne School, and then Ranger School I strongly suggest that you not bring personal weapons with you to GA. I say this as someone who faced your exact situation (albeit over 15 years ago) and spent the past 10 years back and forth to Benning / Columbus for various training, events, and deployment. My advice is predicated on the fact that the most perilous portion of your journey will not be interstate travel, but the rules regulating the possession of weapons once you arrive at your temporary duty station. Here they are:
http://www.benning.army.mil/content/pdf/Concealed%20Weapons%20and%20Open%20Firearms%20Carry%20Guide.pdf
Unless you are prepared to register all of your weapons and turn them over to the instillation, your best bet is to have a family member secure them while your getting your ass kicked for the better part of 6 months. ;)
I 100% concur. You do not need the headache of being a student on TDY with weapons...Nametag Defilade...Thank you for your service!
P.S. And if you just can't help yourself - only ONE - that you don't mind maybe losing (until you have a chance to find out how difficult it's gonna be)..
Normal process with ROTC and USMA grads now is to assign to the training BN (2-11 if IN) until through the pipeline, not TDY. Once through, he'll PCS to his receiving unit. That's good news bad news... 2-11 owns you, has a surplus of cherry 2LTs. Easily 1500-2000 in the pipeline. Prepare to be a number!
If IN, it's a fairly long pipeline now as pretty much all US IBOLC grads will attempt RS unless their receiving unit says otherwise.
Most live in LT land appts on post, primarily due to preferred renter treatment while in RS. And the drive. And decent cost for what you get. Always someone heading out to hand off a couch or washer, ettc. Just add cable modem!
My son took his hunting firearms on post, indicated it was not a big deal. Just follow the procedure and they were pretty chill, no gate/MP hassles. But he was already resident and paperwork done before he brought them on.
All that said, all the input about stashing them while in the pipeline is valid. My son and his roommate both went straight thru Ranger School, and it was still over a year before PCS to their real unit. Their other roommate who started the same time is still in RS, recycled every phase so far.
Some of the pipeline is dead time snowbirding, so if they are your recreation it can work, but plan on secure storage, etc.
Have OP PM me if he has questions about the Benning IBOLC pipeline. Suggestion: start ruck prep now... IBOLC is now essentially taught to RS standard. You will do all the RS graded events through Darby to graduate, including peers and exposure to the food & sleep deprivation. You'll learn other things, but you'll do so in a RS context.
Also, should have no issue with TN or GA LEO as long as you do not give them a reason. Cased, out of sight, unloaded. Pistol in glove box, not under seat. Loaded mag OK, chamber empty. Keep your CAC card, ins card, DL, and registration handy so you don't have to open glove box.
But don't so something stupid and you should not be hassled even if stopped for speeding, etc. Most will give benefit of doubt for a mil ID unless you were really stupid. (DUI, drugs, aggressive driving, etc)
Then again, might as well prep for Benning. Don't speed, never DUI, get that blinker fixed. Benning will be stricter as far as LEO than adjacent States. Even being stopped for suspicion of DUI is a big deal on post, and will have consequences. Two were day one IBOLC recycles (3 mths) for suspicion. A week from graduation.
You are there for a reason, start your career right. You can party later, now focus on being best IN PL you can be. Which should lead to comms list, strong IBOLC AER, etc.
Normal process with ROTC and USMA grads now is to assign to the training BN (2-11 if IN) until through the pipeline, not TDY. Once through, he'll PCS to his receiving unit. That's good news bad news... 2-11 owns you, has a surplus of cherry 2LTs. Easily 1500-2000 in the pipeline. Prepare to be a number!
If IN, it's a fairly long pipeline now as pretty much all US IBOLC grads will attempt RS unless their receiving unit says otherwise.
Most live in LT land appts on post, primarily due to preferred renter treatment while in RS. And the drive. And decent cost for what you get. Always someone heading out to hand off a couch or washer, ettc. Just add cable modem!
My son took his hunting firearms on post, indicated it was not a big deal. Just follow the procedure and they were pretty chill, no gate/MP hassles. But he was already resident and paperwork done before he brought them on.
All that said, all the input about stashing them while in the pipeline is valid. My son and his roommate both went straight thru Ranger School, and it was still over a year before PCS to their real unit. Their other roommate who started the same time is still in RS, recycled every phase so far.
Some of the pipeline is dead time snowbirding, so if they are your recreation it can work, but plan on secure storage, etc.
Have OP PM me if he has questions about the Benning IBOLC pipeline. Suggestion: start ruck prep now... IBOLC is now essentially taught to RS standard. You will do all the RS graded events through Darby to graduate, including peers and exposure to the food & sleep deprivation. You'll learn other things, but you'll do so in a RS context.
Thanks for the correction. I seem to recall being on TDY for training (NG Commission), but I'm probably mistaken since it was more than 15 years ago and I'd already been through the enlisted side in the early 90's, Airborne School, and multiple deployments through CRC since then. I literally spent a decade of my life traveling to Benning for 1 reason or another since 1992 and it's been interesting watching the city and instillation grow. In the 90's Harmony Church was a rather remote and secluded part of the post and few outside of the Army understood its significance. Now, it's basically a college campus and all of the old service roads that we used for long runs are packed with traffic. It's fun to think about the place, but sad at the same time since I'm out and have no reason to go back.
I still would not recommend taking my firearms collection. I've taken firearms to Columbus before, but only when living off post. All of your advice is excellent - especially the alcohol / DUI warning.
Thanks for the correction. I seem to recall being on TDY for training, but I'm probably mistaken
May just be a policy change, etc. The only reason I know the current approach is my son just went thru it. It's even a PCS from USMA to 2-11 upon commissioning. Don't know if all branches do that, but IN and AR definitely do currently
I still would not recommend taking my firearms collection. I've taken firearms to Columbus before, but only when living off post. All of your advice is excellent - especially the alcohol / DUI warning.
Agreed, not worth the hassle or risk. BTW, off post now you have to really pick your area well. Some have degraded quite a bit.
Yeah, Columbus has always been hit or miss. It was very rough in the early 90's. However, things seemed to be turning around in mid-2000 when I switched my commission from IN to MC (some idiot let me into medical school). Between 2005-2012, I was at Benning for a couple of weeks almost yearly because I'd deploy from CRC or do an AT at Martin Army Hospital. They really seemed to be working on the river district and a couple nice malls popped up in the suburbs. There was a bit of a slow down when the recession hit, but Columbus seemed to be pulling through.
Things might have changed since 2013, but the hotels near the Carmike 15 Cinemas (near HWY 80 and I-185) were safe and an easy 15 min hop down I-185 to post. The downtown Marriott in a renovated tobacco warehouse is also safe and a walking distance to shops and the river walk. Those are really the 2 best places to stay when you visit.
Yeah, Columbus has always been hit or miss. It was very rough in the early 90's. snip.... Things might have changed since 2013, but the hotels near the Carmike 15 Cinemas (near HWY 80 and I-185) were safe and an easy 15 min hop down I-185 to post.
This is still largely accurate. And take one road from downtown to Benning and it's fine. Take one 2 blocks over and it can be very rough. And then exit 10 area looks like any other suburbia
For the OP, my son is highly recommending "The Villages at Benning" on post since you will be headed into the IBOLC/RS/whatever pipeline. Convenient, safe, etc. He had two roommates, and it was substantially less than BOH. Also much less hassle with utilities, etc. It's what I refer to as LT land as it's where the majority of 2LT's in AR or IN pipeline live. As such, it's easy to find roommates, your stuff is safe, etc. They were in a 3BR and had a spare room just for gear. It's setup to be fairly flexible, no early termination issues like you'd have of post. (almost month to month after a certain point, if I recall) They have a website and he was able to line something up with less than 2 weeks lead time. Also, the timing is right as there are a bunch of LT's heading out about now, but also an influx after May graduations.
It's very convenient to the training BN's as well.
As to firearms, my son confirmed was not a big deal. But also underscored the point that you will be gone for long periods of time. Ex: RS is minimum of 3 mths, and quite commonly 4-5 mths. A big chunk of IBOLC you will be in the field, etc.
OP should PM me if he has further questions and I'll be happy to pass his contact info on to my son.
sevenhelmet
04-30-16, 10:24
I've PCS'd cross-country many times and never had an issue crossing state lines. The closest I ever got to a problem was the CA "agricultural inspector" who wanted to look in my 5x8 trailer to make sure there weren't any bugs/plants, etc. All I had to do was open the door to reveal furniture and cardboard boxes. Funnily enough the larger, more ghetto looking trailer in front of me skated through. Of course, CA has other problems, but luckily you aren't coming here. I also avoid IL like the plague, but that's mostly because I-70 is boring and their laws punish honest folks. Finally, I would never- ever- let movers touch my firearms. They won't move ammo which is heavier anyway, so I just DITY move all that myself.
It sounds like your living situation and training schedule could be more problematic to keeping your guns secure than actual travel to your duty station. Personally, I'd leave the firearms at home while in the pipeline and pick them back up during the first post-training PCS, but that's entirely your decision. Another monkey-wrench: how likely is it you could be assigned overseas after training? Having the guns already at home with Mom and Dad (or whomever you trust) could make logistics easier in that case. Yeah, not having them with you sucks, but at least they would be secure.
Finally, congratulations on your impending commission and thank you for your service! Best of luck going forward!
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