During the divorce process, firearms present an interesting complication for numerous reasons. Most recently Act 79 was passed in 2018. This Act made changes to the statues effecting individuals who own firearms in a divorce. Often during divorces, Petitions for Protection for Abuse are filed. If an individual has a PFA Order against him the individual shall divest themselves of the firearms in their possession. Section 6108.3 reads in pertinent part as follows: § 6108.3. Relinquishment to third party for safekeeping.
- “General rule.–A defendant who is the subject of a protection from abuse order, which order provides for the relinquishment of firearms, other weapons or ammunition during the period of time the order is in effect, may, within the time frame specified in the order and in lieu of relinquishment to the sheriff, relinquish any firearms, other weapons or ammunition for safekeeping to a third party who meets the requirements of a third party under subsection (b) (O) An acknowledgment that the third party is one of the following:
(I) An attorney at law, and further acknowledgment that the attorney at law and the defendant are in an attorney-client relationship. The attorney at law and the defendant shall sign a written agreement stating in substantially the following form: “Firearm(s) can be relinquished to the attorney at law upon the express, written condition that firearm(s) will be returned to the defendant, or otherwise transferred, only if in strict conformance with applicable law.”
(II) A commercial armory, and further acknowledgment that the owner or operator of the commercial armory is not a family or household member of the defendant; the commercial armory is a secure storage facility designed to store firearms; the commercial armory possesses all Federal and State licenses to store firearms; and a form stating substantially the following: “Firearms can be relinquished to the commercial armory upon the express, written condition that firearm(s) will be returned, or transferred, to the defendant only in strict conformance with applicable law.” (3).”
The significant change here is that one used to be able to relinquish the weapons to a “third party.” This could be a friend under the old law but preferably a trusted third party willing to take on the responsibility. Under the new law, this possibility has been eliminated. Now only an armory or an attorney can hold such firearms. There are also stringent rules for their keeping contained in the statute.
Without getting into a political debate about guns, having them in your possession during a divorce is an unnecessary complication which has the potential for extremely negative consequences. Obviously, we all have emotional connections with the things we care about. Guns have a way of becoming precious to us, as they may represent a means of protection, individuality and Constitutional freedom. Guns can escalate an argument into something much worse. This should be something to ponder.