Firearms and Child custody

[Courtney.cj.chen]

Hi,

Quick question- for those who are familiar with dealing with child custody- and filling out that "statement of Property" form, under section: "personal goods"- where it states: include jewelry, furs, guns, cameras, coins and stamp collections, fishing and camping equipment, etc."-

Should I list ALL my firearms??? Is this going to make me an unlikely target in family court? I have nothing to hide- I safely store and lock up all my firearms- everything is accounted for. I'm not asking you to tell me "hey, LIE" - but I would like to know your opinions and suggestions. I mean.... with this, I might as well go and voluntarily register all my firearms while I'm at it.

And no- their dad wouldn't say- hey look here in section "personal goods" - and then call me out on anything.

 

[Oldgrunt]

Most likely that information is wanted in order to assign a dollar value to your assets and to insure an equal division of property with your ex. Of course, having means to safely secure your weapon(s) can be brought up in a custody suit and might be a deal breaker. I have a granddaughter in a custody battle right now and they can get nasty!

 

[BigSlick]

Assigning a dollar value to your assets to insure an equal division of property I would think would be handled in a divorce and not a custody hearing. I don't trust anyone who works for the government when comes to my personal property especially my firearms. You could always have a family member or a trusted friend keep your unmentionables safe for the time being. I hope everything works out for you whichever you decide to do. Mums the word.

 

[MamaLiberty]

Courtney, while it will make a difference what state you are in, I'd tend to go along with BigStick. If you can safely transport your "toys" to reside in someone else's place until the dust settles, you are probably going to be better off all round. Just make sure the friend who stores them does not have any actual connection to the legal deal at hand. I would also have them appraised by an expert, and perhaps have the friend insure them then. Depends on what you've got and what they are worth, of course.

If, however, you do decide to list them for the court, list them all. The worst thing you can do in a case like this is to hide stuff, especially stuff like this. More people have gone to jail for just hiding something than you might believe, even if they actually did nothing wrong. Not that telling them is of any comfort, naturally.

It's a catch 22 situation, and nobody actually wins a child custody case in most instances... especially not the children. But you gotta do what you gotta do, I understand. My youngest son has been fighting a custody battle with a mentally ill ex spouse for years now. Sometimes it seems it will never end. Good luck!!

 

[Courtney.cj.chen]

Thanks for the good advice-

I'd like to also add- that altho i'm in a custody battle- its not actually a "battle"- but rather that, my ex and I both mutually have agreed that its best to have our custody established on paper. We have agreed to the type of custody, as well as the visitation. There is no fighting. We have been apart for as long as my youngest has been alive- and are good friends, and co parent very well. So- thats why i pointed out that this is not something he would call me out on.

He has no problem contributing, and has always contributed far more (financially), than what I imagine the court would order. And he said if so, he'd continue doing so. I'm very lucky and blessed in that we have grown to get along- especially this past year. Which is why it seems so pointless to announce to the court this particular list of my possessions, so it seems I will just move my safe to the folks, & keep my m9, until all is said and done.

Thanks again

p.s. easier said than done- that thing weighs about 800lbs- but my father is very paranoid about things like that. He said - no safe, no storage. Understandable!

 

[aacx22]

The one thing I would caution you is to talk to a lawyer also. If moving property around results in you filing a legal form with something untrue next to your signature... it could come back to haunt you without some action by your ex husband.

 

[XD40scinNC]

List your gun safe(s) also.