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This is news to me, and may spell a trend with departments in California. Hopefully this will never effect anyone here, but all it takes is a vindictive ex who wants to cause you trouble, and a substantial collection X 54 could really add up.
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County to charge $54 fee when returning seized guns
By Alison Shackelford Hewitt
Copley News Service
The Sheriff's Department gained approval from the county Board of Supervisors on Tuesday to begin charging $54 to people who want to reclaim seized guns.
A new state law allows the fee to be collected so that law enforcement agencies can recoup the costs of gun seizure and storage. With about 500 guns annually in Los Angeles County eligible to be returned to their owners, the program could bring $27,000 a year.
Most confiscated guns are not eligible for return, having been taken from people who stole them or used them in a crime. Those guns are held as evidence and then usually destroyed, said Glen Dragovich of the Sheriff's Department.
But some guns are seized temporarily, such as when the owner is arrested for domestic violence. Other guns are simply found and stored until the owners come forward. Still others are taken as part of search warrants, or from the mentally impaired, and are ordered to be returned by a judge.
"Once we verify ownership and ensure that it's OK to return it, we will charge the fee," Dragovich explained. "It's like an impound fee for recovering your car."
If a stolen gun is confiscated and can be returned to the real owner, however, the original owner will not have to pay, he said.
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County to charge $54 fee when returning seized guns
By Alison Shackelford Hewitt
Copley News Service
The Sheriff's Department gained approval from the county Board of Supervisors on Tuesday to begin charging $54 to people who want to reclaim seized guns.
A new state law allows the fee to be collected so that law enforcement agencies can recoup the costs of gun seizure and storage. With about 500 guns annually in Los Angeles County eligible to be returned to their owners, the program could bring $27,000 a year.
Most confiscated guns are not eligible for return, having been taken from people who stole them or used them in a crime. Those guns are held as evidence and then usually destroyed, said Glen Dragovich of the Sheriff's Department.
But some guns are seized temporarily, such as when the owner is arrested for domestic violence. Other guns are simply found and stored until the owners come forward. Still others are taken as part of search warrants, or from the mentally impaired, and are ordered to be returned by a judge.
"Once we verify ownership and ensure that it's OK to return it, we will charge the fee," Dragovich explained. "It's like an impound fee for recovering your car."
If a stolen gun is confiscated and can be returned to the real owner, however, the original owner will not have to pay, he said.
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