Concerns about someone I know buying a gun.

[MR.T.]

So I have a concern,
A few years ago a fellow I know thru a family in my church started doing some rather stupid stuff & making poor decisions. Lets call him MS. It got bad enough that he got arrested for minor things several times & would spend a week or so in jail from time to time. It then escalated to MS getting in an argument with someone he worked with & in another dumb decision MS followed him home to continue the altercation & ended with him getting arrested again after he went back to his pickup & grabbed his shotgun & he even pointed it at the other guy just as the police showed up.
I guess this got MS charged with a felony,
but i also guess all this happened just before he turned 18. His gun ownership privileges were taken away, he spent a short time in prison.

I have tried to be a good mentor to MS when I can. I have helped him out with his vehicles from time to time, I've let him use my mig welder once when he needed to use it (& he did return it in short order & in the same condition).

So as of last week I see him in town, he has just turned 22 & is married now (which really surprised me) to a seemingly real nice young lady.
MS tells me that he has gotten his right to own firearms again, that all his past crimes have been expunged because he was still a minor when all that happened. & he has recently ordered a Canik TP9-FX from a local gun shop & just waiting for it to come in.
In the moment, I congratulated him, but in my mind he is still a felon. But I also believe he really is trying to straighten his act up, he has a good job right now that he has kept for a while, he has a new wife. But im not sure I want to be spending alot of time with him at the range.

I'm just not sure right now if I should just go to the range with him once & see how he acts, or just tell him I'm busy or out of town whenever he wants to go do some shooting.
Any advice givers here.
Thanks in advance.

 

[kwaynem]

I can understand your concern but me being me I would have to be around him a while longer to determine trust then work up to going to the range with MS it’s a tough spot but you have to look out for you and yours first

 

[TwoForFlinching]

There's plenty of people I won't hit the range with, or rather, very few I invite to shoot on my land. I have to know a person pretty well. And I'm pretty open about telling people that when they start talking about shooting. But, If he has the right to own a firearm, he's no longer a felon. If you don't want to shoot with him, don't. But be a man about it. Let him know it's your problem, not his when he brings it up.

 

[dennishoddy]

He's paid his price to society, and the legal system has expunged his record. I have no problem with that and it sounds like his head is screwed on a little tighter now.
Keep talking guns with him away from the range and sound him out on some scenarios casually trying to draw out his real feelings.
He will either build confidence or your fears will come true, but your not at the range. Your just talking casually.

 

[Tanis143]

If he is trying to turn his life around and learn from his mistakes, then he needs the proper encouragement and guidance. So far it seems like you have been doing this in other aspects of his life. He told you about this which means he sees you as an important part of his life. If you turn him down, he'll know why. You say he is still a felon in your eyes, but can you compare the person he is now to the 17 year old he was then?

If it was me, I would go with him. Not because I trust him around firearms, but more so because I would want to teach him to be trustworthy with firearms. This is another aspect of his life that you can have a positive and supportive enfluence.

 

[D. Hargrove]

Understand your position completely. So you continue to mentor and coach , you talk guns and marriage, you help him stay focused on his new life and encourage the good. If he has the right to own a gun legally then he has that right. The fact that the issue bothers you at all is a tribute to your caring for his (and the wife) well being and I for one appreciate that.

 

[TerryMiller]

I feel that you have already been a good influence on him by helping with his vehicles. I'd suggest that you continue that first in conversation. Ask if he is interested in taking classes on firearms. If he is hesitant, then I might be hesitant to go to the range with him. If he asked me for instructions on firearms and safety, then I think it would be a positive for him.

But then, I don't know him, so use good judgement, but be prepared to continue to be a good influence.

 

[Shadowrider]

He's paid his price to society, and the legal system has expunged his record. I have no problem with that and it sounds like his head is screwed on a little tighter now.
Keep talking guns with him away from the range and sound him out on some scenarios casually trying to draw out his real feelings.
He will either build confidence or your fears will come true, but your not at the range. Your just talking casually.

If he is trying to turn his life around and learn from his mistakes, then he needs the proper encouragement and guidance. So far it seems like you have been doing this in other aspects of his life. He told you about this which means he sees you as an important part of his life. If you turn him down, he'll know why. You say he is still a felon in your eyes, but can you compare the person he is now to the 17 year old he was then?

If it was me, I would go with him. Not because I trust him around firearms, but more so because I would want to teach him to be trustworthy with firearms. This is another aspect of his life that you can have a positive and supportive enfluence.

Both of these are good posts. I'd do what DH said and if your green light is on, carry on with Tanis' post. It could be that he decided that he didn't like prison and doesn't want to go back.

 

[Defcon Shooter]

Would not turn my back on the guy let alone shoot with him. Nobody gets on my range that has a malicious pointing of a firearm in their past. I don't even allow friends on my shooting area who can't tell me the four rules for gun handeling. No way I stand anywhere near a person who has shown to be reckless in the past.

 

[tRidiot]

Would not turn my back on the guy let alone shoot with him. Nobody gets on my range that has a malicious pointing of a firearm in their past. I don't even allow friends on my shooting area who can't tell me the four rules for gun handeling. No way I stand anywhere near a person who has shown to be reckless in the past.

Ehh, the kid was 17 years old. Now, plenty of 22 year olds are still twits, but it is possible he has turned his life around, he spent a couple years in the can, and hasn't turned into a recidivist turd. That says something. I agree, he could still be a turd in hiding, but... BUT... he could also be someone who is turning his life around and could use a few more good examples and people to believe in him.