Woman jailed for family hairloom
 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/10335003.stm

5 years??!!! are they mad?

A bit of bird in her ?

If it was a family heirloom that was being held innocently, why was it being hidden under the mattress?

Laws the law to be fair like... and after events like whitehaven, you've got to respect it

i can imagine the interview

" Sorry officer i hid it under my mattress becuase my 5 year old grandson kept trying to shoot the cat! "

Did she have any ammunition for it?

Les-link wont work

This strikes me as odd.

"The case began after police arrived at the 53-year-old's home on 17 June 2009 with an arrest warrant for her son who had failed to turn up for a court appearance. "

They turned up to nick her son so they searched for him under 'her' bed?

As it was an arrest warrant and not a search warrant did they have grounds to search 'her' belongings even though the warrant was for him?

This strikes me as odd.

"The case began after police arrived at the 53-year-old's home on 17 June 2009 with an arrest warrant for her son who had failed to turn up for a court appearance. "

They turned up to nick her son so they searched for him under 'her' bed?

As it was an arrest warrant and not a search warrant did they have grounds to search 'her' belongings even though the warrant was for him?

I understand the implications after such tragic events as Whitehaven - but there was no ammunition which I think is the key thing, its 76 years old, she is 53 is not like she was waving the gun around.
Taking the gun away and a few years probation would be a better call in my eyes

Richard

Double post !

Nope not AFAIK, it said the gun was unloaded but did not mention any ammunition to be found.

Sounds like certain facts have been omitted to improve the "wrong-ness" of the story.

Ammo or no ammo, a gun is a gun... not only is her son obviously a scumbag, shes also a grandmother, and shes got it in a canny obvious place that any burglar would find it, then theres another spaka on the loose with a gun ready to destroy someones life.

... am sure those of you with kids wouldn't be to happy to have your young'ns around at grannies when theres a gun under her bed!

+1

Is my memory failing me, or did they not bring a law in, (probably back in the early nineties) that anyone convicted of processing an unlicensed firearm would get a mandatory 12 year sentence?

But regardless, unless they're (obviously) not telling the whole story, it doe's seem particularly harsh, considering some people serve less time for killing someone.

"She admitted illegal possession of the firearm, an offence with a minimum five-year jail term under Scots law."

Its a 5 year min if found with a gun. Even if you are just "keeping" it for someone else.

Ammo is covered under a different law.

If its a war trophy you get it deactivated. And you put it on the wall or in a cabinet on show. You dont hide it under your bed!

I guess the judge thought it was an "heirloom" and not an heirloom.
IMO, a good lawyer would have pushed the "hairloom" defence.

Good going... in pointing out my typing error you managed to type "heirloom" twice in the first sentence. :razz:

Just shows how easy it can be to make a typo doesn't it!

Les ;)

I think you will see I typed "heirloom" once and heirloom the same.
Wouldn't worry about typos too much if I were you - I certainly wouldn't have pointed it out except for the punny aspect.

You won't catch me making many tpyo's :D

Indeed, quite a funny typo really

Here is someone working a hair(horse)loom
http://www.royalwoodltd.com/eloom.jpg

And they wonder why prisons are overcrowded:cuckoo:

She is of no risk to the public, she didn't have ammunition for it.

Lunacy over common sense.

I'm normally the first to cry foul at the British system of law.

However, "He was not at the flat, but the 80-year-old pistol was found underneath a mattress in her bedroom."

You don't keep family heirloom's under the matress. I could understand if was in a display cabinet, on a mantel peice or in a box of trinkets and memories........but under a mattress? Come on!

would it of been a 7.65mm as well, as thet seams big for a pistol

Sounds like it was the sons and she was taking the flack for it.

Maybe he should have gone for the Chewbacca defence?



;)

family heirloom? yeh right. makes it sound like an old inert rusty ornament, this colt1911 style of gun is still being made today

it will look like thi:- http://thetruthaboutguns.com/wp-cont...ng_hp_Main.jpg

I agree, sounds like a family of scruffneck vagabonds.