Receiving Firearm with Defaced Serial Number

Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 269, Section 11C punishes the receipt of a firearm with knowledge that its serial or identification number has been removed, defaced or altered, with imprisonment to the House of Corrections for not less than 1 month and up to 2.5 years.

In order to be convicted of the crime of Receiving Firearm with Defaced Serial Number, the prosecutor is required to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt:

1. That the item in question was a firearm;
2. That the defendant received the firearm;
3. That the defendant knew that the item was a firearm;
4. That the serial number or identification number on the firearm was removed, defaced, altered, obliterated, or mutilated in some manner; and
5. That the defendant knew that the serial or identification number had been removed, defaced, altered, obliterated or mutilated in some manner at the time when he received it.

Massachusetts law provides that every firearm shall bear a serial number permanently inscribed on a visible metal area of the firearm. For the crime of Receiving Firearm with Defaced Serial Number, the prosecutor is not required to prove that every part of the number was damaged; but must at least prove that some part of the number was defaced, altered scratched out, etc.

In order to prove that the firearm was “received” by the defendant, the prosecutor must prove that he knowingly took custody or control over it. For this crime, it is not necessary that the defendant personally possessed the firearm, so long as the prosecutor proves that he knowingly exerted control over it in some way.

In order to establish “control”, the prosecutor must also prove that the defendant knew where the firearm was, and that he had both the power and intent to exercise control over the firearm.

Boston Criminal Lawyer Lefteris K. Travayiakis has extensive experience in defending persons charged with Gun / Firearms Crimes in Massachusetts, and he can help explain and defend your legal rights.

To schedule a Free Consultation and to discuss your Gun / Firearms Crime with Attorney Travayiakis, Contact Us Online or call 617-325-9500.