Originally Posted by
billinaz
Um, no.
They can take custody of the weapons as part of their community caretaking function. Once an owner is identified who can lawfully possess the firearm then it is returned to him.
If the police dont believe that the owner is allowed to take possession of the firearm, then that is what the court is for (due process).
Owner's name is right there on the luggage tag. They have nothing to identify, and as pointed out the government cannot take advantage of a situation that they created to take an action that they otherwise would not be able to take.