You probably know where I'm going with this.No person shall transport any destructive device, machine gun, short-barreled shotgun, or short-barreled rifle in interstate or foreign commerce...
The law clearly states "in interstate commerce" because that's the only Constitutional basis for the prohibition. But what if there's no commerce involved? Suppose I live on the border and simply walk across the unmaintained dirt path to the next state to show my neighbor my new SBR. Clearly there's no interstate commerce, yet from what I read this law is treated as a blanket prohibition (absent permission from the Director, of course). To confuse the issue further, licensees that actually are engaged in interstate commerce involving the firearm are exempted.
It seems to me that, literally interpreted, this law is meaningless for the average person. Of course, laws aren't always enforced as written.
So my questions: Is interstate commerce always assumed? Has anyone tested this law? Does anyone know of any case law regarding this?
FWIW, I live in a big NFA friendly state and have no plans to leave with my SBRs any time soon. I'm just curious.