Fdle Fingerprinting: Fill & Download for Free

This just happened to me, so I feel particularly qualified to provide an answer. Bear in mind that I live in Florida, and the process might vary state to state.When you fill out an ATF form 4473 to get approval for a firearm purchase/transfer, you can receive one of a few different responses:Approved, not approved, or delayed.If “approved,” you’re good to go.If “delayed,” you get to play the short waiting game. You’ll see why I said “short” in a moment, but the only option you have is to wait and call the FFL through which you are purchasing the gun once a day to check the system for an update.After 3 days business days of being delayed without a decision, the FFL can legally complete the transfer to you if they so choose, but they aren’t required to do so, and many won’t.If the delay ends up returning an approval, you’re good to go.Then there’s what just happened to me. I called the FFL, told them I was delayed and just checking to see if I’d been approved, and the guy checked and said “No, you weren’t delayed, you were denied.”I’ve never been delayed before, so by this point I had already researched the potential outcomes and what would happen if, for whatever reason I was not approved, but it was still a gut punch to hear those words.Here comes the “long” wait I mentioned earlier.First, you have to go to the FFL where you applied for the transfer and ask for an appeal form. They will fill it out and give it to you.Next, take that to your local sheriff/jail to get fingerprinted. Wait to fill out the buyer’s portion of the form until you get fingerprinted - the lady who fingerprinted me said I needed to sign it in front of her.Send the complete appeal form with your fingerprints to the state department listed in the instructions on the form. Since I live in Florida, I had to send mine to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE).You have 60 days from the date of the non-approval to appeal the decision.Surprisingly, my appeal decision letter came back within a couple weeks, but I’ve heard it can take much longer.Bring that letter to the FFL and pick up your gun(s).Again, that is the process in my state. I hope you don’t have to go through it, but if you do get a non-approval and you know you are eligible to purchase/possess firearms where you live, ask the FFL how to appeal it and they’ll tell you how.

Bundy was a heavy smoker, and that fact proved hazardous to his longevity. We might still be looking for the body of his last victim if he hadn’t decided to empty his ashtray near the scene.Searchers thought the pile of butts looked suspicious because a $5 bill has been dropped with them. The butts were collected and sent to the FDLE Crime Lab for fingerprinting. Unfortunately it was wet that day and the butts were not properly dried before being put in a plastic bag. The cigarettes mildewed before they could be examined, making it impossible to lift prints from them.Doug Barrow, The fingerprint examiner, tried something else. He compared the butts to cigarette buts in the ashtray of the car Bundy was driving when he got arrested. Doug’s completely non scientific opinion was that the same person smoked both collections of cigarette butts. Doug told us to go back to where we found the cigarette butts and look harder. By noon of the next day we had found the body.Bundy personally took Doug’s deposition, and he displayed extreme arrogance as Doug outlined item after item that he hadn’t found any prints on. I decided to take Bundy down a peg by asking Doug about his totally unscientific and completely inadmissible examination of the cigarette butts.Bundy was horrified. I’m no mind reader, but from Bundy’s body language I could tell what he was thinking. Something to the following effect: “Oh, crap! I shouldn’t have dumped those cigarette butts so close to the body! I’m sunk! Damn! Damn! Damn!”I let Bundy stew for a while and then had Doug tell him that the testimony about the cigarette butts was inadmissible. Bundy immediately regained his composure and went back to being insufferably arrogant.

I don't believe Florida has a 30 day requirement, and only requires you be a resident of and domiciled in the county where you are filing the petition. You do however have to submit your fingerprints to FDLE, which may take some time.