Furthermore, the 'ban' on importation or manufacture of full-auto weapons are, in fact, not a complete ban. There are exceptions, some of them notable. For example, a FN P-90 is on my wishlist, but falls under the aforementioned importation ban. Except for policemen. But once it's been imported for a cop, and said cop has owned it for a period of time (2 years, IIRC) then a standard Class III transfer & ATF tax stamp is all that is required for that cop to sell that firearm to any other citizen with the correct permit to buy one.
I do not believe that such a process is actually legal. I'm gonna need a link on that. First off, I do not believe policeman can "own" fully automatic weapons. They are treated as any other citizen under these laws. They may be issued one by a department but they do not own it and can not sell it. Second, it is my understanding that
no fully automatic manufactured after 1986 can enter the legal market as per
FOPA. I'd be interested if you could provide links to show otherwise.
All this took was one google search for the term "can cops buy automatic weapons?".
This one looks like it's illegal to do this in cali, but the cops do it anyway.
http://calcoastnews.com/2011/12/peace-officers-buying-and-selling-assault-weapons/I'm not finding directly applicable data on actual full auto weapons, but this is loosely related...
"Q: Are SAWs and LCAFDs marked Restricted law enforcement/government use only or For export only now legal to sell to civilians in the United States?
Yes. SAWs and LCAFDs are no longer prohibited. Therefore, firearms with the restrictive markings are legal to transfer to civilians in the United States, and it is legal for non-prohibited civilians to possess them. All civilians may possess LCAFDs."
http://www.atf.gov/firearms/faq/saws-and-lcafds.htmlI can't find any current data on an import ban for automatic weapons, not even on teh BATF site. Are you sure you are not thinking of the assault weapons ban? That has expired.