Have you ever called in a guns serial # to have it checked by the NCIC system to see if it was stolen?

[Nice Guy]

You call it in to the non emergency number to your local PD, which should go to their Dispatch/Communications center. They sometimes can (depending upon the agency) run the SN right there and tell you if it's stolen. I do not know if they run it through NCIC specifically or not, but they run it through something. If they tell you they "don't do that", make note of the time you called and the operator number if possible so that if it does come up stolen, you can prove Due Diligence. I have only had that problem once. Every other police agency I have contacted has been very helpful and has verified the firearm was not listed as stolen. I don't know who they got their data from, but I made note of who I called, when, and the operator number of who I talked to. That, and the Communications/Dispatch lines are recorded. In court, if you can prove due diligence, you can decrease your personal liability significantly.

If I am making a private purchase, I have absolutely no problem calling the gun in right in front of the seller. If he gets squirrelly, that's a pretty good indicator to me the situation is not kosher and then corrective action must be taken. In my line of work, that's what we call "a clue".

Edit: @CTM: You can indeed call it in to the local PD dispatch. This is fact. Whether or not they choose to help you is up to them or departmental policy. But most Dispatches/Comm centers do have that capability. I know this because I myself have done it. Not once, or twice, but as a matter of habit over a decade in multiple jurisdictions.