what gun are we talking about here
You will have to check with the police.
Contact your local police.
Contact your local law enforcement. They can check to see if the serial number has been entered as a stolen item. IF there is a report, the officer will need to retain the gun to return it to the owner. They WILL need to have the gun in hand to do this, not over the phone.
Ask your local police to run it.
You cannot. The NCIC database that lists stolen firearms is only available to law enforcement.
Your best bet is to call your local law enforcement and have them run the cereal number A FFL (gun shop etc) or a PRIVATE citizen can call the ATF to run a serial number to see if its a reported stolen firearm. See related links for a page on the ATF that covers all this.
Contact your local police department and give them the serial number. The Police can check on the stolen gun list maintained by the BATFE. If the gun is stolen, the Police will conficate the piece and begin investigation of how it was acquired.
If "legal" means those reported stolen, then only law enforcement agencies have access. If your referring to characteristics of a gun, then the BATFE website may be of help.
Contact the police.
Expect the police to expect YOU to explain how you came to possess a gun that had been stolen- just like any other property.
my knowledge on the sugject is that if a person had no prior knowledge that it was stolen then if the police find the gun and see it is stolen then theyll return it to its rightful owner, this goes for any property that they believe is stolen but that the police do not believe is the owner. so most likely a person would not get any punishment, but that might be effected by local or state laws or it could be effected by the specific situation.
For date made, try Proofhouse.com or maker's website. To see if stolen, contact your local police.