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James City County officer tells me open carry age is 21

T

Tkempton

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Dec 9, 2015
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Hey guys, I am new to this site and I am sure ill be an active member.
I know that the legal age to open carry a pistol is 18, and with that being said I asked a James City County officer the legal age and he told me 21 with the quote "if you cant buy it, you cant carry it". Private sales are legal at 18 I know. I was just wondering if anyone knew where I could find in words that 18 is the legal age. I would like to print this out and carry it along with me to ensure I don't get falsely arrested. I am enlisting in the Army soon and I don't need the headache of my record having ay kind of blemish on it. Thank you guys for any info you can provide me!
 
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T

Tkempton

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Sorry! I miss typed in the title. Officer said legal age to carry is 21


--Moderator fixed title--
 
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Grapeshot

Grapeshot

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Welcome to OCDO.

There is no open carry law/statute in Virginia. It is the absence of any law forbidding OC that leaves it legal.
http://johnpierceesq.com/demystifying-the-age-to-acquire-possess-and-carry-handguns-in-virginia/

I would not bother printing out statutes to "hold court" on the street. Instead buy and carry a good digital recorder to capture any important dialog.

BTW - we don't recommend asking a LEO for a legal opinion. They are too often wrong and are not obligated to be truthful in any event.

Most Va LEOs are quite aware that OC is legal at 18yo, so I wouldn't be much concerned; however, you might want to follow up on the officer's statement with a complaint/request that he be properly trained on the subject.


Another thread on the same subject:
http://forum.opencarry.org/forums/showthread.php?131483-Age-to-Open-Carry-In-Virginia
 
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davidmcbeth

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He should be asking for the cop to be fired, not re-trained. He received training and all citizens are expected to know the laws that they are subjected to, why are cops different?

He is a danger to society.
 
Grapeshot

Grapeshot

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davidmcbeth said:
He should be asking for the cop to be fired, not re-trained. He received training and all citizens are expected to know the laws that they are subjected to, why are cops different?

He is a danger to society.
Click to expand...
Way too anti LEO IMO. Would rather see him reeducated than lose his job.

BTW - the officer broke no laws - he passed on misinformation.
 
davidmcbeth

davidmcbeth

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Grapeshot said:
Way too anti LEO IMO. Would rather see him reeducated than lose his job.

BTW - the officer broke no laws - he passed on misinformation.
Click to expand...

Would rather see another in his place that follows the law.

How many times have courts said that gun owners have a extra responsibility to know and understand laws that relate to gun? Many times. Assuming that is true, then termination is the only way to insure or minimize the possibility that he will not kill a LAC.

Its not anti-LEO, as another LEO would take his place.

I have fired employees who failed to use their knowledge and this failure may have resulted in deaths.

Here you have an employee who presumably knows that the guy can carry but states that he cannot. What other laws does this employee want to re-write?

You can instruct workers for knowledge but not to change behavioral patterns. An employee who thinks he can bend or change the rules will continue to do so even after being re-educated as its a behavioral trait and not a lack of knowledge issue.

Termination is the only way to insure that innocent people are not killed by the state.

He has no right to being a cop. He would be free to pursue life, liberty, and happiness.
 
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Grapeshot

Grapeshot

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davidmcbeth said:
Would rather see another in his place that follows the law.

How many times have courts said that gun owners have a extra responsibility to know and understand laws that relate to gun? Many times. Assuming that is true, then termination is the only way to insure or minimize the possibility that he will not kill a LAC.

Its not anti-LEO, as another LEO would take his place.

I have fired employees who failed to use their knowledge and this failure may have resulted in deaths.

Here you have an employee who presumably knows that the guy can carry but states that he cannot. What other laws does this employee want to re-write?

You can instruct workers for knowledge but not to change behavioral patterns. An employee who thinks he can bend or change the rules will continue to do so even after being re-educated as its a behavioral trait and not a lack of knowledge issue.

Termination is the only way to insure that innocent people are not killed by the state.

He has no right to being a cop. He would be free to pursue life, liberty, and happiness.
Click to expand...
Repeat - he did not beak the law.

Not anti LEO, because another LEO would take his place - really? You didn't write the rule(s) yet you presume to tell me what they are/mean?

You presume too much and it is absurd to say that "Termination is the only way to insure that innocent people are not killed by the state."

I'm not sure that your reply (quoted above) constitutes a rant, but I will tell you it stops here. Any questions?
 
peter nap

peter nap

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Grapeshot said:
Repeat - he did not beak the law.

Not anti LEO, because another LEO would take his place - really? You didn't write the rule(s) yet you presume to tell me what they are/mean?

You presume too much and it is absurd to say that "Termination is the only way to insure that innocent people are not killed by the state."

I'm not sure that your reply (quoted above) constitutes a rant, but I will tell you it stops here. Any questions?
Click to expand...

He actually did nudge a law pretty hard Grapeshot. LEO'S are not allowed to give legal advice under the UPL rules.
But then again...he didn't claim to be a lawyer like some do, and are not, so it's minor.
I agree...educate him, perhaps through his supervisor. He'll be a better cop if it takes.
 
user

user

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If the cop was telling you what he thought the law is as a matter of his own personal opinion, then he was exercising his right to free speech, even if he was lying at the time. If, on the other hand, he was telling you what the law is as a matter of fact, with the expectation that you will conform your behavior to his pronouncements on the subject, then he was engaging in the practice of law, which is a class one misdemeanor if he had no license to do so. You could sue him for legal malpractice and probably violation of the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.

But here's the simple answer: Article 1, section 13 of the Va. Constitution says you have a right to arm yourself for personal defense (among other reasons). That right is circumscribed by a statute, Va. Code section 18.2-308.7, which says that if you're not at least eighteen or one of the exceptions listed in the statute applies, you're prohibited from being in possession of a handgun or "assault firearm". That has nothing to do with ownership, you can be three years old and own all sorts of firearms, but you can't be in possession (and it would be a felony for someone to sell it to you, but that's their problem, not yours). You have to be 21 to buy from a licensed dealer, and you have to be 21 to get a concealed carry permit.
 
color of law

color of law

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Young officer needs retraining. Experienced officer needs to be called on the carpet.

http://www.ca6.uscourts.gov/opinions.pdf/15a0092p-06.pdf
While the dispatcher and motorcyclist may not have known the details of Ohio’s open-carry firearm law, the police officer had no basis for such uncertainty. If it is appropriate to presume that citizens know the parameters of the criminal laws, it is surely appropriate to expect the same of law enforcement officers—at least with regard to unambiguous statutes. Heien v. North Carolina, 135 S. Ct. 530, 540 (2014).
Click to expand...

Gun rights is not an obtuse characterization of perception or intellect. Guns rights have been around a long long time. No excuse.
 
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