Saint
Regular Member
imported post
Ok so not so good experience tonight...
I was on my way back to Eagle from Kuna where I had been visting a friend and her family. As I went down Meridian towards the freeway, I saw a LEO carbehind me turn on it's lights and I pulled over. The officer approached my car from the passenger side and motioned me to roll down the windows to which I complied. I then leaned over and placed my right hand on the window sill of the passenger side so I could see the officer's face.
He proceeded to tell me that I had been pulled over for doing 60mph in a 55mph zone (realize that this is at 12:00 AM and that almost no one else is on the road)
At this point he shined his flashlight in my car and noticed 2 holsters on the floor of the passenger seat. He asked me if I had a firearm in the car to which I responded in the affirmitive and pointed to my Glock 19 handgun that was sitting on the passenger seat.
He had me put my hands on the steering wheel as he reached through the window and took my gun out. I advised him that it was loaded and contained a round in the chamber. He then took out the mag, placed it on the top of the car and proceeded to de-chamber and then field strip my Glock (during this process he managed to let the barrel of the gun pass over me at least twice for about 3 seconds each time)
I then handed him my license and registration, which he took and then asked me if I had any other guns or knives in the car. I responded that I was pretty sure I had 1 or 2 knives (1 was in the drivers side door pouch, the other was in the back seat with a bunch of clothes that I had tossed back)
The officer then proceeded to lecture me on concealed carry in the Meridian city district without a license and attempted to tell me that my handgun had been concealed because it was dark outside and because my arm had passed over it which created a shadow that made it hard for him to see. (In hindsight, this was my one dumb move) He told me that if he really wanted to he could make things pretty hard for me and could make a case as to the gun being concealed without a permit which would be a felony charge.
After this he took my information and gun with him and checked it out. During this process he made me exit my vehicle and stand in front of it. The officer came back after about 3 mins and told me that he was giving me a verbal warning. He then proceeded to tell me that he was more concerned about the fact that a 19 year old was carrying a gun (me) than he was about the speeding.
At this point a second meridian officer pulled up and joined him. The first LEO talked for a few more mins about how I was 'not being smart' with my carry and that I was 'pushing the line'. He said that I should be carrying my gun in a locked case in my car.
After handing me back my license and registration the officer placed my stripped Glock back in the passenger seat and tossed the mag in the backseat.
I proceeded back to my car where I took my 2 knives and placed them in my trunk (precaution because I am no longer sure what the law regarding 'conceal carry of knives' is) and then quickly reasembled my Glock. I racked the slide, picked up one of the other magazines I had in the front with me and reloaded. (Both officers stood behind my car and watched this entire process)
In the end, I was very happy not to get a ticket (this was the first time I have ever been pulled over) and glad that the officer wasn't as much of an ass as he could have been... However, I did have some questions after the encounter...
1. Can knives be carried in a car without having to worry about concealment? The officer mentioned that my knives (both of which were partially concealed, albeit unitentionally) were within 'lunging distance' and as such they counted as being on my person.
2. Does lighting conditions affect Open Carry definitions? I had my Glock on the passenger seat in plain view with no obstructions, but the officer claimed that because it was dark outside and I didn't tell him that I had the firearm in the first place that he could have said it was concealed carry. He said the only acceptable place to put the gun after dark to qualify as OC is the dashboard.
3. Anything I did wrong that people can see? I was extremely nervous as I had just had a long conversation with my best friend and her parents and because it was my first time ever being pulled over. I decided it was best not to push my luck on the gun issueand get a ticket...
Ok so not so good experience tonight...
I was on my way back to Eagle from Kuna where I had been visting a friend and her family. As I went down Meridian towards the freeway, I saw a LEO carbehind me turn on it's lights and I pulled over. The officer approached my car from the passenger side and motioned me to roll down the windows to which I complied. I then leaned over and placed my right hand on the window sill of the passenger side so I could see the officer's face.
He proceeded to tell me that I had been pulled over for doing 60mph in a 55mph zone (realize that this is at 12:00 AM and that almost no one else is on the road)
At this point he shined his flashlight in my car and noticed 2 holsters on the floor of the passenger seat. He asked me if I had a firearm in the car to which I responded in the affirmitive and pointed to my Glock 19 handgun that was sitting on the passenger seat.
He had me put my hands on the steering wheel as he reached through the window and took my gun out. I advised him that it was loaded and contained a round in the chamber. He then took out the mag, placed it on the top of the car and proceeded to de-chamber and then field strip my Glock (during this process he managed to let the barrel of the gun pass over me at least twice for about 3 seconds each time)
I then handed him my license and registration, which he took and then asked me if I had any other guns or knives in the car. I responded that I was pretty sure I had 1 or 2 knives (1 was in the drivers side door pouch, the other was in the back seat with a bunch of clothes that I had tossed back)
The officer then proceeded to lecture me on concealed carry in the Meridian city district without a license and attempted to tell me that my handgun had been concealed because it was dark outside and because my arm had passed over it which created a shadow that made it hard for him to see. (In hindsight, this was my one dumb move) He told me that if he really wanted to he could make things pretty hard for me and could make a case as to the gun being concealed without a permit which would be a felony charge.
After this he took my information and gun with him and checked it out. During this process he made me exit my vehicle and stand in front of it. The officer came back after about 3 mins and told me that he was giving me a verbal warning. He then proceeded to tell me that he was more concerned about the fact that a 19 year old was carrying a gun (me) than he was about the speeding.
At this point a second meridian officer pulled up and joined him. The first LEO talked for a few more mins about how I was 'not being smart' with my carry and that I was 'pushing the line'. He said that I should be carrying my gun in a locked case in my car.
After handing me back my license and registration the officer placed my stripped Glock back in the passenger seat and tossed the mag in the backseat.
I proceeded back to my car where I took my 2 knives and placed them in my trunk (precaution because I am no longer sure what the law regarding 'conceal carry of knives' is) and then quickly reasembled my Glock. I racked the slide, picked up one of the other magazines I had in the front with me and reloaded. (Both officers stood behind my car and watched this entire process)
In the end, I was very happy not to get a ticket (this was the first time I have ever been pulled over) and glad that the officer wasn't as much of an ass as he could have been... However, I did have some questions after the encounter...
1. Can knives be carried in a car without having to worry about concealment? The officer mentioned that my knives (both of which were partially concealed, albeit unitentionally) were within 'lunging distance' and as such they counted as being on my person.
2. Does lighting conditions affect Open Carry definitions? I had my Glock on the passenger seat in plain view with no obstructions, but the officer claimed that because it was dark outside and I didn't tell him that I had the firearm in the first place that he could have said it was concealed carry. He said the only acceptable place to put the gun after dark to qualify as OC is the dashboard.
3. Anything I did wrong that people can see? I was extremely nervous as I had just had a long conversation with my best friend and her parents and because it was my first time ever being pulled over. I decided it was best not to push my luck on the gun issueand get a ticket...