SickTag
Regular Member
imported post
I know I brought this subject up before about carrying a shotgun in my now old apartment complex to and from my truck. I was wondering what other people thought the extent of being able to open carry "firearms" was limited to. I asked the guy at the local gunshop about carrying a shotgun to and from my car just recently and he said that you can legally carry your shotgun loaded or unloaded in public. Now I have moved to a house, and I have cleaned my guns on the front porch a few times and I have gone out shooting about twice a week for the last month. I know for a fact that I have, at first, made the neighbors a little nervous, but not so much anymore. But, the other day a guy from the military base was saying that it was blowing his mind that he could walk down the street with his M4, locked and loaded legally. It is true that the law is stated as to having "firearms" not "sidearms." But would you get sited for carrying something like a 12 ga or an AR in public? I have carried my shotgun around with me to a few places, nothign "threating" by how I was carrying it and never yet had a problem. I have even heard some base guys talk about riding their ten speeds with an assualt rifle across their back (a bicycle is considered a vehicle in NM so laws are the same as if you were in a car) but never have been bothered by the police.
I guess my question is, can the police arrest you, or site you anyway for carrying a long gun in public? I am not willing to find out, of course, I was nervous enough going to the sheriffs office looking for gunlocks (which they have been out for a while and I have kids now) and having a small armorment of weapons sticking up in the cab of my truck. lol!
(*NOTE: It doesn't matter if you really broke the law or not, it's convincing an officer you did or did not. LOL!)
I know I brought this subject up before about carrying a shotgun in my now old apartment complex to and from my truck. I was wondering what other people thought the extent of being able to open carry "firearms" was limited to. I asked the guy at the local gunshop about carrying a shotgun to and from my car just recently and he said that you can legally carry your shotgun loaded or unloaded in public. Now I have moved to a house, and I have cleaned my guns on the front porch a few times and I have gone out shooting about twice a week for the last month. I know for a fact that I have, at first, made the neighbors a little nervous, but not so much anymore. But, the other day a guy from the military base was saying that it was blowing his mind that he could walk down the street with his M4, locked and loaded legally. It is true that the law is stated as to having "firearms" not "sidearms." But would you get sited for carrying something like a 12 ga or an AR in public? I have carried my shotgun around with me to a few places, nothign "threating" by how I was carrying it and never yet had a problem. I have even heard some base guys talk about riding their ten speeds with an assualt rifle across their back (a bicycle is considered a vehicle in NM so laws are the same as if you were in a car) but never have been bothered by the police.
I guess my question is, can the police arrest you, or site you anyway for carrying a long gun in public? I am not willing to find out, of course, I was nervous enough going to the sheriffs office looking for gunlocks (which they have been out for a while and I have kids now) and having a small armorment of weapons sticking up in the cab of my truck. lol!
(*NOTE: It doesn't matter if you really broke the law or not, it's convincing an officer you did or did not. LOL!)