Very Positive LEO Encounter

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I was grocery shopping today with my kids at the local WalMart when I was approached by an off-duty detective.

He said that he loved to see people open carrying and that he had been very excited about the Heller decision although he thought it could have been stronger on our behalf.

We talked for a good 15 minutes there in the middle of WalMart about gun rights and the excellent work that VCDL has done for gun owners here in VA.

He made a point of saying that the thing that makes him madder than anything else is when the press makes it seem as if LEOs are anti-gun when most (at least in our area) are 100% pro-gun.

As we were wrapping up, he turned to my oldest son and said "You should be proud of what your dad is doing here. Those who stand up for their rights today make sure you will have them when you grow up."

We need more reports of positive encounters. Those who have had them ... please post them.


John

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Holy cow that was awesome! :celebrate

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Outstanding!

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John, an EXTREMELY positve encounter!

And I would tend to agree with the LEO, most LEO's don't see "us" as a threat OC'ing, it is the few who are the outliers who hurt the image of the rest.

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Did you check his creds?

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I didn't have to. He is on the local news all the time commenting on cases. I recognized him immediately.

But he did give me his card with his cell phone number and asked that I call the next time we are having any VCDL events in the area.



VAopencarry wrote:

Did you check his creds?

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I commented in another thread that the number of positive LEO encounters appears to be on the rise throughout OC states. Or perhaps people are just commenting on the positive encounters more often. Either way, it is nice to read positive things on the issue for a change.

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I can remember only one time when I was in uniform that I ran into a citizen carrying: a guy was standing in line behind me at Wawa and asked about my Glock. I told him what model it was and he said "thats a bigger version of mine" and he opened his sport coat to show me his. I said to him, "I assume that you have a permit since you're showing that to me" and he said "of course!".

We wished each other a good day and left...nice guy.

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ProShooter wrote:

I can remember only one time when I was in uniform that I ran into a citizen carrying: a guy was standing in line behind me at Wawa and asked about my Glock. I told him what model it was and he said "thats a bigger version of mine" and he opened his sport coat to show me his. I said to him, "I assume that you have a permit since you're showing that to me" and he said "of course!".

We wished each other a good day and left...nice guy.

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Gun people are so crazy. The problem is that they're everywhere...... And you never know who they might be...... Crazy.... Or so the "truly" crazy people want you to think. I am so impressed with the fact of how ordinary people are made out to be untrustworthy because they have the power to oppose the government.

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jpierce wrote:

I didn't have to. He is on the local news all the time commenting on cases. I recognized him immediately.

But he did give me his card with his cell phone number and asked that I call the next time we are having any VCDL events in the area.

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If he is not already a member, you need to send him a VCDL membership form. Even better, if you can find the time, hand one to him.

stay safe.

skidmark

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WOW!

That is a super encounter. A letter of very positive commendation, stressing how impressed you were with this officer might be a good thing.

I had an interesting encounter many years ago when I first started to CC with a permit (yes, I did a few times before having the permit late at night when walking my dog because Arlington was rapidly turning into crime central).

I had gone to Dawson's Small Arms in Annandale one summer day, looking for a decent holster for my P11 Kel-Tec. There were two other gentlemen, both in shorts, at the accessories counter just talking to the salesman. When I was asked if I could be helped, I expressed my concerns and he pulled down a few holsters for me to examine. I asked him if I could try my gun in them and he nodded Ok. So I removed it from my pocket, unloaded it, and racked the slide back for him to examine.

The man in shorts closest to me then whipped out his Fairfax LEO badge and said, "I assume you have a permit for that", to which I responded, "yes sir, would you like to see it?". He replied, "no, that's Ok", and we all had a nice little conversation about various things.

As I was getting ready leave, the LEO said, "hadn't you better load that back up?". I replied, "I'll wait until I'm in my car. Gun shops generally don't like you loading a gun in their store".

Ran into a state LEO about a half year ago at a local gas station. He was off duty and had essentially the same model car as I do so we started talking cars. I was OC'ing and during the conversation, he said something about my gun. I said something in my next sentence that had the words, "police officer" (not badly), and he told me that he was a state trooper. He favored citizens carrying for their protection and even his protection in the off chance that may be needed. Soon we shook hands and parted.

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Now THIS is a positive encounter!

I grow weary of so many "positive" reports, where the only thing positive was that the officer was polite while disarming the citizen, running the serial number, and returning the gun unloaded and disassembled with an admonishment to not touch it until the officer was gone.

Or "positive" encounters where citizens are detained and investigated, but don't go to jail.

This is a truly positive LEO contact!

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I believe there are more LEOs that support the OC movement than we realize. They may not be able to vocalize their support because it would compromise their jobs. There are definitely those against OC, but it definitely is not all LEOs.

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Yay! Thanks for sharing..definitely a great encounter.

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Now THAT'S the way it should be! Hats off to that officer!:celebrate:celebrateThey should be our allies not our enemies.

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Believe it or not, most officers do not have an issue with open carry (or concealed carry for that matter). The problem is two fold - not enough citizens do it to make it commonplace, and not enough officers ever encounter someone OC'ing to have any degree of experience with it.

In 12 years in LE, I can recall maybe 3 times seeing a civilian with a handgun (in a positive manner) - a guy in line behind me at Wawa, a guy pumping his gas, and another guy in an Einstein bagel place. That's it, and I was always keenly aware of things like that.

It just doesnt happen that often.

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jpierce wrote:

I was grocery shopping today with my kids at the local WalMart when I was approached by an off-duty detective.

He said that he loved to see people open carrying and that he had been very excited about the Heller decision although he thought it could have been stronger on our behalf.

We talked for a good 15 minutes there in the middle of WalMart about gun rights and the excellent work that VCDL has done for gun owners here in VA.

He made a point of saying that the thing that makes him madder than anything else is when the press makes it seem as if LEOs are anti-gun when most (at least in our area) are 100% pro-gun.

As we were wrapping up, he turned to my oldest son and said "You should be proud of what your dad is doing here. Those who stand up for their rights today make sure you will have them when you grow up."

We need more reports of positive encounters. Those who have had them ... please post them.


John

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I OC at the Bristol Walmart all the time, never get a second look from anyone. Have never ran into LEO either but I would expect no trouble if I did. Bristol, VA is very gun friendly overall.