swillden
Regular Member
imported post
My brother-in-law was asking some questions over the weekend that got me to thinking...
The normal opinion about unlicensed OC in Utah is that you must carry "Utah-unloaded", but I don't think that's what the law actually says.
The law says that it's unlawful to carry a loaded gun (a) in or on a vehicle, (b) on a public street; or (c) in a posted prohibited area. Does that not mean that it's perfectly legal to OC loaded without a permit when you're (a) on foot, (b) not on a public street; and (c) not in a posted prohibited area?
So you should be able to OC loaded in a grocery store, or a mall, or just about anywhere else that's either private property or public property but not a street (e.g. a city park).
It might be a bit impractical to OC fully loaded while staying within the bounds of the law, because you'd have to unload to get in the car, and load after you get out. People might -- quite understandably, IMO -- get freaked about seeing someone hop out of their car in a grocery store parking lot, draw, rack and re-holster before walking in.
Also, I think the meme that "No CFP" == "Must be unloaded" is pretty firmly established in the minds of local law enforcement, and if you got detained for some reason OC'ing fully loaded without a CFP, you may well get charged even if you're not on the street.
Comments?
My brother-in-law was asking some questions over the weekend that got me to thinking...
The normal opinion about unlicensed OC in Utah is that you must carry "Utah-unloaded", but I don't think that's what the law actually says.
The law says that it's unlawful to carry a loaded gun (a) in or on a vehicle, (b) on a public street; or (c) in a posted prohibited area. Does that not mean that it's perfectly legal to OC loaded without a permit when you're (a) on foot, (b) not on a public street; and (c) not in a posted prohibited area?
So you should be able to OC loaded in a grocery store, or a mall, or just about anywhere else that's either private property or public property but not a street (e.g. a city park).
It might be a bit impractical to OC fully loaded while staying within the bounds of the law, because you'd have to unload to get in the car, and load after you get out. People might -- quite understandably, IMO -- get freaked about seeing someone hop out of their car in a grocery store parking lot, draw, rack and re-holster before walking in.
Also, I think the meme that "No CFP" == "Must be unloaded" is pretty firmly established in the minds of local law enforcement, and if you got detained for some reason OC'ing fully loaded without a CFP, you may well get charged even if you're not on the street.
Comments?