Who can OC?

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Hi,

I just saw the sign on I-45 about OC and the website, so here I am. I really don't know if it should be a good idea, the reason for this is because 1. I don't know the law about OC here in Texas, 2. Can ANYONE OC, there are questionable characters that I feel should not be even allowed to be in society much less own a gun.

There has been instances in my own experiences recently where I did wish I had a gun for my protection, almostgot attackedby some stupid kid in the presence ofmy mother in the car just going out for burgers in my neighborhood. Luckily an Officer was at the scene going in the burger place to get something to eat. I was thinking what if that "questionable person" had a gun. Although I wish I had one if he did attack, all I had was a screwdriver in the glove box. So anyways I need education before I sign petition. Help!

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JoAnn wrote:

Hi,

I just saw the sign on I-45 about OC and the website, so here I am. I really don't know if it should be a good idea, the reason for this is because 1. I don't know the law about OC here in Texas, 2. Can ANYONE OC, there are questionable characters that I feel should not be even allowed to be in society much less own a gun.

There has been instances in my own experiences recently where I did wish I had a gun for my protection, almostgot attackedby some stupid kid in the presence ofmy mother in the car just going out for burgers in my neighborhood. Luckily an Officer was at the scene going in the burger place to get something to eat. I was thinking what if that "questionable person" had a gun. Although I wish I had one if he did attack, all I had was a screwdriver in the glove box. So anyways I need education before I sign petition. Help!

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1. I don't know the law about OC here in Texas.

Currently, it is illegal to Open Carry a handgun in Texas. The purpose of the billboard is to raise awareness and assist in the effort to change the law in Texas to allow Open Carry.

2. Can ANYONE OC, there are questionable characters that I feel should not be even allowed to be in society much less own a gun.

No, currently the average person cannot Open Carry a handgun in Texas (not sure if off duty LEOs can or not). If the law is changed, anyone who can legally own a firearm will be able to Open Carry that firearm. The questionable characters, if they are up to illegal activity, don't want the attention of Open Carry, so if they are carrying a gun, it is likely to be concealed, and they may even be prohibited from owning a gun. Criminals don't care if it is against the law for them to carry concealed.

There has been instances in my own experiences recently where I did wish I had a gun for my protection, almostgot attackedby some stupid kid in the presence ofmy mother in the car just going out for burgers in my neighborhood. Luckily an Officer was at the scene going in the burger place to get something to eat. I was thinking what if that "questionable person" had a gun. Although I wish I had one if he did attack, all I had was a screwdriver in the glove box. So anyways I need education before I sign petition. Help!

If you do decide to purchase a firearm, please get some training on self defence with a firearm. This will enable you to understand what you can and can't do legally, and when it is appropriate to draw and use a firearm.

The change in the law to allow Open Carry, willallow people to choose to more freely exercise their 2nd Amendment Right without having to ask for the Government's permission or pay a fee to the Government in order to exercise a right. Anything that requires Governmental permission and a fee, is not a right, it is a privilidge, and I have never seen the 2nd Privilidge listed in the U.S. Constitution.

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I don't know what they have in mind for Texas, but in my state anyone who can own a handgun can carry it openly. However, in order to own a handgun one cannot have any felonies and I'm pretty sure misdimeanors of domestic violence would be a disqualifier too. There may also be other restrictions I'm not thinking of. Per federal law felons cannot own guns, so felons would not be able to carry guns in Texas legally.

Also, there are limits on the conditions that it is permitted, for example in Nevadaone cannot carry while drunk.

The types of people who are up to no good probably don't want to attract attention to themselves by carrying a gun for the world to see it, especially if they're prohibited from owning one. The main problem with restrictions on carry is thatthey mainly restrict thepeople who are most inclined to follow the laws.

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Hello! Welcome to OCDO! Glad that you stopped by to educate yourself!
As mentioned already:
Concealed Carry Only WITH permit. No OC currently in Texas (with exception for private property and a few others)
Concealed Carry in your Vehicle with OUT a permit.
And as for your 'shady character' if he is not allowed to own a gun in the first place (felon, etc) then he is not allowed to carry. The problem being that restrictive laws only keep honest people honest! The criminals already do not follow the law so why would they care about another one being passed? I (and many others) feel that Open Carry will help to deter crime. If your 'shady character' had see that you were carrying a gun, do you think that your incident would have taken place? Or do you feel that he/she would have likely moved on to an 'easier' target?

Feel free to ask any questions that you may have. There is a great deal of information on these boards and some very friendly and knowledgeable individuals as well! You might want to check out the 'Texas' forum for more discussion about our state specifically. Also, If you are interested in going to a range i am sure that there is someone in your area that would be more than happy to introduce you to firearms safety in a friendly non-threatening environment before you jump into any decisions regarding spending money on classes and permits and guns etc!

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Also, You might want to check out the MAPS (http://www.opencarry.org/maps.html) for a 'quick reference' guide to the individual states laws...

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JoAnn wrote:

Can ANYONE OC, there are questionable characters that I feel should not be even allowed to be in society much less own a gun.
I almostgot attackedby some stupid kid in the presence ofmy mother in the car just going out for burgers in my neighborhood. I was thinking what if that "questionable person" had a gun.

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Welcome to OCDO JoAnn, you brought up several good points and questions.

Consider that it is entirely possible that the stupid kid at the burger place DID have a gun and probably no license to conceal it. The presence of a police officer may well have deterred him/her from using it against you.Law abiding citizens likeus,should be legally armed whether concealed or openly to level the playing field. Because a look at the news on ANY given day assures us that criminals ARE armed regardless of laws that may prohibit their being armed.

So the idea behind the billboards is to raise awareness and garner support so that the 2009 Texas Legislative session will see the passage of legislation to allow law abiding citizens more options for defensive carriage of arms. You can imagine how difficult it is to conceal a handgun in August in Texas, but we do because we must.Also know that such legislation will do nothing to allow questionable characters (felons and gang members)to own or carry a gun.

I applaud you for seeking answers to these questions. As others have said the OCDO forum is a good place to seek education on a number of pertinent topics. Keep coming back, we need your input.

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This whole thread is just messed up. Imagine a citizen trying to educate themself BEFORE making a decision on an issue:shock::shock:

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icode wrote:

This whole thread is just messed up. Imagine a citizen trying to educate themself BEFORE making a decision on an issue:shock::shock:

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How is this thread messed up?

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It might help if the Texas legislature were in the habit of working at all. One hundred forty days every other year? Nice gig.

-ljp

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VAopencarry wrote:

icode wrote:

This whole thread is just messed up. Imagine a citizen trying to educate themself BEFORE making a decision on an issue:shock::shock:

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How is this thread messed up?

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Sorry, I forgot to include the <sarcasm> </ sarcasm> tags... IOW I was being sacastic.