ACEllis
Regular Member
imported post
On March 4th around 11:30pm and about 20 miles into Colorado, westbound on I-70, I was pulled over for speeding. My mother was in the passenger seat of her mini-van when the officer approached on the driver side cautiously and asked for all the basic information and told me why he pulled me over. I informed him I was going to need to reach for my wallet that I was sitting on but I had to reach over the pistol on my hip do to so. (I wanted to be voluntarily straight-forward with the officer to avoid any altercations as well as see if I couldn't avoid a ticket through honesty and compliance. I knew I was going 10 over the limit for hours since I started my trip from Central Kansas. It cuts an hour off the travel time.
)
He said I could go for my wallet but asked me: (May not be word for word, but context is the same)
Officer "Why are you carrying a pistol with you tonight?"
Me "Because I'm permitted to by the states of Colorado and Kansas. Both of which are open carry states as well."
Off "Do you have a concealed permit in Kansas?" (My mothers van had Kansas plates.)
Me "No. Colorado. Jefferson County. I'll be moving back to Kansas shortly. I live in Littleton and I'm on my way home right now to collect all my belongings and move to Wichita."
- I hand him all the things he asked for as well as my permit to try and calm him. He seemed to get very rigid when I announced I was armed. He tells me it will be a few moments as he does whatever officers do in their squad cars when they pull folks over.
My mother asks me when he leaves if she should tell him that her revolver is in a lockbox behind her seat. I tell her there is no point in doing so, and that I had another smaller concealable pistol in my duffel bag in the back of the van... if he feels like harassing us, he has all the reason to with one on my hip. More guns don't mean anything when one is present at all.
The officer returns with my $91 dollar citation and all my papers. He hands back my permit and proceeds to give me a soundbyte from his Misinformed Gun Laws 101 course.
Off "Just so you know, your permit is invalid outside of Colorado. If you look up the statue on the back of your permit, it will tell you everything you'll need to know."
Me "No it's not. I have reciprocity in, I believe, 23 other states. Kansas being one of them. I go there often enough to see my family to know what I can do."
Off "No, Kansas doesn't recognize Colorado. Only Colorado permits work here."
-I had to stifle the word "Bull@#$%" out of my mouth. Even if he was correct, which I know without a doubt that he wasn't, why was he having this lecture with me? I was 20 or so miles into Colorado, a few minutes west of Burlington. In a state where vehicles and private conveyance are protected, allowing you to carry a handgun however you please without the need for a permit. Especially openly.
Me "Not to argue with you, but you're wrong. Colorado recognizes only resident permits. Your ID needs to match the state that issued your permit, so anyone with their non-resident Florida or Utah ones are @#$% outta luck in concealing. I still live in Colorado for the next few days. I'm more than legit."
Off *nods his head* "Is that so?"
Me "Positive."
- At this point I thought I was about to be asked to step out of the vehicle, but he just wished me off on a safe trip back to Littleton and to keep from breaking the speed limit. He also thanked me for being cordial, just when I thought I was going to have to argue statue with him.
I'm not sure if it was Highway or State LEO, but it is really alarming to be "informed" of what I can and can't do by someone who should know better. In retrospect, I wish I would have just kept quiet about my concealed permit and let the fact I was open carrying in a vehicle be known to him from the get go. (My pistol was only covered by the fact I'm strongside right and the seatbelt rode over it some.)
Thought I'd share this run in with you guys to get some comments or similar stories. Not at any time was I questioned on mentioning open carry. As far as I knew the officer was never at the right angle to see my pistol or ever asked anything about it other than 'why.'
AC
On March 4th around 11:30pm and about 20 miles into Colorado, westbound on I-70, I was pulled over for speeding. My mother was in the passenger seat of her mini-van when the officer approached on the driver side cautiously and asked for all the basic information and told me why he pulled me over. I informed him I was going to need to reach for my wallet that I was sitting on but I had to reach over the pistol on my hip do to so. (I wanted to be voluntarily straight-forward with the officer to avoid any altercations as well as see if I couldn't avoid a ticket through honesty and compliance. I knew I was going 10 over the limit for hours since I started my trip from Central Kansas. It cuts an hour off the travel time.
)He said I could go for my wallet but asked me: (May not be word for word, but context is the same)
Officer "Why are you carrying a pistol with you tonight?"
Me "Because I'm permitted to by the states of Colorado and Kansas. Both of which are open carry states as well."
Off "Do you have a concealed permit in Kansas?" (My mothers van had Kansas plates.)
Me "No. Colorado. Jefferson County. I'll be moving back to Kansas shortly. I live in Littleton and I'm on my way home right now to collect all my belongings and move to Wichita."
- I hand him all the things he asked for as well as my permit to try and calm him. He seemed to get very rigid when I announced I was armed. He tells me it will be a few moments as he does whatever officers do in their squad cars when they pull folks over.
My mother asks me when he leaves if she should tell him that her revolver is in a lockbox behind her seat. I tell her there is no point in doing so, and that I had another smaller concealable pistol in my duffel bag in the back of the van... if he feels like harassing us, he has all the reason to with one on my hip. More guns don't mean anything when one is present at all.
The officer returns with my $91 dollar citation and all my papers. He hands back my permit and proceeds to give me a soundbyte from his Misinformed Gun Laws 101 course.
Off "Just so you know, your permit is invalid outside of Colorado. If you look up the statue on the back of your permit, it will tell you everything you'll need to know."
Me "No it's not. I have reciprocity in, I believe, 23 other states. Kansas being one of them. I go there often enough to see my family to know what I can do."
Off "No, Kansas doesn't recognize Colorado. Only Colorado permits work here."
-I had to stifle the word "Bull@#$%" out of my mouth. Even if he was correct, which I know without a doubt that he wasn't, why was he having this lecture with me? I was 20 or so miles into Colorado, a few minutes west of Burlington. In a state where vehicles and private conveyance are protected, allowing you to carry a handgun however you please without the need for a permit. Especially openly.
Me "Not to argue with you, but you're wrong. Colorado recognizes only resident permits. Your ID needs to match the state that issued your permit, so anyone with their non-resident Florida or Utah ones are @#$% outta luck in concealing. I still live in Colorado for the next few days. I'm more than legit."
Off *nods his head* "Is that so?"
Me "Positive."
- At this point I thought I was about to be asked to step out of the vehicle, but he just wished me off on a safe trip back to Littleton and to keep from breaking the speed limit. He also thanked me for being cordial, just when I thought I was going to have to argue statue with him.
I'm not sure if it was Highway or State LEO, but it is really alarming to be "informed" of what I can and can't do by someone who should know better. In retrospect, I wish I would have just kept quiet about my concealed permit and let the fact I was open carrying in a vehicle be known to him from the get go. (My pistol was only covered by the fact I'm strongside right and the seatbelt rode over it some.)
Thought I'd share this run in with you guys to get some comments or similar stories. Not at any time was I questioned on mentioning open carry. As far as I knew the officer was never at the right angle to see my pistol or ever asked anything about it other than 'why.'
AC
