Village of Pewaukee eases gun carry rules

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Congratulations to the Village of Pewaukee for understanding the state pre-emption statute.

Village of Pewaukee eases gun carry rules

By Scott Williams of the Journal Sentinel
Posted: Jun. 2, 2009

Village of Pewaukee - In the latest response to a state attorney general's opinion on guns, village officials here have eased restrictions on openly carrying firearms in public.
Village Attorney Mark Blum said the action was prompted by Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen's opinion April 20 that open carrying of guns is legal.
Since at least the late 1960s, village ordinance here prohibited civilians from firing guns or carrying guns unless the weapon was unloaded and disassembled or in a carrying case.
Because that appeared more restrictive than Van Hollen's interpretation of state law, Blum said, village officials eased their restrictions to prohibit open carry only near schools and under other circumstances outlined by the state.
The change was approved by village trustees last month.
Since Van Hollen issued his opinion, local ordinances on carrying guns also have been discussed or reviewed in South Milwaukee, St. Francis and Lannon.

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+1 for pewaukee! hopefully the rest of the state will follow suit.
:celebrate

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Elected officials who don't have their heads up their @ss. Amazing! Well done Village of Pewaukee.

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I was just reading up last night on the City of Pewaukee's ordinances. Apparently there's a Village of Pewaukee out there as well. Anyway, ran accross this last night after combing through Pewaukees ordinances. Here's their policy on OC.

Open Carry of a Firearm within the City of Pewaukee
[align=left]The City of Pewaukee Police Department is a professional law enforcement agency that respects the rights of all. We are committed to preserving public safety in this community; all while balancing the rights of individual citizens. [/align] [align=left]The recent legal opinion by the Wisconsin Attorney General regarding the open carry of firearms has not been without controversy. Law enforcement, as well as the public, is concerned about their rights and responsibilities in this matter. [/align] [align=left]This agency will respond to and investigate calls about a person(s) openly carrying a firearm. The nature of the call and all available information will dictate our response. Although a person may have a right to openly carry a firearm, we will still approach these incidents with caution. Our response may also vary depending upon the reaction and level of cooperation received from the armed individual. Our goal is to confirm that there are no violations of Wisconsin Statutes or local ordinances, and that there is not a safety risk to the public or to the individual. If you choose to openly carry a firearm and are approached by a law enforcement officer, understand that the officer will react appropriately based upon your actions and your level of cooperation. [/align] [align=left]Again, we recognize and respect the constitutional rights of the public we serve. We are not about infringing on those rights when dealing with law abiding, responsible persons who decide to openly carry a firearm. Each community may have different restrictions as to where a person may openly carry a firearm. Under state law, citizens are prohibited from openly carrying a firearm in any government building, school and any business where alcoholic beverages are sold and consumed on site (WI. § 941.235 & 941.237). Private businesses may also deny access to individuals who are armed. It is the responsibility of the individual to familiarize themselves with these restrictions. [/align] [align=left][/align] [align=left]Current restrictions regarding the possession and use of firearms within the City of Pewaukee can be found on the City’s website at: http://www.cityofpewaukee.us/pewaukee_ordinances.php .[/align][align=left]
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[/align][align=left]I really don't think it sounds too bad. They even spell out the restrictions for you if you didn't already know them.[/align]

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Again, we recognize and respect the constitutional rights of the public we serve. We are not about infringing on those rights when dealing with law abiding, responsible persons who decide to openly carry a firearm.

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A reasoned appropriate response.

It is just me or does Waukesha county in general seem to have way more sense than Milwaukee County???

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hugh jarmis wrote:

Again, we recognize and respect the constitutional rights of the public we serve. We are not about infringing on those rights when dealing with law abiding, responsible persons who decide to openly carry a firearm.

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A reasoned appropriate response.

It is just me or does Waukesha county in general seem to have way more sense than Milwaukee County???

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It looks that way. I went through Waukesha's ordinances as well and didn't find any sort of OC restriction. The only thing I found relating to firearms was restrictions about discharging them, but provisions were made for self-defense.

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That's because the "white flight" from Milwaukee brought the conservatives to Waukesha Co. And the Milwaukee area hack politicians think they can tax their way out of the mess they created.

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GlockMeisterG21 wrote:
[align=left]

This agency will respond to and investigate calls about a person(s) openly carrying a firearm. The nature of the call and all available information will dictate our response. Although a person may have a right to openly carry a firearm, we will still approach these incidents with caution. Our response may also vary depending upon the reaction and level of cooperation received from the armed individual. Our goal is to confirm that there are no violations of Wisconsin Statutes or local ordinances, and that there is not a safety risk to the public or to the individual. If you choose to openly carry a firearm and are approached by a law enforcement officer, understand that the officer will react appropriately based upon your actions and your level of cooperation

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[/align]They are trying to sound a little wishy washy with cooperation, to discourage casual carriers. They cannot detain someone and then try to determine if they may be committing a crime, they need to have reasonable articulable suspicion that the person IS engaged, WAS engaged, or WILL shortly be engaged in criminal activity in order to detain. If someone is not being detained for any reason and the officer wants to talk, they can legally tell the LEO to go pound sand and go on their way. Though not talking to an officer is often construed in law enforcement and the media as "not cooperating". If they only referred to it as "exercising their right to remain silent".

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hugh jarmis wrote:

Again, we recognize and respect the constitutional rights of the public we serve. We are not about infringing on those rights when dealing with law abiding, responsible persons who decide to openly carry a firearm.

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A reasoned appropriate response.

It is just me or does Waukesha county in general seem to have way more sense than Milwaukee County???

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I think that the constituency of Waukesha vs. Milwaukee counties is the difference. The people elect the government they deserve. It seems that, with a few exceptions, as goes the city of Milwaukee, so goes Milwaukee County in general. Milwaukee's county board pretty much rules the roost for the entire area, setting a liberal agenda that primarily benefits the City of Milwaukee. Most of the mayors of the surrounding communities of Milwaukee are pretty impotent and ineffective in influencing their county.

There is also a more pervasive criminal element in Milwaukee and bordering communities than, say, Waukesha, or Ozaukee counties. It is easier for communities like the Village and Town of Pewaukee to be more open to OC, as they know that the person willing to OC will most likely be a law abiding person, not a thug criminal.

Hense, one of the main reasons I moved from Milwaukee County to Waukesha County is more safety and a better overall environment for my family.

Regards.

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Hense, one of the main reasons I moved from Milwaukee County to Waukesha County is more safety and a better overall environment for my family.

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Sure, I agree, but at far as common sense goes, doesn't it make more sense that you should carry in a dangerous place more so than a safe place?

Yet the most dangerous of places infringe the most on our rights. Hmm... Kinda makes me wonder about the politicians in Milwaukee. Either they don't care about the law-abiding citizens of their county, or they are interested in enabling criminals by disarming citizens.

Hmm... Then again if you look at the number of Milwaukee Alderman past and PRESENT that ARE criminals, I think this question answers itself.

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The farther away you can get from major metro areas, the safer it is almost anywhere in this country.

Leave!! get away from that mess and enjoy life for a while! Come up here andcarry your firearm without fear of harrassment from either side of the criminal element. Avoid the gangs, and avoid the uniformed criminals too.

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Come up here andcarry your firearm without fear of harrassment from either side of the criminal element. Avoid the gangs, and avoid the uniformed criminals too.

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I refuse to surrender to them.

Don't get me wrong, I love the northwoods. My grandparents had a cabin on Mann Lake (just outside boulder junction) for 50+years they just sold last year

But I'll never let criminals dictate where I live

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The police say now that they will respond to and investigate calls about anyone OC'ing. I suspect they will....at first. When the calls become more and more routine, and none of them amount to any actual need for law enforcement, the memo will go out to the 911 operators to start screening the calls, so that the cops will only be dispatched if there is some actual evidence of wrongdoing. When going to an "OC call" is no more exciting than watching paint dry, the interest in it will dry up too.

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Mock 911 call

Operator : 911, what is your emergency?

Caller : I'm calling to report a man with a gun.

Operator : What is your location?

Caller : [insert random grocery store or whatever here]

Operator : What is he doing?

Caller : [Awkward pause] Buying some steaks at the meat counter....




I think you can fill in the rest.

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McX wrote:

Love that mock 911 call. Yep, armed, dangerous, and buying meat! Perhapse Police repsonse would be quicker if he was only buying hamburger (heh-heh)?

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Haha, yea I had forgotten all about this thread. I should say though that I yet to have any interaction with Pewaukee police about my OC despite the fact that I do a lot of shopping out here and even go for walks around my neighborhood while armed.

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GlockMeisterG21 wrote:

Mock 911 call

Operator : 911, what is your emergency?

Caller : I'm calling to report a man with a gun.

Operator : What is your location?

Caller : [insert random grocery store or whatever here]

Operator : What is he doing?

Caller : [Awkward pause] Buying some steaks at the meat counter....




I think you can fill in the rest.

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I'm sure that is what it sounded like when I was in Burger King on HWY 18 with my father a month or so ago.