2-day educational process

imported post

Before I begin my latest tale of OC, I would like to leave you with a few tidbits that I have learned since I began viewing (and later joined) this site.

1) Read & study, read & study...be able to reasonable & articulately cite the laws regarding OC & state preemption if needed

2) carry plenty of pamphlets (I carry about 5 each of the A) State & federal laws, B) Training bulletin synopses & C) OC pamphlet)

3) if approached by authoritys, REMAIN CALM, polite & respectful, yet convey your point(s) distinctly

4) the only way to get used to OC is to just do it...it gets easier with each "session"



And now the tale you've all been waiting for..without further adieu...

For the past week and a half, I've begun OC'ing at Martha Lake County Park in Lynnwood. I've been on the fishing dock at least 3 or 4 times that one of the park rangers (tom) has check the garbage or fishing licenses.

Last night, Tom asked if he could talk to me (figures, the only time I forget all my pamphlets at home :banghead. we had the typical conversation about how I had to take my gun to my car & telling him I didn't, that I was fully within my rights. Him telling me that the County had an ordinance prohibiting weapons in parks, me telling him that that ordinance was repealed due to state preemption & that the ordinance, for all intents and purposes was non-existant. I spoke of my call to the "duty officer" at the Sheriff's office & his statement to "don't worry about it, the Council (Snohomish county) likes to enact ordinances that we either can't or won't enforce". He stated he didn't want things to get ugly, I mirrored the feeling & told him that I would return today with the proper citations to put his mind at ease.

Tonight, when Tom arrived at the park, before I could get the papers out of my car, he approached me and.....

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

....apologized for being incorrect & stated that he'd done a lot of checking & he found out that I was right & that the County ordinance had been repealed "a couple years ago". I still left him the paperwork (citations of state & federal law as well as the State & federal law pamphlet & print-outs of every single training bulletin available to me thus far from NWCDL.

Tom was going to forward all the paperwork to his supervisor & request that a Memo go out to all parks personel stating that OC is legal (even though he worries that moms with kids will freak out, he understansds the right). If such a memo ever goes out, he has promised me a copy :exclaim:

Tom said that one of the reasons that he hadn't "pushed" things last night is that I seemed to know what I was talking about :celebrate, and he wanted to make sure he was right before taking any action (he also mentiond that he didn't think that taking action & THEN finding out he was wrong was the smart way to retain his job.

what could have been ugly (last night), turned into a positive experience

imported post

WOW. You da man . . . nice work!

imported post

ya know, its kinda funny..when I first was thinking of starting to OC, I was literally the bigges chicken s**t around..so bad, in fact, that I actually emailed lonnie & told him that he was going to have to accompany me on my first couple of OC's in case LE approached...then, figured, WTF..went on my own...getting easier each time..and in a week and a half, nothing but positive comments from everyone I've come across

imported post

Kewl, good work!

imported post

Yeahhhhh. You broke your cherry and it came out all good. I found that the same attitude you shown is exactly what helps. Being confident you are in the right and calmly but steadfastly asserting your rights makes many people doubt the wrongful preconcieved ideas they had. Good work.

imported post

You go, Jeffro!

imported post

5jeffro7 wrote:

ya know, its kinda funny..when I first was thinking of starting to OC, I was literally the bigges chicken s**t around..so bad, in fact, that I actually emailed lonnie & told him that he was going to have to accompany me on my first couple of OC's in case LE approached...then, figured, WTF..went on my own...getting easier each time..and in a week and a half, nothing but positive comments from everyone I've come across

Click to expand...

I don't see the problem .Why folks think it's something hard to do.I open carry everywhere.Never had any real issues.I stood in my usual Starbucks line this morning chatting with a Demoines officer.Guns did'nt even come up in the conversation.Grabbed my coffee and stood in line at the bank.No one gave me a second look.I have folks question me from time to time wanting to know what the law is ,pass out pamphlets.

I was open carry at the Seatac Mall for about an hour an a half yesterday,browsing the book store.Had a burger at mcdonalds. Went to Sears etc.A Federway officer who has seen me before just waived as I walked by.At the Safeway one time one guy behind me made a fuss about my gun thought it would be funny holding his hands up and saying something like don't shoot.The clerk also in this case dove down his face because he was the one that was trying to make it an issue.

Then there are the types that are compensating for some inadequacy ,maybe they were picked on as a kid or something.These are the ones that like to wear the T-shirts with huge gun logos ,like to talk specs ,and try to call attention to the fact they are carrying.Or parade around in front of cops trying to start a confrontation.Have no use for these idiots ,they are usually the type that shouldn't be allowed to carry in the first place and would be useless in a real situation.Gives us all a bad name. I found it is a matter of apprearance as well.The way I dress people ask all the time if I am undercover.That gives me the opportunity to pass out a pamphlet and give the talk.

Just do it everyday ,look good,use a proper carry holster and usually no one after while will notice.If an Officer approaches you don't get confrontational and it becomes part of the everyday routine.

imported post

Thats what I found ( agreeing with Deros post) it's really not that big of a deal. I understand where the OP is coming from though. Not being raised around guns in a good way. I was leary at first, but now it my daily routine and I carry pretty much everywhere I go. I don't look for confrontation, that is a bad attitude to start, but I don't let the possibility of one stop me from excercising my open carry rights.

imported post

Great encounter and much kudos to ranger Tom for doing his job well!

jeffro, I'd love to get together with you for coffee or lunch sometime, since you're not that far from me or Lonnie. Let me know.

imported post

just_a_car wrote:

Great encounter and much kudos to ranger Tom for doing his job well!

jeffro, I'd love to get together with you for coffee or lunch sometime, since you're not that far from me or Lonnie. Let me know.

Click to expand...

Count me in for that lunch, I am only 10-15 minutes away from you guys.

I have to agree with what others have been saying. Its been pretty slow this year, and have had NO LE run-ins and only 2 conversations this year with people approaching me with questions.

I have been CCing & OCinc for some 7+ years now in Washington, and every year I get approached less and less by curious and or concerned people, and even less often by LEOs. It used to be I couldn't walk in Seattle without being approached by SPD and playing "20 questions" with them. Now, they don't give me a second look.

We are never going to educate everyone, but I would say that my experience over the last 12 years of carrying a firearm has been positive as far as OC is concerned.