After reading over a few incidents

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After going through some of the most recent stories of police stopping for OC, I wanted to know specifically what would be the best course of action after having your right's violated.


If an officer detains or "arrests" you, only for "carrying" a firearm openly, disarms you and takes your identification without you offering it to them. You tell them that since you are detained, you are not going to answer any questions without a lawyer present. They then run your name and the serial on your firearm and come back with nothing, lecture you with ignorant reasons why OC is dangerous and then waste 30 min to an hour of your time.

What is the best action to take after all of this has happened? I know that you can send off emails and phone calls to their superiors and such, but does that really do any good?

The most that I have seen is responses from superiors that consist of "I'm sorry, but your just SOL for your time that we wasted."

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A good start is to file a formal complaint. This complaint should contain as much detail about what happened, I would also include any FOIA information you could get. Once you mail the formal complaintI would contactthe Chief byphone and/or email about the letter and that you expect a timely response/fix to the issue.

If indeed your rights were violated, then you have grounds for a lawsuit. This is where a digital recorder comes in handy. Some people will see how the formal complaint is handled before following through with the suit. Keep copies of everything you send them for your records, if it happens a second time you have that much more ammo.


EDIT: If you do follow up with a suit, contact a lawyer that is comfortable with 4A cases.

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Just remember that if the "stop" was precipitated by a bona fide call of someone with a gun, the officers were merely doing their job within the law.

The key is to determine EXACTLY why you were stopped/detained. If it was just because they saw your openly carried firearm then you have at least a leg to stand on. If the FOIA request shows there was a call made, and recorded on the dispatch center's equipment, you are out the time spent with no recourse.

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amlevin wrote:

Just remember that if the "stop" was precipitated by a bona fide call of someone with a gun, the officers were merely doing their job within the law.

The key is to determine EXACTLY why you were stopped/detained. If it was just because they saw your openly carried firearm then you have at least a leg to stand on. If the FOIA request shows there was a call made, and recorded on the dispatch center's equipment, you are out the time spent with no recourse.

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Wrong.

Just because someone calls in a MWAG call does not give the officer the right to detain that person and/or search that name. They still need RAS that the person they're detaining is committing a crime, which a 911 call does not provide. You can not report someone for a legal activity then think that makes it okay for the officer to stop that person.

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Kildars wrote:

amlevin wrote:

Just remember that if the "stop" was precipitated by a bona fide call of someone with a gun, the officers were merely doing their job within the law.

The key is to determine EXACTLY why you were stopped/detained.  If it was just because they saw your openly carried firearm then you have at least a leg to stand on.  If the FOIA request shows there was a call made, and recorded on the dispatch center's equipment, you are out the time spent with no recourse.

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Wrong.

Just because someone calls in a MWAG call does not give the officer the right to detain that person and/or search that name. They still need RAS that the person they're detaining is committing a crime, which a 911 call does not provide. You can not report someone for a legal activity then think that makes it okay for the officer to stop that person.

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To my knowledge that only applies to an anonymous 911 call.

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No even a call when the identify the caller. If you're reporting a legal activity (i.e. man with gun in store open carrying.) That does give police RAS that a crime is being committed.

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Kildars wrote:

No even a call when the identify the caller. If you're reporting a legal activity (i.e. man with gun in store open carrying.) That does give police RAS that a crime is being committed.

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OK. I see what you mean. I was talking about a report of an illegal activity even if it was false.

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Aye, if you were reporting a man swinging a gun/being belligerent brandishing his firearm and someone matched that description at that location that would give the cops the ability to stop/contact that person.

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Which is why it's extremely important to request a copy of the 911 call

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My use of the term "Bona Fide" meant that there was something more to the call than just someone calling and reporting someone walking around with a gun. If the caller intimates that there is some suspicious activity or circumstances associated with the person carrying the gun, the officer is within his rights to investigate. That often means making contact with the party carrying the gun.

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amlevin wrote:

Just remember that if the "stop" was precipitated by a bona fide call of someone with a gun, the officers were merely doing their job within the law.

The key is to determine EXACTLY why you were stopped/detained. If it was just because they saw your openly carried firearm then you have at least a leg to stand on. If the FOIA request shows there was a call made, and recorded on the dispatch center's equipment, you are out the time spent with no recourse.

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I'll admit, the first boldedpart had me reading it differently. If in fact you are brandishing or waving your gun around, you have other things to worry about than filing a formal complaint.

Yes, it is always a good practice to determine why the officer is wanting to stop and talk to you.

The second bolded part assisted me in reading it differently even more so. Again, if the call is simply a MWAG call, and you arent doing anything illegal, you DO have recourse.