MadisonRebel
Campaign Veteran
imported post
I'm just going to go straight into it while it's as fresh in my memory as it's going to be. Two friends came to stay for the weekend, and we decided to go to the local Sentry to get stuff for dinner. I have open carried at this Sentry for months, without issue, even talking to staff while carrying. The only remark I've ever gotten was from a younger cashier who asked what you needed to do to carry, and I obliged him.
We arrived about 1:30PM. I was the only person OCing, as my friend was from out of state and wanted to see what the reaction of people was like. He got a very good account, it seems.
After being in the store for 20 minutes, while separated from the group, I was approached by a store employee who looked about 18, clearly unnerved, who stopped me and asked me "is that a gun?". I answered that it was, and he explained that they don't allow guns in the store because it scares their customers. I informed him that I had open carried on many occasions in the store, and he replied "Not while I've been working", which is unlikely unless he's new, since I shop there regularly. I asked if it was their policy, and he said it was, which I was led otherwise to believe months ago when I contacted their store, and was told they have no policy on firearms. During the conversation, he kept tapping something on his belt that seemed to be attached to his ear piece, and made remarks like "Yeah, I am". I finally told him that if that was their policy, I would no longer be shopping there. He asked if he could give me a card with the manager's information, and led me to the front desk near the door. He wrote down the names of the managers and handed it to me. I informed him that I would need to tell the people I was with that I would be outside. Hesitantly, he agreed. I let my group know I was going out to the car and got the keys. Unloaded, encased, and out of reach, and I thought it was over. Not the first time I'd been kicked out. First time for what happened next, though.
When I saw uniformed officers coming towards the car, I took a deep breath and tried to keep calm. I haven't had many encounters with law enforcement, so I was fairly nervous. They stopped us as we began to pull out, and we pulled back in. After about ten seconds where they didn't do anything, I began to get out of the car to see what the problem was, and was asked by Police Officer M. Ott to stay in the car. I was in the front passenger seat, and both myself and the driver rolled down our windows. The details here may be sketchy, because I was scared, but I'll do my best to recount.
He tapped on the window just before I rolled it down. He asked "What's with the holster?" I responded "lawfully open carrying". He told me that they had had calls from within the store, I think from customers but it could have been store employees too, I figure. He told me they were required to respond to them. He asked me where the gun was, and I responded unloaded and encased. He asked if it was in the trunk, and I said no. He asked where, and I said it was out of reach. He then asked for my ID, which I gave. He asked if it was my current address, which it wasn't. I said no, and then he requested my current address and phone number, which I gave. He said they would need to go talk to people inside to see what they were thinking, or something to that effect. He said to wait there, which I took as a clear sign of detainment. Another officer, whose name I failed to get(I know, I know), stayed by my side of the car while this went on. He had his hand constantly covering his weapon, and asked if I was "exercising my Second Amendment rights" and other comments that I could tell were an attempt to try and trap me into what they nailed Yates for. I responded "self-defense". He asked what kind of gun it was, I responded "pistol". He asked what kind, I responded "Bersa". He asked me to repeat it, and I did. Then he stopped initiating conversation.
After about 5 minutes, my friend said I should ask clearly if I was being detained, and I did. He said I was. I asked if there was a charge, and he responded that they didn't need one to lawfully detain me. We had to wait a total of about 15-20 minutes, and made small talk amongst ourselves. In addition to the officer covering me on the passenger side, there were two other uniforms to the rear left of the car, one in blue rather than black, whose designation I was unsure of, and a while uniform which I recognized as mall security(This Sentry is basically part of a small mall). My friend says there were three more officers congregating a few cars up. When we eventually left, I saw that there were three cars, one MPD, one the security people for that mall, and another which I couldn't make out.
Eventually, Officer Ott returned, and gave me back my license. At least once he called me by name, which may or may not be important. When he returned, the other officer who appeared happy to draw on me at any moment moved off. Ott, for what it's worth, seemed less hostile than the other one. He basically told me that what I did was legal(Duh), and that in Madison, the culture is uncomfortable with guns(Duh) and that if I continued to carry, and people got upset and asked that I be arrested, these are his words: I would expect to be arrested. I mainly nodded or just grunted in response. He gave me some more of the spiel, but said I wasn't going to be charged with anything. Afterwards, the guy in the blue outfit, who may or may not have been security, who looked rather amused at the situation, said that the manager had told him to inform me that I was no longer welcome on the property, which included the whole mall, and that if I were to return, that it would be trespassing. I told him I had no plans to return, armed or not. After that, they sent us on our way.
I'm sure there are missing details, but I'm still trying to fight back the adrenalin. Might remember more later.
I'm just going to go straight into it while it's as fresh in my memory as it's going to be. Two friends came to stay for the weekend, and we decided to go to the local Sentry to get stuff for dinner. I have open carried at this Sentry for months, without issue, even talking to staff while carrying. The only remark I've ever gotten was from a younger cashier who asked what you needed to do to carry, and I obliged him.
We arrived about 1:30PM. I was the only person OCing, as my friend was from out of state and wanted to see what the reaction of people was like. He got a very good account, it seems.
After being in the store for 20 minutes, while separated from the group, I was approached by a store employee who looked about 18, clearly unnerved, who stopped me and asked me "is that a gun?". I answered that it was, and he explained that they don't allow guns in the store because it scares their customers. I informed him that I had open carried on many occasions in the store, and he replied "Not while I've been working", which is unlikely unless he's new, since I shop there regularly. I asked if it was their policy, and he said it was, which I was led otherwise to believe months ago when I contacted their store, and was told they have no policy on firearms. During the conversation, he kept tapping something on his belt that seemed to be attached to his ear piece, and made remarks like "Yeah, I am". I finally told him that if that was their policy, I would no longer be shopping there. He asked if he could give me a card with the manager's information, and led me to the front desk near the door. He wrote down the names of the managers and handed it to me. I informed him that I would need to tell the people I was with that I would be outside. Hesitantly, he agreed. I let my group know I was going out to the car and got the keys. Unloaded, encased, and out of reach, and I thought it was over. Not the first time I'd been kicked out. First time for what happened next, though.
When I saw uniformed officers coming towards the car, I took a deep breath and tried to keep calm. I haven't had many encounters with law enforcement, so I was fairly nervous. They stopped us as we began to pull out, and we pulled back in. After about ten seconds where they didn't do anything, I began to get out of the car to see what the problem was, and was asked by Police Officer M. Ott to stay in the car. I was in the front passenger seat, and both myself and the driver rolled down our windows. The details here may be sketchy, because I was scared, but I'll do my best to recount.
He tapped on the window just before I rolled it down. He asked "What's with the holster?" I responded "lawfully open carrying". He told me that they had had calls from within the store, I think from customers but it could have been store employees too, I figure. He told me they were required to respond to them. He asked me where the gun was, and I responded unloaded and encased. He asked if it was in the trunk, and I said no. He asked where, and I said it was out of reach. He then asked for my ID, which I gave. He asked if it was my current address, which it wasn't. I said no, and then he requested my current address and phone number, which I gave. He said they would need to go talk to people inside to see what they were thinking, or something to that effect. He said to wait there, which I took as a clear sign of detainment. Another officer, whose name I failed to get(I know, I know), stayed by my side of the car while this went on. He had his hand constantly covering his weapon, and asked if I was "exercising my Second Amendment rights" and other comments that I could tell were an attempt to try and trap me into what they nailed Yates for. I responded "self-defense". He asked what kind of gun it was, I responded "pistol". He asked what kind, I responded "Bersa". He asked me to repeat it, and I did. Then he stopped initiating conversation.
After about 5 minutes, my friend said I should ask clearly if I was being detained, and I did. He said I was. I asked if there was a charge, and he responded that they didn't need one to lawfully detain me. We had to wait a total of about 15-20 minutes, and made small talk amongst ourselves. In addition to the officer covering me on the passenger side, there were two other uniforms to the rear left of the car, one in blue rather than black, whose designation I was unsure of, and a while uniform which I recognized as mall security(This Sentry is basically part of a small mall). My friend says there were three more officers congregating a few cars up. When we eventually left, I saw that there were three cars, one MPD, one the security people for that mall, and another which I couldn't make out.
Eventually, Officer Ott returned, and gave me back my license. At least once he called me by name, which may or may not be important. When he returned, the other officer who appeared happy to draw on me at any moment moved off. Ott, for what it's worth, seemed less hostile than the other one. He basically told me that what I did was legal(Duh), and that in Madison, the culture is uncomfortable with guns(Duh) and that if I continued to carry, and people got upset and asked that I be arrested, these are his words: I would expect to be arrested. I mainly nodded or just grunted in response. He gave me some more of the spiel, but said I wasn't going to be charged with anything. Afterwards, the guy in the blue outfit, who may or may not have been security, who looked rather amused at the situation, said that the manager had told him to inform me that I was no longer welcome on the property, which included the whole mall, and that if I were to return, that it would be trespassing. I told him I had no plans to return, armed or not. After that, they sent us on our way.
I'm sure there are missing details, but I'm still trying to fight back the adrenalin. Might remember more later.
