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open carry in North Carolina

stang1988

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Does anyone know were I can find laws regaurding open carry for North Carolina. I can find the laws for ccw but not for open carry
 

Mike

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Fairfax County, Virginia, USA
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stang1988 wrote:
Does anyone know were I can find laws regaurding open carry for North Carolina. I can find the laws for ccw but not for open carry
There no statute banning open carry so it is legal. There is no law rto look for in otherwords - however see State v. Kerner where the NC S. Ct. said the state cannot require a permit to opopen carry because open carry is constitutionally protected.
 

Dreamer

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First off, it would help TREMENDOUSLY if you let us know where you are located, since policies and laws can vary enormously from city to city in NC...

You can't carry in any establishment that serves alcohol for consumption. That means any bar or restaurant that serves beer, wine, or liquor. You also can't carry in State Liquor Stores. (You CAN carry in store that sells beer and wine though, like grocery stores or specialty wine shops, as long as they are not "posted")

You can't carry on school property.

You can't carry in Federal buildings or on Federal property.

You can't carry (or even posses in your vehicle) in a Post Office, or ANYWHERE on Post Office property, including their parking lot.

You can't carry in state government buildings, or in any government building that houses a court or a jail. (but you can carry in State Rest Stops)

Some libraries post "No Firearms", or some sort of "code of conduct" that prohibits carry.

Almost every Mall that I know of in this state prohibits carrying of ANY weapon--guns, knives, even pepper spray. Check the signs at the entrances.

Ay business that is "posted" with a "circle-slash" sign banning guns, or has a posted "code of conduct" prohibiting firearms is off-limits.

There are no STATE laws prohibiting carry in municipal buildings, but many cities "post" their buildings, prohibiting firearms.

The law for banks is sort of dodgy. There is no state law prohibiting Open Carry in banks (there IS a law prohibiting CC in a bank though). Most banks "post", probiting firearms in their buildings. Banks that don't "post" are sort of a gray area, and depending on how much of an anti-gun attitude the Manager has, or local police have, OCing in a non-posted bank is always a dicey proposition. If you are well-know to the bank staff, you can probably do it, but if they don't know you, you may be asked to leave, or worse.

It is against State law for cities to ban or restrict Open Carry in general, although they CAN ban it on city property like city park property. Also, the City of Cary prohibits carry with this statute:
No person shall display any firearm or other deadly weapon as defined in G.S. § 14-269(a) while on any public street, alley, sidewalk or other public property within the town unless specifically permitted or authorized by law.
It is particularly ironic that you "can't carry in Cary"... :lol:

Note, this carry ban DOES NOT apply to private property, like in businesses or in parking lots not owned by the city, or in your vehicle, and it DOES NOT prohibit CC...

Also, Chapel Hil has a ban on Open Carrying any handgun that is shorter than 6". You can CC a small gun, but you can't carry it so people can see it. This is somehow suppose to make Chapel Hill a safer place...

And the city of Durham is the only county that requires handgun registration of it's residents.

Carrying in NC requires a LOT of research. Carry bans that cities can place on their property are NOT required to be posted, so unless you search the municipal codes of any given city, it's sometimes hard to tell if any given area in any given city is prohibited or regulated.

Don't ask LEO's about OC. Most of them don't now the laws, and the ones that do will often lie or make stuff up if they don't like OC. Call the city's Attorney, or research the local Codes and Ordinances at the library or online.

And ask here, on this forum. Many of us have already done the research on specific cities, and probably have the answers for you. But you need to narrow it down to a specific city or cities, because the law on carry in NC can be an impossible tangle of legal spaghetti if you're not well-versed in legal interpretation and research.

And even if a business is NOT posted, and a manager asks you to leave, you MUST leave, or you can be charged with "trespassing". There is no "firearms" charge they can use against you, and the infamous "Going Armed to the Terror of the People" does NOT apply to simply carrying a handgun in a holster. But if you are asked to leave anyplace while carrying, just set down your shoping items and politely leave.

But be sure you politely tell the manager that you will post his poicy on a National gun-rights interenet forum for thousands of people to see... ;)

If you are still unsure or afraid to OC, I would suggest finding a local "Open Carry Dinner". We have these all over the state--Raleigh, Jacksonville, Charlotte--so keep watching the Forum, and try to hook up with a local group of OC'ers. These dinners are a lot of fun, and you get to meet some GREAT people, and share info and stories.

And, as always, I remind you that IANAL (I Am Not A Lawyer), so my "advice" is worth EXACTLY as much as you paid for it... :p

Good luck, and keep asking questions!
 

chiefjason

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Jan 29, 2009
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Hickory, NC, ,

stang1988

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Dec 24, 2009
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i open carry now and just wanted to see if there was any place with the laws in black and white. I have been stoped by the cops several times to check me out. The police have been very polite in doing so and usally we end up joking around while waiting for the info to come back . THANK YOU everybody for helping me with my question
 

Dreamer

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Sep 23, 2009
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Grennsboro NC
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There are no laws in NC (or MOST rational FREE states) that tell you what you CAN do. Our legal system in the US is primarily a "prohibitory law" system--laws, statutes, and codes are enacted to tell you what you CAN'T do. Anything that is NOT specifically prohibited by law is legal. That is the reason why ou can't find any laws in NC Statutes that tell you what you CAN do with regards to OC. You will ONLY find codes and statutes that say what you CAN'T do...

Some of the laws ONLY apply to CC, like the bank prohibition. It is legal to OC in a bank, if the bank is not posted to prohibit ALL firearms (but VERY few are not posted...)

NC laws are odd, and some are intentionally vague and leave a LOT of room for interpretation by LEO's in the field. Thsi is because almost ALL of the NC firearms laws are based on "Jim Crow" laws that were enacted to prevent recently freed blacks from arming themselves against hostile gangs of whites after the Civil War. For some strange reason, these covertly racist laws have been allowed to stand on the books for over 100 years...

It's good to hear that the few encounters you've had with LEO's have been cordial and polite. I have yet to have an "official" encounter with an LEO. I've walked right by dozen of cruisers and Police and Deputies on foot in the last several months and never had a question asked. Maybe I'm lucky, or maybe I just look like someone they think SHOULD be carrying, I don't know...

Good luck in the future, and keep carrying!

But you STILL haven't told us where you are, and after your report of the cordial LEO encounters you've had, I'm really curious...
 

annie oakley

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Jan 18, 2010
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Mike wrote:
stang1988 wrote:
Does anyone know were I can find laws regaurding open carry for North Carolina. I can find the laws for ccw but not for open carry
There no statute banning open carry so it is legal. There is no law rto look for in otherwords - however see State v. Kerner where the NC S. Ct. said the state cannot require a permit to opopen carry because open carry is constitutionally protected.

Dang it, wish I'd seen this answer a few seconds ago!
 
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