Open carry on a motorcycle

yes
keep your cpl with you since on a vehicle, regardless of what type, you are considered 'concealed'

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Beerme wrote:

......., regardless of what type, you are considered 'concealed'

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(2) A person shall not carry a pistol concealed on or about his or her person, or, whether concealed or otherwise, in a vehicle operated or occupied by the person, except in his or her dwelling house, place of business, or on other land possessed by the person, without a license to carry the pistol as provided by law and if licensed, shall not carry the pistol in a place or manner inconsistent with any restrictions upon such license.

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Yes, you can oc on a motorcycle with cpl, no problem. 100% legal, no gray area.

however, the following quote is not true.


malignity wrote:

Beerme wrote:

......., regardless of what type, you are considered 'concealed'

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A pistol in a vehicle is not necessarily physically or legally concealed. The law recognizes that without cpl it would be illegal to carry a pistol "concealed or otherwise" in a vehicle. "otherwise" would be any method of carry that is not concealed. The law recognizes that it is in fact possible to carry a pistol that is not concealed in a vehicle. ie: a pistol on your car dashboard, or plastered to the rear window of your truck would not necessarily be concealed, although still illegal without cpl.

(2) A person shall not carry a pistol concealed on or about his or her person, or, whether concealed or otherwise, in a vehicle operated or occupied by the person, except in his or her dwelling house, place of business, or on other land possessed by the person, without a license to carry the pistol as provided by law and if licensed, shall not carry the pistol in a place or manner inconsistent with any restrictions upon such license.

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Back to the question of open carry on motorcycle. We have beat this horse to death many times, but the consensus is that while appearing to be technically legal, according to the statute, there has been no clear court case that definitively says yes or no. The risk is not worth the penalty, so it is unwise to open carry on a motorcycle without cpl. There was a court case that decided that a known felon who had a pistol concealed under the seat/gas tank of his motorcycle did violate the statute because the pistol was "within the area of" the motorcycle. Some have interpreted this to mean that a pistol anywhere near a motorcycle is in violation of the statute. Here is how i read it. If you draw a box on a sheet of paper, and want to calculate "the area of" the box, you would multiply L x W. That formula would cover the area within the box. Anything outside of that box would not be considered within the area of the box. This is like 6th grade geometry.

The reason it most likely IS legal to oc on a motorcycle without cpl is that the law states that a pistol cannot be carried "IN A VEHICLE" (without cpl) and neither you nor the pistol is in a vehicle when you oc on a motorcycle. If oc on a motorcycle is not permissible, then oc on a horse or bicycle would fall into the same category. Sgt Deasy of the MSP wrote a great letter with his opinion of how oc on a motorcycle without cpl would not violate the statute. Furthermore....the legislature was abundantly clear that you cannot carry a loaded long gun "in or upon" a vehicle. By not using the phrase "in or upon" a vehicle in regards to pistols, it seems they were in fact giving permission to oc on a motorcycle, bicycle, horse etc.

My opinion is that while it is almost certainly permissible to oc on a motorcycle without a cpl, it is unwise to do so.

Oc on a motorcycle with CPL = Perfectly legal, no gray area!

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