Southpawtact
New member
I'm new to open carry and have a quick question. If you get pulled over by the police, are you obligated to tell them that you are armed? If so, when would you tell them?
Thanks in advance.
Thanks in advance.
Nope, no KRS that says you must inform the officer you are armed. If he asks you and you lie, that may be an offense (no idea). Some here will say that informing the officer is simply a professional courtesy, others will say it's none of the officer's business. I tend to fall into the latter. I think most here believe or acknowledge that when the officer runs your plates, he knows that you have a CCDW (if that's the case).
Nope, no KRS that says you must inform the officer you are armed. If he asks you and you lie, that may be an offense (no idea). Some here will say that informing the officer is simply a professional courtesy, others will say it's none of the officer's business. I tend to fall into the latter. I think most here believe or acknowledge that when the officer runs your plates, he knows that you have a CCDW (if that's the case).
It's not when he runs your plates but when he checks your operators license or state issued identification that the officer knows wether you hold a CCDW license. Think about it, if I'm driving my Mom's car, the plates won't tell anything about me.
The first part of your post is wrong.
When an LEO (and I am one) runs your registration plate through LINK (the state computer system that houses the information), the driver's license of the REGISTERED OWNER of the car is automatically retuned with the registration plate information.
WOW, I didn't realize that LINK was that intelligent. I knew that the license plate would give information to the registered owner of the vehicle but I didn't know that LINK knew exactly who was driving the vehicle at that moment. I understand your point as an officer of the law, you must assume, until otherwise investigated, that the driver is the registered owner of the vehicle. MY ONLY POINT WAS, AND STILL IS, THAT THE LICENSE PLATE (registration) DOES NOT IDENTIFY THE DRIVER. [ When and if LINK is ever able to indentify who is driving a particular vehicle .....I shall quit driving. ]
I sincerely thank you and respect you, aegre_mentis, for your service as a Law Enforcement Officer and for what you endure each and every day in keeping this a more safe place for all of us. Carry on.
Undertaker I read this differently than you. I think aegre_mentis means that if he is following a vehicle and runs the plate through LINK, the registered owner and drivers license of the registered owner, if they have one, comes up on the screen. I don't believe he meant the drivers info comes up. I believe that will give him an advantage when he approaches the car and gets the license of the driver. He then knows if it's the owner driving and if not he can now ask questions to determine if the operator has permission to drive the vehicle.
just a personal thought,
setting aside the right to or not to inform you are armed, is it not respectful and or a good idea to inform the LEO when stoped that you are lawfully armed and carrying?
i really want your imput on this..
thanks
added note.... when i took the CCDW (which i never sent off for the card) i remember this being one of the topics, and informing LEO at the time of stop was addressed as yes it is a good idea before giving DL/RGST
And this is a good idea for respect. Do I owe this officer respect? If he takes my weapon from me because I informed, is that respect. When he runs the serial number of my weapon and it's retained in the data bank that ran this information, is he giving me respect? When does the respect come back to me? This is why I don't inform. I don't offer any information more than I am required to. No disrespect, just understanding the rules and playing by the same ones the officer does.
OK, I'm with you and certainly not trying to play devil's advocate. I was just trying to put an emphasis on Langzaiguy's reply that said when the LEO runs your plates he knows if you if you have a CCDW license. I thought we were discussing the individual in question, not the automobile. My apologies on misunderstanding aegri_mentis's reply.
I find this whole idea of informing out of respect for the officer to be a red herring. Refusing to give up your rights is not disrespect. If it is, then maybe we should allow them to search our car out of respect, or search our home out of respect. Maybe we should respect them so much that we invite them into our bedroom and offer to let them rummage around in our wives' underwear. Opinions given in a CCDW class are no more valid than opinions at the local bar. Instructor's opinions are not vetted by the dept of criminal justice and the CCDW manual contains the law, not a compilation of instructors opinions. If this reasoning becomes commonplace, soon the police will assume (or claim) that they are being disrespected every time anyone asserts any right. Remaining silent=disrespect. Want a lawyer=disrespect. Claim to be innocent=disrespect. Offer a alibi=disrespect. Refuse to confess quilt=disrespect. Where does this end? Stand up and demand you rights.
Beware the evil paradigm of consideration ("respect"), expectation, then requirement.
I'm new to open carry and have a quick question. If you get pulled over by the police, are you obligated to tell them that you are armed? If so, when would you tell them?
Thanks in advance.
It depends upon the State. I won't tell in Tennessee because there is no requiring the cop be informed. If they ask for the carry permit you're supposed to show it under State law.
All the cops know who I am, they've got a list of my employers, my work history, and cars with tag #'s.