Positive LEO encounter in Louisa County

I was involved in a car accident today. An out of state driver ran a stop sign and collided with me. Luckily, it was a glancing blow and everyone is okay. I'm just hoping that my car will be repairable. Airbags are LOUD!

Anyhow, I gave my 'papers' to the cop and went to my car. He came up to me a bit later and I showed him my CHP and told him there was a gun in the car. He just smiled and said he already knew that because the dispatcher told him of my CHP. He didn't even look at my permit. A while later the tow truck showed up and I told him that I had to get my gun from the car. I calmy stated that I was going to open carry and get the rest of my stuff from the car. I was not angry with the other driver and had been very calm throughout. The cop thanked me and was very accommodating. The other cop didn't even say one word when I carried.

Another thing to keep in mind. When you are in an accident, say NOTHING to the police. When asked, I told the cop that I was pretty shaken up and didn't want to make a statement right then. He looked at me funny and then walked away. The other driver then admitted that he didn't see the stop sign. Your first instinct is to say that it was your fault. Turns out it was not my fault at all. Thankfully no one was injured. In reality I was WAS very shaken up. If you start to babble to the police, you may well implicate yourself without thinking and later when you realize it wasn't your fault, it's too late. Always exercise your constitutional rights.

Glad to hear you are OK. Hope your car is, too.

I wish you had not titled this a "positive" LEO encounter, but instead noted that it was a normal one. (Or, for the pessimists out there, what a normal encounter should be.)

Sounds like the tow truck driver was OK with OC, too.

Now a question: you say you told the cop there was a gun in the car, and then when all the paperwork was finished you went and got your handgun from your car. Were you OCing before the crash and took it off after the impact, or was it somewhere besides on your hip to begin with? (Yes, I'm fishing for someone who puts their handgun on the seat or on the dashboard to comment on where they found it after the impact, and how long it took them to find it.)

stay safe.

NinjaRider said:

[...]
Another thing to keep in mind. When you are in an accident, say NOTHING to the police. When asked, I told the cop that I was pretty shaken up and didn't want to make a statement right then. He looked at me funny and then walked away. The other driver then admitted that he didn't see the stop sign. Your first instinct is to say that it was your fault. Turns out it was not my fault at all. Thankfully no one was injured. In reality I was WAS very shaken up. If you start to babble to the police, you may well implicate yourself without thinking and later when you realize it wasn't your fault, it's too late. Always exercise your constitutional rights.

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(Emphasis added.)

Well said. Well done.

Most people allow the adrenaline to get the better of them. You handled the situation very well. I am impressed.

I'm Fully With Skid

WTH?

ArmedBarrister said it well when he quoted your text "Don't say anything" above. Don't say anything. That means don't say anything about your permit status or whether you have a gun in your vehicle.

It's none of their d**n business.

Since we're in Virginia and you had your firearm secured in a container - It was SECURED in a closed container, right? - then there is no permit requirement... but I question the logic in arming yourself AFTER a collision.

More on the encounter

Logic with open carrying after the accident? I sure as hell was not going to leave my .45 in the car when the tow truck took it away. I had nowhere else to safely store it, so it went on my hip. Also, I was shaking so badly that I could hardly get my permit out. I wanted to show the cop that I was being above board and cooperative. Did I have to show my permit? Perhaps not, but I challenge anyone to think straight after something like that. It was a highly stressful situation and it's better to let the cops know that you are legally armed so that they don't have the extra concern of someone upset and full of adrenaline of possibly having a gun handy. When you let them know without them having to ask, it helps keep things calmer. Plus, you tend to chatter during times like this, better to focus on something perfectly legal than the incident on hand.

My gun was in the center console when the accident occurred. Like I said above, since my car was being taken out of my direct supervision, I had to secure my firearm. The most secure place was on my person. If you were a cop and saw someone getting a gun out of their car after an accident and they hadn't said anything before hand, what would YOU think?

In the past, I attended a conference where a lawyer talked about keeping your mouth shut after an accident. I never forgot that advice. @ ArmedBarrister. Thank you!

sounds like you did fine man. good job keeping your wits immediately after and taking time to gather your thoughts!

Hey, Wylde -

What's with the WTH after saying you are "with me"? I never said anything that should have prompted a WTH?

All I did was ask where his gun was before the accident. In case anybody can't figure it out I was headed towards a comment about it being safer and more secure (as in less apt to fly around) if it's attached to you than if it's somewhere else. And yes, having it on the hip from the beginning saves the necessity (I agree that it probably would be a necessity) of informing the cop you are retrieving it, given the circumstances.

Other than not having the gun in a holster on his side I think the OP did quite well in dealing with the situation. As initially mentioned, I do take umbrage at calling it a "positive" encounter as opposed to a "normal" encounter. Beyond that I'm perfectly OK with the OP and how he handled things.

stay safe.

skidmark said:

What's with the WTH after saying you are "with me"? I never said anything that should have prompted a WTH?

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No, you didn't. The OP did. I agreed with your sentiments and tacked my own "WTH" onto it.

All in all, I guess it was an "uneventful" encounter, but I did not particularly read in the details too many things which I would personally have done - at all.