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Unicorn: Defintion of the Term

Citizen

Founder's Club Member
Joined
Nov 15, 2006
Messages
18,269
Location
Fairfax Co., VA
Recently, reported in the Washington sub-forum, a genuine unicorn was discovered, and the term was correctly used to describe the person. But, that is the first correct usage of the term I've seen in a long while. Almost always the term is mis-used. And, I usually end up clearing up the misunderstanding (and false report of a unicorn sighting).

So, I decided to post this thread. Hoping to clear things up.


Unicorn. noun. An open-carrier who did not discover the legality of OC through a gun rights group or OCDO. This person found out OC was legal on his own, and just decided to start OCing. In the early days of OCDO, such a person was judged to be very rare. About as rare as a unicorn.

This explanation was posted in the early days by one of the original OCDO members, username Longwatch.

A unicorn is not just any other OCer not known to the spotter.

A special sub-species of unicorn lives in Arizona where OC was not unheard of before OCDO. Also, there are a few unicorns right here on OCDO. I believe Sonora Rebel is one. Some of these people were OCing as far back as the 1970's--well before OCDO.
 
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OC for ME

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 6, 2010
Messages
12,452
Location
White Oak Plantation
Well, I guess the tern or 'name' is what is important today. Back in my youth we did not call it 'open carry' we called it just plain old boring carrying a gun.
 

carracer

Regular Member
Joined
Sep 28, 2008
Messages
1,108
Location
Nampa, Idaho, USA
I learned open carry was legal in Idaho in about 1985. The only ones I saw were the occasional cowboy. I only started to open carry after finding this site.
 

thebigsd

Founder's Club Member
Joined
Mar 23, 2010
Messages
3,535
Location
Quarryville, PA
I was a unicorn. I discovered open carry on my own. In fact, I was buying some ammo at a Walmart when Another customer came up and asked if I knew about VCDL and that's how I became a VCDL member and found out about this site.
 

Freedom1Man

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 14, 2012
Messages
4,462
Location
Greater Eastside Washington
I was a unicorn. I discovered open carry on my own. In fact, I was buying some ammo at a Walmart when Another customer came up and asked if I knew about VCDL and that's how I became a VCDL member and found out about this site.

I learned about this site AFTER I started openly carrying.

I joined after I saw the cop who was arresting me for OC had this site up on his patrol car computer.
 

MAC702

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Jul 31, 2011
Messages
6,331
Location
Nevada
Same here. I've been OC'ing for 20 years. I discovered this forum last year.

It has definitely helped educate me in a few areas, especially on the exact laws for all the states I frequent. I discovered NV is actually more free than I originally thought. Now, I also make sure all my students don't get the same misinformation about OC that I was taught many years ago.
 

Citizen

Founder's Club Member
Joined
Nov 15, 2006
Messages
18,269
Location
Fairfax Co., VA
I learned about this site AFTER I started openly carrying.

I joined after I saw the cop who was arresting me for OC had this site up on his patrol car computer.

That has got to be the most original OCDO discovery story of all time.

We ought to add that to the homepage: Cops promote Open Carry Website to Arrestees! :D
 

OC for ME

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 6, 2010
Messages
12,452
Location
White Oak Plantation
I learned about this site AFTER I started openly carrying.

I joined after I saw the cop who was arresting me for OC had this site up on his patrol car computer.
Was/is the cop assigned to keep tabs on the riff raff? Or, a closet OCer who is not permitted to come out of the closet due to "policy" directives? I'm confident that he "supports the 2A and all, but....."

Either way, he arrested you anyway. So, it is a moot point.
 

eye95

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 6, 2010
Messages
13,524
Location
Fairborn, Ohio, USA
I'd like to hear the rest of the story. "Was arrested" does not necessarily follow "was arresting." That's the nice thing about all the tenses in English: They communicate timing quite nicely. I hope that as the officer "was arresting" the carrier, he looked up OCDO, determined that he was in error, and corrected his actions before the carrier "was arrested."
 
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sudden valley gunner

Regular Member
Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
16,674
Location
Whatcom County
I'd like to hear the rest of the story. "Was arrested" does not necessarily follow "was arresting." That's the nice thing about all the tenses in English: They communicate timing quite nicely. I hope that as the officer "was arresting" the carrier, he looked up OCDO, determined that he was in error, and corrected his actions before the carrier "was arrested."

Disagree, when an officer is arresting you, you are arrested there is no in between phase and long drawn out process of arrest. He may decided to not take you to jail or let you go after realizing he made a mistake which would be interesting to find out more on this story.

I saw a Unicorn this summer , working on trusses three stories up, saw a young man early 20's OC'ing walking up the sidewalk, had my cousin tell him I wanted to talk to him, climbed down, he never heard of OCDO, had researched it found it wasn't illegal and decided to carry.

I was OCing on private property and was determined to do it in more public settings stumbled across OCDO, in researching how much trouble I might get into.
 

OC for ME

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 6, 2010
Messages
12,452
Location
White Oak Plantation
I'd like to hear the rest of the story. "Was arrested" does not necessarily follow "was arresting." That's the nice thing about all the tenses in English: They communicate timing quite nicely. I hope that as the officer "was arresting" the carrier, he looked up OCDO, determined that he was in error, and corrected his actions before the carrier "was arrested."
Very true regarding the use of 'tenses'. However, the post does not indicate that the citizen was not arrested after the process of arresting was initiated. We can only conclude, until more data is made available, that Freedom1Man was in fact arrested. Whether any further state action occurred after the arrest is a different question.

By the way, in the state of Missouri you are arrested when a cop slaps the cuffs on you or you submit to his custody. So, if a cop in Missouri wants to keep you safe, after a SD incident, while he sorts out the situation, and he slaps on the cuffs you are arrested.

Arrest.

544.180. An arrest is made by an actual restraint of the person of the defendant, or by his submission to the custody of the officer, under authority of a warrant or otherwise.
Now, will a court rule that me being restrained for the "safety" of all a illegal arrest? Was this the intent of this statute? Is every physical restraint by a cop a arrest? I do not know. But if I am the victim of a crime and I use force as permitted under statute I would certainly sue the crap out of that cop for slapping me in cuffs. I am not safe while restrained and not able to defend myself. I was illegally arrested.
 

Michigander

Regular Member
Joined
Aug 24, 2007
Messages
4,818
Location
Mulligan's Valley
Warchild is another unicorn.

I like others knew it was legal before coming to this forum, but didn't dare do it until reading posts of others here.

Reading what happened in the earlier days of OCDO, and watching videos, in particular New Hampshire and Virgina come to mind, plus a few others like condition3 in california, I know for me anyway inspired me to stand up to abusive police. I would think I'm not alone in that. And that's probably why unicorns are such a rare breed, apart from AZ and perhaps a few other regions.
 
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Citizen

Founder's Club Member
Joined
Nov 15, 2006
Messages
18,269
Location
Fairfax Co., VA
I'm a unicorn. Started open-carrying in restaurants with VCDL, during the Restaurant Ban period.

Not if you started opening carring with VCDL. Unicorns are people who just up and started OCing on their own after finding out it was legal--no connection to gun rights groups. Such people were judged to be about as rare as unicorns.

The whole point here isn't whether member A or B is or isn't a unicorn, though. The point is to steer back to the meaning of the term so people use the term correctly when posting about sighting another OCer in public. Do let us know if you are a unicorn (and whether you have any virgins following you :).) Just please use the term more or less correctly.

Oh, hang it. Use the term however you want. :p
 

F350

Regular Member
Joined
Mar 22, 2012
Messages
941
Location
The High Plains of Wyoming
A buddy and I started doing some OCing in Indiana in the 70s, not only was there no OCDO there wasn't even an internet. In talking to some cops we learned the Indiana permit was NOT a concealed carry license, it was a license to carry for personal protection and did not stipulate method.
 

Freedom1Man

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 14, 2012
Messages
4,462
Location
Greater Eastside Washington
A buddy and I started doing some OCing in Indiana in the 70s, not only was there no OCDO there wasn't even an internet. In talking to some cops we learned the Indiana permit was NOT a concealed carry license, it was a license to carry for personal protection and did not stipulate method.

You need permission to defend yourself in Indiana?!
 
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