Ignorance of the Law Is No Excuse Unless you work in law enforcement', Radley Balko

http://reason.com/archives/2010/08/02/ignorance-of-the-law-is-no-exc/

EXCERPT said:

That's the standard line motorists hear when they say they weren't aware of the speed limit, or gun owners hear when they say didn't know about the gun laws in the jurisdiction they happened to get arrested in. Yet that ignorance is pretty understandable in an America where just about everything is being criminalized. At the federal level alone there are now more than 4,500 separate crimes, and that's not counting the massive regulatory code, violations of which also can sometimes be punished with criminal charges.[My emphasis]

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BEEP-BEEP-BEEP...WARNING NOT OPEN CARRY RELATED!!!!!

But then, I suppose nothing will happen to you since you didn't know the rules and are a self appointed topic COP. Not one mention of open carry or even a firearm for that matter.

OC is certainly relevant to the article. OC has been treated as criminal even where it actually is not even "illegal." And those "mistakes" are just the victim's darn bad luck, far as the system is concerned.

This is very much on topic.

rodbender said:

BEEP-BEEP-BEEP...WARNING NOT OPEN CARRY RELATED!!!!!

But then, I suppose nothing will happen to you since you didn't know the rules and are a self appointed topic COP. Not one mention of open carry or even a firearm for that matter.

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If this is off topic then so is the mentioning of guns on this forum.

Have you ever read of one bad encounter on this forum where a LEO... didn't know the law????

This article is related to bad officers, bad assistant DAs, and certainly bad court precedence. Not open carry or firearms. While it is true that open carriers are subjected to this kind of treatment, this article is more in line with recording of police officers in the course of their duties, not open carry or firearms.

I would not and do not say anything about what topics are written about on this forum. But.....when a self appointed topic cop post an article that does not mention open carry or even firearms.....I couldn't help myself.

I do bring obvious spam to the attention of the owners (via PM with a link) and that is the extent of my involvement with policing. If anyone wants to PM John or Mike about off topic posts, get after it. Other than that you should keep your mouth shut. IT'S NOT YOUR FORUM TO WASTE THE BANDWITH ON.

my .02

Myob!

rodbender said:

IT'S NOT YOUR FORUM TO WASTE THE BANDWITH ON. my .02

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Heh heh heh. PM the administrator, that's "Private Message", with your private problem. 40% of the posts in this thread are from one wastrel complaining about waste.

The administrator knows that he can delete or lock my posts and has done so many times and has censured me many times. MYOB!

Doug Huffman said:

Heh heh heh. PM the administrator, that's "Private Message", with your private problem. 40% of the posts in this thread are from one wastrel complaining about waste.

The administrator knows that he can delete or lock my posts and has done so many times and has censured me many times. MYOB!

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If I post, this thread has a higher chance of being locked. lol

Open carriers...:

...Encounter law enforcement officers who are ignorant of the law, unclear as to the details of the law, and some who misapply the law.

...promote knowing and obeying all laws related to owning and carrying firearms.

...do carry recording devices, audio and video, and should know the laws of their state relating to using them.

...should understand they need to be prepared for bad things to happen.

Sounds like the topics in the opinion piece provide learning points for open carriers.

But, that's just my opinion...

RussP said:

But, that's just my opinion...

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And just like a....well, everybody's got one.

I am leaving the thread because the article in the original post does discuss an interesting legal point. The bickering and back and forth though make it clear that there is no further value in allowing the thread to continue so I am closing it.


John