imported post
Had a good day overall. I got there a little early, 9ish.
I managed to avoid any 12031(e) checks while safely surrounded by 3 or 4 other OCers. i had to leave a little early as it is quite a drive from San Diego to Rosamond.
I left shortly after 1:00 p.m.
On my way back to my car, I stopped and spoke with the Captain for a few minutes as she asked "Headed Home already?" as I was walking in the opposite direction from the bulk of the Calguns crew. I told her I had a long drive back to Rosamond, and thanked her for her cooperation. She was very cordial. She had another officer with her and he was reasonably cordial too. In the three minutes or so that we talked they didn't 12031(e) check me.
However, as soon as I started walking away from the Captain, two uniformed officers "scurried" accros the walkway to intercept me. I wasn't 30 feet from where the Captain and I had been talking. I didn't even have time to turn on my recorder.
It went as follows:
Officer 1: "We're gonna have to ask you if we can examine your weapon."
Me: "I don't consent to any searches, but I will comply if you demand me to."
Officer 1: "Great, please keep your hands in front of you and away from the weapon."
Officer 1 then removed my weapon and quickly checked it, removing the magazine and checking the chamber asking "What kind of gun is this?" before returning it to its holster.
I responded, "It's a Hi-Point C9."
He then said "Thanks, have a nice day." and proceeded down the walkway with his female partner who had remained silent through the entire process.
Then I proceed to walk down the walkway again going back towards the Pelican. I got another 30 feet of so and another set of officers spotted me all alone and pounced. With grins on their faces like "Oh boy we caught another one without the rest of the pack present!" As they approached I said "What? Not again?" and One of them asked if I had been checked already. I said "Yeah, by those two right over there!" and pointed at the two officers walking away. He said "Have a nice day then!" and proceeded to walk away with his partner.
I made it all the way to my car without further incident.
As for not having my recorder turned on. Well #%$# happens.
Just my stupid oversight. I knew that I was with Grammaton76 for the majority of the day, and as he was videotaping I got sloppy and thought I would save my battery for a bit, then forgot to start it back up when I left the area being recorded.
I honestly believe that they targeted me because I was alone. The only other person who I saw e-checked was a guy who had just crossed the street ahead of us as the crossing light changed. He was alone on the other side of the street when they pounced into action.
I was alone, away from the comfort and protection of the herd, easily singled out and targeted as prey.
I really wasn't worried about being roughed up, or thrown to the ground and cuffed, as I was only about 30 feet from the Captain and maybe 60 feet from the "Grassy Knoll" where the rest of the CalGuns crew were gathering.