FBI nieghbor - Wyatt Earp or Just Careful?

[Zach S]

i open carry if i'm working in the backyard simply because the OWB holster is much more comfortable that the IWB one, especially when shovelling or raking etc. the neighbors to the side and behind the house can see me but neither has ever mentioned anything. i don't open carry in the front yard where there is a lot of traffic driving by. i do the IWB concealed thing in that case. open carrying in the yard is just an issue of comfort for me.

Bobby

I also open carry when working outside, my G17 is my official "yard gun." I dont have a lot of traffic on my road (a somewhat private dead end). To the best of my knowledge, its never been a big deal. I get along with the neighbors I know, and when folks come to read the water or electric meter, they dont seem to care or even notice. They normally seem more concerned about my german shepherd/who knows what mutt.

Anywhere else that's legal, I conceal a 1911.

 

[GunGoBoom]

Reasons I can think of:

1. It's not easy to conceal, esp. in summer, what with some sort of covering garment required to conceal. It's a pain in the butt; open carry is not. Furthermore, certain CC methods require different & expensive holsters, and the only one he may be able to afford at this time is the bureau-issued one.

2. You lose a smidge of draw time, and thus a smidge of tactical advantage, should you need your gun, if you are concealed rather than open. With some CC methods, you lose several fractions of a second of draw time.

3. He views it as a civic duty to carry openly for deterrent purposes, to help the public in general that he is around, and that he is willing to sacrifice the tactical advantage of covert-ness in order to help the public with this deterrent effect that known law enforcement present has on marginal bad guys.

4. Bravada. He feels like a studmuffin letting the world know, and likes the fact that it invites questions, so he can talk about and possibly brag about being in. Perhaps he's new and justifiably proud of getting accepted and passing training.

Perhaps others.....

1-4 must be weighed against the mentioned loss of advantage that open carry saddles the user with, since the BG then know who is and isn't armed (to that extent at least), and thus who to take out first. This individual apparently weighs one or more of items 1-4 above more heavily than this countervailing reason.

My question is, does he use a retention holster!?

 

[Michael Courtney]

There are lots of possible motives to open carry. The crime rate in our neighborhood did a nosedive when I began carrying openly several years ago. Concealed carry would not have had the same effect.

If his wife is attractive or has been the victim of unwanted sexual advances, she may well have asked him to carry openly and play up the fact that he is an FBI agent to scare off unwanted advances and suggest the possibility that she is carrying also.

Michael Courtney

 

[Skyviking]

I seriously doubt that an FBI agent would walk around his house/yard, let alone the neighborhood, carrying openly. Find out his name, then call the Bureau and ask for him. I think you'll find out there isn't any such person, but I've been wrong before.

 

[callgood]

Old J. Edgar was hit while his limo was turning left one time. He then decreed that all turns had to go around the block to the right when he was in his limo.

See the book "No Left Turns" by someone who's name I can't remember which was a tell all book by a retired agent.

Yep. I had that book years ago. I loaned it out and didn't get it back. I recently read it was out of print and bringing big bucks on the internet. It figures, probably the 2nd book I ever loaned!

The book was hilarious. Hoover went down to Quantico once while the new recruits were qualifying/practicing firearms. As he left he turned to the guy in charge and said, "Get rid of the pinhead." The guy was too intimidated to ask ***, so he and his staff went through the lockers and checked hat sizes (late 50s-early 60's). They washed out the guy with the smallest hat size. Some unfortunate guy probably wondered for a long time why he got the ax. Sort of funny. Sort of not.

 

[Michael Courtney]

I seriously doubt that an FBI agent would walk around his house/yard, let alone the neighborhood, carrying openly. Find out his name, then call the Bureau and ask for him. I think you'll find out there isn't any such person, but I've been wrong before.

The FBI is a very large government bureaucracy. Failing to confirm that a person works at any similarly sized government bureaucracy with a couple of phone calls is far from conclusive evidence that the person doesn't really work for the bureau.

Michael Courtney

 

[Colt]

Met the neighbor

Finally met my neighbor, Mike.

Seems like a very nice guy. We talked about or jobs, neighborhood, community, and eventually guns.

He shared with me his motivation for open carry, which is two-fold. First, the comfort aspect, as some speculated on this thread. Everyone in the neighborhood (which is a big "loop") knows he's FBI, so open carrying for comfort's sake isn't going to spook anyone into calling the cops. Second, he's not usually undercover. The type people he generally puts away are the type that could find out who he is and where he lives without too much effort. Given that he wouldn't be particularly hard to locate, the people aiming to do him or his family harm would expect him to know this, and to be carrying for that very reason. So there's no point in concealed carry, as it would only slow him down if the SHTF. He also said he answers the door with pistol in hand, so don't be alarmed when I stop by.

Made sense to me, and satisfied my curiousity. I'm glad I made his acquaintance, and I'm sure we'll get along just fine.

 

[countertop]

I seriously doubt that an FBI agent would walk around his house/yard, let alone the neighborhood, carrying openly. Find out his name, then call the Bureau and ask for him. I think you'll find out there isn't any such person, but I've been wrong before

Uh, my neighbor does here in Fairfax, Virginia.

 

[britinaz]

If you simply start carrying openly in your neighborhood yourself, it might become a fashion statement. If enough of your neighbors do it, you might just scare the crooks away.

Just Maybe!

 

[Aguila Blanca]

I didn't realize I had to provide proof and background on every assertion I make in my posts.

I can't say he open carries 24/7 wherever he goes.

But you DID say that:

The guy carries a sidearm, unconcealed, 24X7.

In my original post, I'm very clear that I don't have a problem with him carrying open. I also mentioned that I hope he turns out to be a gun enthusiast, someone with which to hit the range, talk shop, etc..

My question was why he'd elect to open carry.

Don't count on him being pro-gun. Some FBI guys are, some are neutral, and some are very anti. Bottom line is, he carries because he's a federal LEO and considered to be on-call 24/7, even though "off duty." Why carry open? Maybe because raking leaves in a suit is both impractical and uncomfortable.

 

[Bob F.]

Back in the day (i.e.: 22+ yrs ago) I had occassion to ask Agent what brand of holster he had the revo in? " I don't know, it's what the agency issued". It was a nice pancake but he had no interest. His gun was just a tool. Maybe that's why the Feds lose so many firearms.

Stay safe.
Bob

 

[RyanM]

Just to clarify PA gun laws, it is legal to carry unconcealed without a license, but only if you stay on foot. With a license, you can carry almost anydangplace you want, including churches, public schools, and bars. Only places where firearms are actually illegal are courthouses (in a couple counties, only the judge's chambers, DA's office, and courtroom can be marked no firearms), post offices, jails, state parks, and federal property. And Philly, unless you have a license, as noted before.

(a) Offense defined.--Any person who carries a firearm in any vehicle or any person who carries a firearm concealed on or about his person, except in his place of abode or fixed place of business, without a valid and lawfully issued license under this chapter commits a felony of the third degree.

 

[Colt]

Hawk

You said

Don't count on him being pro-gun. Some FBI guys are, some are neutral, and some are very anti. Bottom line is, he carries because he's a federal LEO and considered to be on-call 24/7, even though "off duty." Why carry open? Maybe because raking leaves in a suit is both impractical and uncomfortable.

It's a good idea to read an entire thread before posting comments on the early posts withing the thread. It seems you are commenting on things that have long-since been addressed by other members and myself.

But thanks for the input.

 

[Blue Jays]

Hi Rudolf-

"...If you simply start carrying openly in your neighborhood yourself, it might become a fashion statement. If enough of your neighbors do it, you might just scare the crooks away..."

You can have anything you want at Alice's Restaurant.

~ Blue Jays ~

 

[CAPTAIN MIKE]

Two Suggestions

1. Get to know the guy as an individual. Probably a decent sort, given his occupation. Assume you have more in common than an interest in firearms.
Invite him shooting sometime.

2. You & the wife should invite he and his wife to dinner, then to the range.

 

[bearmgc]

FBI guys that I've met have been very low key, polite, people. In regular clothes, they'd least likely be the guys I would guess were in the profession.
My understanding is they basically are on duty 24/7. I would guess they wear their firearms like another skin. I would have no problem with exposed carry. And maybe it does actually deter crime.

 

[Thin Black Line]

I still think of the FBI as "College boys with guns", but they've come a LONG way since the days of J. Edgar Hoover

Yes, they are. And, they all now have to qualify on the MP5.

 

[Sleuth]

I came to this thread late, but for 27 years I was a Federal Agent. I doubt my neighbors ever knew, but on occasion I would part the 'G-ride' (Government car) in the driveway, and carry my jacket over my arm into the house. I was never 'made' on the job, but I did very little undercover work (we had specialists who did that).

Please, be nice to your new neighbor. Don't ask him how he feels about it when the FBI screws up, we all do from time to time. Don't ask him to justify what other agents, or agencies, have done. Don't expect him to be anything more than a college educated government worker, with his own set of likes, dislikes, and preferences. Even FBI agents are just human! And, if you have a need for law enforcement assistance, unless it is a life or death matter, call the locals. He has no jurisdiction on local crimes.

Of course, some of us "Feds" are died in the wool gun enthusiasts!

 

[hiwayjose]

well, you can visit him at his office and greet him "I have a gun"

 

[Bane]

My only question is what was he caring and is it a department issued weapon?