Open carry story

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It's only considered trespassing if you refuse to leave after being asked to do so. He did just that. He did nothing illegal, and there is no reason whatsoever for the trial court to find him guilty of anything. If so, he needs to lawyer up and appeal.
 
Definitely something I'll be watching closely. If that happened here in VA, there'd be a huge uproar from the VCDL.

Sounds to me like they couldn't really come up with anything, and slapped that on you to save face at the time. I doubt it would hold up in court.

Kinda like getting pulled over so they can 'check you out' and do the proverbial kick-the-taillight thing.

BTW very brave (stupid?) thing to do at the age of 19. Definitely testing the law there.
 
rmhymel: It's only considered trespassing if you refuse to leave after being asked to do so. He did just that. He did nothing illegal, and there is no reason whatsoever for the trial court to find him guilty of anything. If so, he needs to lawyer up and appeal.
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+1

Get a Lawyer Dude, Don't trust the Free one as far as you can flick them.
 
Mr Comfortador,
Um, hate to say it, but if what you wrote is accurate, above in your posting, looks like you said gave him the keys. Would those be the keys to your vehicle?
If so, thats pretty much looks like implied consent to a search.
.
Lawyering up might be a grand idea right about now.
I am not a lawyer, please take my thoughts above as , just that, my thoughts on the subject.
 
1. Get a lawyer. Try real hard to get a GOOD lawyer.

2. File FOIA requests for all records of the incident; copies of the call to the police, all tapes/recordings of the incident, all the paperwork, etc.

3. Get a digital pocket size recorder NOW. They may well try this stunt again, you need to get as much on record as possible.

4. If you can actually prove/demonstrate that they spent 45 minutes trying to figure out a charge, it will go a long way towards proving that they are acting with malicious intent under color of law.

5. See #1.
 
PavePusher wrote,
1. Get a lawyer. Try real hard to get a GOOD lawyer.

2. File FOIA requests for all records of the incident; copies of the call to the police, all tapes/recordings of the incident, all the paperwork, etc.

3. Get a digital pocket size recorder NOW. They may well try this stunt again, you need to get as much on record as possible.

4. If you can actually prove/demonstrate that they spent 45 minutes trying to figure out a charge, it will go a long way towards proving that they are acting with malicious intent under color of law.

5. See #1.
Click to expand...

I like your thinking.

Let's just say, for the sake of argument, that evidence from #3 is admissible. How could you actually pull it off without having the evidence destroyed after the cops strip you and throw you in the tank? I'm not downing the idea. I'm just trying to think it through before I go out and buy a digital voice recorder to carry around. What the heck, I'm going to buy one anyway.
 
I'm no legal scholar, but it appears that in Louisiana, it is a crime if someone has a phobia about guns (as long as they call it *reasonable*) and you happen to be doing something otherwise legal that triggers their phobia.

For instance, about half the people that most folks know/come into contact with on a daily basis, are either irresponsible or below 100 IQ. So our man on the street, John Q. Public, sees someone he doesn't know with a firearm in a densely populated place. He figures that there is an even chance this guy is a yahoo who will be careless or stupid with that gun, or worse, a bad guy with bad intent on his mind. JQ Public is not going to risk his neck by checking it out in person - no, he will summon people who get paid to risk their necks for a living... the police. He will let THEM check it out.

Not defending that at all... just pointing out, that's the way it is in public company these days and whining about it or worse, diseregarding it, is not going to solve anything.

Sorry for your troubles, dude. Hope the charges get dropped.
 
Very simply, and strongly, the OP needs a GOOD lawyer.

You are an adult. This WILL go on your record. It WILL show up forever when you apply for a job. It WILL cost you some jobs.

It appears that you entered into this largely unprepared. You agreed to a search of your car by giving them the keys. You were not fully conversant with the laws. You pushed people's buttons without being prepared for the full battle.

Now you are in it. Your only goal is to get out of it.

If you don't have a really good lawyer, you are in a gunfight without a gun.

This is serious business, and what you *think* should happen (dismiss the case, etc.) doesn't matter one bit.

Sorry to sound like a Dutch Uncle, but you need to work hard to get out of this hole you have dug.
 
It doesn't matter if you are right, or not. It matters if you win.

You need a lawyer. And you need to walk into that courtroom with ALL of the materials printed out, and rapidly accessible.

You also need to see if that parish/city has a law against open carry.
 
If you have not got the message yet, from your posts it appears you are not approaching this seriously enough. You need to get a lawyer and prepare for war. I do not know or impugn your intentions. Neither do I agree with your arrest based on what you told us. Still, I have to say this fiasco has fail written all over it. Get serious and get a lawyer.
 
What ercs me is that the police dont know there own state laws!!
When you go to court if they give you an opertunity to make any remarks
I would say that the arresting officer needs to conduct a class, 2 a year to the department on the handgun laws of the state!
 
Sheesh. If someone here were to argue with me that open carry was illegal, I might say something like, “Look, I’m the one with the gun here, so trust me, I know what the laws are. After all, I wouldn’t just strap a gun on my belt without knowing what the laws are”.

After reading this I guess that logic is all shot to hell.
 
I would also get a picture of the dinky no-carry sign on the seldom-used door. It may or may not help in your case, but maybe it can later be used to force a law change to require a certain sized sign on a main entrance. Get a good lawyer and fight it as much as you can. You might even come out on top and be able to nail the cops for harrassment because they took forever and simply trumped up a charge. That law stinks as being one to nail people they can't get on anything else.
 
I would also get a picture of the dinky no-carry sign on the seldom-used door.
Click to expand...

Get a picture of both the sign and one from a distance showing where it is and relative size.
 
You described what happened, but you didn't describe what the police reports say. You say the manager spoke rudely. The police report might say that the manager said you and he had a heated argument and you put him in fear for his life. Don't let yourself get steamrolled. You need a lawyer now.
 
A good lawyer may very well cost up to $5000, but that is a small amount if you consider the consequences of being found guilty. In addition there is the matter of getting your firearms returned to you.

I have a cousin who is a retired LEO from a major city. He had a good reason to use his gun (he did not shoot anyone) and so far has spent about $10,000 on lawyer fees, and will sue the agency involved.

It is worthy to note that it may be legal, but unwise to open carry in a lot of places. To do it "Just because I can." may not be much comfort after all the legal ramifications are over.

Best,
Jerry
 
JerryM: I doubt their are many (if any) OC'ers or people interested in OC that have not "Fully" researched their local laws on such.

In Fact It's been proven in many instances that OC'ers know more about Local Firearms Laws than the Local Police do, something I think local PD's should endeavor to correct.
 
The great thing about being in the states:

"Officer may I ask what your probable cause is?"
"I refuse a search until you have a warrant"
"Officer I would like to use my right to remain silent and consult with legal counsel"
 
I am a medically retired State LEO and it does not surprise me at all that the local LEO does not know the law, especially the ones they do not enforce on a regular basis. I carried a Penal Code Book in my briefcase. I have seen many officers looking up a "violation" after the "arrest."
 
Hi Zedicus,

I do not doubt what you say. My point is that if one is going to be pro-active he must be prepared for the consequences. As has been posted in variious places, OC may very well be legal. However, if it causes some to panic or be afraid the OC may be considered illegal for that reason as a public nuisance.

I have no objection to what another does in this area, but am just saying one might be charged anyway, so be prepared to defend or maybe even hire a lawyer to get off in an unfriendly gun area.

Some want to do it just to show they can. I consider it unwise to do such when it is likely to cause me legal problems. I also do not OC due to the liklihood of getting the gun snatched. Some will say they are too observant, but just how are you going to keep someone in a busy parking lot walking around you from doing such if they intend to snatch the gun?

I prefer not to "twist the lion's tail in his den" unless necessary.
Each must do as he desires, but may end up like the OP. He may get off and he may have to spend a lot of money to do so. If it is worth it then "have at it."

Regards,
Jerry
 
Just because something is legal doesn't mean it should be done.

How can we be saying things like the above? If it is legal to open carry, then it is legal. A bunch of older guys where I live thought it a great idea to go to the 3:10 to Yuma movie with SAA revolvers. A lot of strange looks but it is legal. We should not back down from what is legal.

That being said, you have to know what is legal in your state. I've learned the hard way about the car search thing, it is a tough call when they are wanting to search your vehicle and you know it is going to piss them off when you say no. From what I've seen and read and experienced, police are not bashful about forcing the vehicle search.

It takes a lot of guts to assert our rights at times these days.
 
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