So this girl called the police on me...

[Nashmack]

I was exiting an establishment called "The Firing Line" in Manchester NH this evening, and keep in mind this is an indoor range, with a rather large sign, carrying my uncased .22, action open, barrel pointed toward the ground. I placed the rifle in my trunk, got all my gear settled, and pulled out of the parking lot. I got about a quarter mile down the street, and that's when I noticed the blues behind me, so of course like a law abided liscenced driver should, I pulled over.

This is where things got interesting. The officer trained his spotlight on my driver's side mirror, opened his door, and drew his serviced pistol, and ordered me out of the vehicle. I complied, laid facedown on the ground with my hands behind my head, and was disarmed by said officer. Said officer asked me to produce my permit, which I did, and he looked it over for a minute before telling me I could stand up once again. When I asked the officer why he ordered me out of my vehicle, his response was: "We just had a call for a man fitting your description, driving a car with your plate numbers, exiting a building with a gun". Said officer and his backup almost laughed themselves into a hemmorhage when I explained that I had just come from The Firing Line.

Has anyone else here ever had a similar experience?

 

[SSTHitman]

Its funny the caller didnt mention what building she seen you coming out of or that the officers didnt get a hint after she told them the location.

 

[cosine]

Edit: Deleted inaccurate info...

 

[Larry Ashcraft]

Has anyone else here ever had a similar experience?

No. But then this is Colorado, still part of America. We don't need "permission" to own a handgun.

Things are going downhill faster then I imagined.

 

[mikeb3185]

no but at the range i shoot at (niagara gun range) people walk to their vehicles with un cased weapons all the time. i have never heard of anyone being stoped after leaving his range.
the thing you have to remember is people fear what they do not understand. and people have an irrational fear of firearms.

 

[armoredman]

In AZ, the cops would have asked what your favorite load is...

 

[silicon wolverine]

In SD the cops would have pulled you over and asked about it not pulled you over at gunpoint. If i was you id call and ask a lawyer about suing for excessive use of force.

SW

 

[ApexinM3]

I'm waiting for that day to come here in the Socialists Republic of Maryland. Of course I haven't traved with an uncased firearm in the cars as doing so & getting caught will get you crucified here in this state.

Sorry to here about your experience but from the sounds of it things worked themselves out. Ignorant woman-sometimes it's not bliss!:banghead:

 

[Tom Servo]

New Hampshire...wasn't there a long thread here about a year ago, involving a guy who got roughed up for open carry? I think it was at Barnes & Noble. A woman (who refused to identify herself to the operator) called 911, claiming he made her nervous. Police showed up and completely mishandled the situation.

Here in Georgia, I understand the operator is supposed to ask something along the lines of, "well, is he doing something with the gun?" Heck, my range is in a shopping center, and my friends and I have walked out with rifles of all stripes, and I've never had a problem.

 

[mustanger98]

I'm two or three hours drive north of Kennessaw, GA and I've carried my M1 Garand into the barber shop with no problem whatever. I knew my barber wanted to see it when it came in so I slung it, put on a big grin, and went about my business. During my haircut, my rifle was leaning right there on the counter. Nobody said anything negative. But then, I'm up here in the hills and guns are still pretty much commonplace.

 

[Kim]

The person who called must really get out of her little world. Bet she had never seen anyone walking with a firearm. Probably thought "The Firing Line" was some nasty capitalist business where employeers sent their poor employees to be told they are fired------kinda like a place Donald Trump would work.

 

[c_yeager]

Im not prepared to blame the cops on this one. They have to work with the information they are given, and in this case I bet they didnt get much. You have to accept that they will proceed with as much caution as possible based on what they know, we would all proceed the same. When they found out the call was erronious they immediatly behaved in accordance with their new knowledge of the situation.

 

[sm]

LEOs have job to do, seems to me you and they communicated well.

I'd been prone to ask the officers to send a vice cop and approach the lady that reported you. If officers asked why, tell them she was "loitering" and has the right "equipment", she might be a prostitute.

Some folks do not think. Years ago I assisted in moving guns out of a gun store from a strip center. Been there a long long time, retiring and guns sold to a buddy dealer friend of his. Two doors down, was a beauty shop. Now understand we did this as best could to not attract attention. Even had UC and Uniformed LEO handy/ helping. Lady calls police station "folks with guns" station calls uniformed officers, who in turn tell the lady what the deal is.

Lady had been going to that Beauty shop for 7 or 8 years, never even knew the Gun Store existed. I mean the word "Gun" was part of the store name, and was on the strip center big sign, and front door, and parking spaces on curb directly in front of store. In that many years she never once saw any of this?

*sigh*

 

[Aguila Blanca]

Im not prepared to blame the cops on this one. They have to work with the information they are given, and in this case I bet they didnt get much. You have to accept that they will proceed with as much caution as possible based on what they know, we would all proceed the same. When they found out the call was erronious they immediatly behaved in accordance with their new knowledge of the situation.

Yes, in this case (unlike the one with the chap who was manhandled by the police in the Barnes & Noble) it does appear that the officers handled the situation about as well as they could. However, as with the incident in the Barnes & Noble, it strikes me that the 911 dispatcher handled the call rather poorly. Especially since the previous B&N case has been discussed so widely (and I believe was also in Manchester), it's difficult for me to believe that the dispatchers aren't aware of it. So when the call came in, I have to wonder why the first question was not "What is he doing with the gun that you think is illegal?"

If the answer was "He put it in the trunk of his car," the appropriate response should have been "That's perfectly legal, M'am. Have a good evening. Goodbye."

 

[silicon wolverine]

Stupid people proliferate because this world has been made safe enough they survive long enough to procreate.

SW

 

[Sgt Stevo]

here in the silicon valley, they would have rolled SWAT,tased me, beat me, then sued me, for the PTSD they got, for doing it.

 

[southernwarrior187]

Truer words have never been said wolverine.

Bring back natural selection!

 

[Zen21Tao]

Has anyone else here ever had a similar experience?

I had the cops called on me a while back for carrying and uncased rifle from the trunk of my car into my apartment building (which is legal where I live). Before I get flamed let me say that I live in the wonderfully gun friendly state of Florida. I grew up in areas were uncased rifles, especially in the back window of trucks, are a common thing.

While walking back to my trunk for some ammo cans (I too had just returned from the range) I saw a line of squad cars creeping into the complex with officers wearing body armor carring shotguns creeping along side the cars. They approachem me and ordered me to put my hands up. From the very start the cops were real friendly and very professional. After they frisked me and found no guns they told be they had a call about someone in the parking lot with a gun. As I allowed them to enter my apartment and check my firearms they continued to say that the caller was barely understandable and it sounded to the dispatcher like she said something about "shooting". The cops took one of my guns at random and ran a serial number. It came back legal so they didn't even bother to check the rest.

As it turns out it the girl that called then was some whinny college liberal (I live in Gainesville. Home of UF) from a gun unfriendly state that was whining about someone walking around freely with firearms. The real reason she called them was based on a disagreement with the law allowing me to carry the guns opening to and from my vehicle. All of the officers there understood that she was an out of state looney. They basically told her she could take her ass back home if she didn't like Florida laws and then apologized to me for the whole ordeal.

 

[ReadyontheRight]

Stupid people proliferate because this world has been made safe enough they survive long enough to procreate.

SW

You are right on the money there SW.

 

[SomeKid]

I remember walking out of the front door of my house, and walked across the street. No big deal right?

I had an AK slung over my shoulder. As I neared the street, as bus full of kids passed by.

Nothing happened.

I loved living out in the woods like that.

 

[crazed_ss]

In CA, you have to have your weapons cased and unloaded when walking to and from the range. It's the law.. all the ranges have big signs informing customers of this. LEOs are the exception to this rule.

 

[nipprdog]

maybe she's related to this guy that thinks gun ranges rent guns and then allows them to leave the range with them. this is his letter to the editor.

http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060425/OPINION01/604250453/-1/ARCHIVE

Business should be ashamed of 'We rent guns' sign

It concerns me immensely the numbers of shootings that are occurring on the Northwestside of Indianapolis. I am a middle-school teacher in this area and am concerned for my students and their safety. Within three weeks we have witnessed a shooting outside the Eagle Highlands theater, a man murdered while parked in front of Sears at Lafayette Square Mall and most recently three people killed less than a mile from this same mall. Some have commented that they do not know why this is happening more frequently in this area. The answer can be found on a sign in front of a business on Lafayette Road, in front of the mall. "We rent guns" is displayed for everyone to read. As long as we glorify guns and openly advertise them the problem will only get worse. To the person who displays this sign, I say shame on you for allowing this to happen.

 

[Devonai]

I'm glad it ended well, Nashmack, and that the cops had a sense of humor. I would also laugh about the Little League diamond across the street and the parents who drop off their players in the Manchester Firing Line parking lot on game days!

As to this woman, I do not see how it's possible that she could see your weapon and not know where you were coming from. I suspect a disgruntled neighbor who wishes the Firing Line didn't exist.

 

[El Tejon]

No, and if it did I would be throwing a holy fit.

 

[Cacique500]

As I allowed them to enter my apartment and check my firearms they continued to say that the caller was barely understandable and it sounded to the dispatcher like she said something about "shooting". The cops took one of my guns at random and ran a serial number. It came back legal so they didn't even bother to check the rest.

I would've been cooperative out in the parking lot. No way would they get to come in, inspect my firearms, and run a serial number on one of my firearms.