I was in South Carolina recently and got into a minor car accident. After we both pulled over and confirmed no injuries, the other guy (who is a local resident) called the police to come to file the police report. I was near him when he called them and he answered a few yes/no questions that I didn’t hear. He then handed me the phone and the first question I was asked by the dispatcher was “are you carrying?”. I had no idea what he meant so I asked “carrying what?”. He then said “any firearms?” I responded “No!”, in the same tone as one might use when asked if they enjoy having sex with monkeys. I realized later that this probably wasn’t the wisest way to answer that question, as I was asked the question again when the officers arrived.
Anyway, my question is what would have happened if I has answered yes.
The responding cops would have been a bit more on edge. Out in ruralia then get used to the idea that half of everybody is armed and half of those are actively dangerous to police.
They’re “law-abiding citizens” who don’t much care about abiding by the law.
IME, they just want to know where any guns are. If you answered yes it could range from “OK”, to asking you to surrender it.
I was in an accident last year and (I assume) the Trooper knew my CCW status after running my license. Asked if I was carrying and I told him it was in the small cooler in the back floorboard. I had removed it and placed it there before walking back to the remains of the car that hit me. People are super stressed, I might be bending over and helping the occupants still* in the wrecked car, and I figured not seeing its outline was better all around - so decided it should stay in the truck. The trooper never looked for it nor asked me to lift my shirt to prove its absence. For some reason, he later opened the door to look around the interior of my truck. I assumed it was standard practice to be sure there were no other passengers.
*I saw in the mirror that it was completely destroyed, and assumed there were injuries and anyone inside would need assistance. Surprisingly, the occupants were mostly unharmed - other than airbag burns/bruises.
There was that idiot from NZ/Aus who the cops killed in Colorado IIRC. Among his many irrational actions/statements was describing his tiny pocketknife as a weapon he was carrying. Which the cops seemed to cite (entirely unbelievedly) as a reason they felt themselves in danger.
We were on the call list for my wife’s sister’s home alarm system. We got a call from the monitoring service that the front door alarm had gone off. and the police had been called. I arrived at the house just before the police got there. As I tried to peek in the partially opened door the policeman got there beside me and I informed him I was packing. He stood back and said, “Good idea”.
I’ve read that if I’m carrying a firearm, I should present my Concealed Pistol License along with my driver’s license. I never carry a firearm though, so it doesn’t really matter to me. I do wonder if the CPL is available on the State Police or local LEO’s in-car computer.
This. I don’t carry and wouldn’t, largely for this reason. Just another in a long list of reasons for my “this is why we can’t have nice things” view of the 2nd amendment, and my lack of empathy towards 2nd amendment proponents.
Early in Pennsylvania’s Medical Marijuana Program there was a push from law enforcement people to have a driver’s medical license show on their computers. That was shot down (heh) due to medical privacy issues. My driver’s license and my medical card look very similar, so I carry them in separate places.
It is in Michigan, which makes sense since its a state issued permit that I had to go to the Sheriffs office to apply for. Also, as part of the class that is given here they make it clear that you need to tell any police officer you make contact with that you are licensed for conceled carry and wheter or not you are carrying.
The « idiot » called 911 for help because he had gotten his car stuck on a country road around midnight and was scared. He may have been having a mental episode of some sort. He told the 911 operator that he had a small hammer and knives that he used for his geology hobby.
When the police arrived, he said he was scared and would drop the hammer and knives out the window of the car onto the road. The police, with their guns drawn, told him not to do that and ordered him out of the car.
He didn’t get out. When asked why not, he said « Sir, I’m terrified. »
So the police broke his car window, shot beanbags at him, tased him, and then shot him dead.
Apparently it’s a capital offence in that part of Colorado to call 911 for help when having a mental health episode.
I own a pistol, and I used to have a CPL to carry it. (It has since expired.)
I rarely felt a need to carry, and have no desire to do so anymore (I have it for home defense just in case, and enjoy target shooting though I haven’t done that in a long time). But there was a time I would every once in a while.
One time I was pulled over for speeding. When the trooper came up to the window and asked for my information, I told him I had a pistol but I had a CPL, and showed my card to him. He thanked me and said if I hadn’t done that and he’d seen the gun the traffic stop would have gone in a whole different direction. But since I volunteered the info and showed it to him, he shrugged it off as no big deal.