View Full Version : Tips When Stopped by Police and Carrying a Firearm- Massad Ayoob video
A few years old, but still relevant and a great video with some great advice...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dT-nePQuT-s
I don't think telling the officer at first point of contact you have a gun is smart
Been stopped a few time driving back and forth from MO to CO and I have never told them anything. I don't get tickets either. I think they want to make sure I'm not trafficking marihuana?
Until it's law, I saw nothing.
TriggerHappy
05-01-2014, 02:21
Depends on attitude of the cop. Telling has got me off tickets and telling has had the question "why do YOU need a gun...?" It depends. Arapahoe has also asked after the warning if I'm armed, they say their records say I have been in the past...
I don't think telling the officer at first point of contact you have a gun is smart
This can go good or bad... full disclosure early let's the officer know the situation and he/she might react differently (good or bad). Remember, they don't know you from the next guy...
Until it's law, I saw nothing.
This could go badly for you. What happens if/when the officer finds out you're armed? Some might be cool with it, but there's always the risk of running into one who might not be comfortable with finding this out without you disclosing it and screw his service pistol into your ear... I only bring it up because it's happened before.
hghclsswhitetrsh
05-01-2014, 10:40
Unfortunately I have to say this disclaimer here. I'm not cop bashing I respect what most officers do on a day to day basis. However..
I trust a random cop about as much as he or she trusts me. Add that to the fact you might get pulled over by an imposter. No thanks.
Haven't watched the video, so maybe this is not a pertinent response, but I'm pretty sure that if the situation has escalated to the point where I am being asked whether or not there are firearms on my person, or in my vehicle, there may be other worries...
Maybe more on topic:
Pull me over for (presumed) speeding, or other minor traffic violation, and my lips are probably sealed. Have not faced the situation yet...
Been many years since I've conducted a traffic stop, but I will assume most PDs are still teaching the same thing: Treat everyone as if they are armed or have the ability to hurt you. Having the ability and having the intent are two entirely different issues. Most people who are armed have no intent to hurt anyone and therefore present a low risk. They should be treated that way.
If someone tells an officer they are armed, that only removes a possibility, that they might not be armed, however, if you assume that a certain percentage of people you deal with are not honest, having someone tell you they are armed is of little value as they may not be telling you the truth. Whether someone is armed with a gun, knife, soup spoon, is not as important as their intentions. If someone's intentions are to complete the stop and get on with their day as quickly and peaceably as possible, most officers should accommodate that desire and be as professional and efficient as possible. If someone has the intention to educate police officers on the law and make a political statement about the relationship between government and the citizenry, expect the stop to take a bit longer.
Be safe.
buffalobo
05-01-2014, 11:37
Haven't watched the video, so maybe this is not a pertinent response, but I'm pretty sure that if the situation has escalated to the point where I am being asked whether or not there are firearms on my person, or in my vehicle, there may be other worries...
^^THIS
Maybe more on topic:
Pull me over for (presumed) speeding, or other minor traffic violation, and my lips are probably sealed. Have not faced the situation yet...
I have been stopped many times while armed. They have never asked and I have never volunteered, info. Have even gotten out of the car to accompany officer to look at burned out tail lights, etc.
Lobbed from my electronic ball and chain.
I rarely get stopped but unless I'm in a state that requires it, I never divulge that I'm carrying. Nor do I hand my carry permit to an officer unless asked, and I've never been asked. It's irrelevant to a routine traffic stop and is just asking for trouble. A small percentage of officers will, for various reasons, go through the machinations of removing a person from a vehicle to disarm a concealed carrier, putting everyone at unnecessary risk. Why go there? Finish business and let me go on my way.
Most sheriffs in CO submit the lists of permit holders to the state database, so if you have a permit it's likely to show up when a CSP officer does a license plate check. The fact that you have a permit, and courteous, careful conduct will usually get you out of a citation. Neither do I volunteer my permit as an attempt to avoid a ticket. That's just cheesy.
I haven't gotten a ticket since 1983, including the time a few years ago when I was stopped for doing 94 on the interstate. Be smart, sober, honest and friendly. Everyone goes home safe.
I rarely get stopped but unless I'm in a state that requires it, I never divulge that I'm carrying. Nor do I hand my carry permit to an officer unless asked, and I've never been asked. It's irrelevant to a routine traffic stop and is just asking for trouble. A small percentage of officers will, for various reasons, go through the machinations of removing a person from a vehicle to disarm a concealed carrier, putting everyone at unnecessary risk. Why go there? Finish business and let me go on my way. Most sheriffs in CO submit the lists of permit holders to the state database, so if you have a permit it's likely to show up when a CSP officer does a license plate check. The fact that you have a permit, and courteous, careful conduct will usually get you out of a citation. Neither do I volunteer my permit as an attempt to avoid a ticket. That's just cheesy. I haven't gotten a ticket since 1983, including the time a few years ago when I was stopped for doing 94 on the interstate. Be smart, sober, honest and friendly. Everyone goes home safe. I thought the state made them delete the list?
If you want to follow his advice, that is your choice, but, IMHO, there are better sources of good information available.
I got pulled over for speeding once. Could not get my license out fast enough and the officer saw my permit behind my license. He asked me a few benign questions, we chatted about guns. After about 3 minutes, he handed me my license back and told me to have a nice day and walked back to his cruiser. While I assume he ran my plate, he never ran my DL.
bellavite1
05-01-2014, 14:43
I always hand my CCW with my DL.
The way I see it (and maybe a LEO can confirm this) by the time they ran my plate they already know I have a permit.
I see it as common courtesy and I get the feeling evry time that there is less tension between me and the cop.
They always told me they appreciate me being upfront, I am not looking for the elemnt of surprise.
I thought the state made them delete the list?
That is the nice thing about secret databases. You never REALLY delete them completely. They just get handed off to another agency or something before being "deleted". And noone ever knows because it supposedly was deleted.
[panic]
BPTactical
05-01-2014, 16:13
Tips when stopped by police:
1- don't get stopped by the police.
2- see tip #1.
Great-Kazoo
05-01-2014, 16:15
I thought the state made them delete the list?
Correct
I always hand my CCW with my DL.
The way I see it (and maybe a LEO can confirm this) by the time they ran my plate they already know I have a permit.
I see it as common courtesy and I get the feeling evry time that there is less tension between me and the cop.
They always told me they appreciate me being upfront, I am not looking for the elemnt of surprise.
They shouldn't have such info. Not once in 20+ years of CCW has any LE asked me if i was carrying, during a traffic stop. Believe me there's been more than 1 stop.
SuperiorDG
05-01-2014, 16:16
This is what I do
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rv9b-9qBIc
This is what I do
Ok, finally watched it, that is funny!
This could go badly for you.
MmmHmm.
What happens if/when the officer finds out you're armed? Some might be cool with it, but there's always the risk of running into one who might not be comfortable with finding this out without you disclosing it and screw his service pistol into your ear... I only bring it up because it's happened before.
What if this >______?
What it that^?
I know of how things have gone sideways with a courteous disclosure so on the off chance that I do manage to get myself stopped and questioned by the police, and IF (big "if" btw) things get to the point to where I need a pat down, I guess I'm at a loss either way, huh? I'm sticking to what I said. There's no need...so I won't.
I know of how things have gone sideways with a courteous disclosure so on the off chance that I do manage to get myself stopped and questioned by the police, and IF (big "if" btw) things get to the point to where I need a pat down, I guess I'm at a loss either way, huh? I'm sticking to what I said. There's no need...so I won't.
Bottom line, what I underlined- in my experience, for the most part, your attitude oftentimes dictates whether the officer takes a "hard" or "soft" approach. Disclose or don't, but all in all, don't be a dick and the likeliness of the stop not going downhill in a hurry is in your favor.
OneGuy67
05-02-2014, 14:12
Most sheriffs in CO submit the lists of permit holders to the state database, so if you have a permit it's likely to show up when a CSP officer does a license plate check.
This has been gone over on this forum many, many times and yet there are people who believe there is a state database. THERE IS NOT A STATE DATABASE. State law a few years back required it to be removed. THERE ARE LOCAL DATABASES. If you are stopped in the county in which you received your permit by a county deputy, it is possible their dispatch will also access their internal database for a CCW. That would be the ONLY way they would know.
The way I see it (and maybe a LEO can confirm this) by the time they ran my plate they already know I have a permit.
I see it as common courtesy and I get the feeling evry time that there is less tension between me and the cop.
They always told me they appreciate me being upfront, I am not looking for the elemnt of surprise.
As stated above, they do not know with the exception of what I referred to.
As a LEO, I do appreciate it when people advise me of their weapons status, whether it is on their hip, in their glove box or center console and they have to reach in any of those directions to obtain the requested documents. For other LEO's, it may concern them more than me, but I've been a cop for over 20 years now and have a level of comfortability that a new officer might not. And unlike that new officer, I am also very up to date on the various state and federal laws regarding firearms and know how it applies.
DenverGP
05-02-2014, 14:39
The one time I was stopped and handed over my permit along with my license, the CSP trooper disarmed me, took my gun back to his car while he ran my license, and returned the pistol completely unloaded. He was polite about it, but it seemed foolish to me. The gun was safely in it's holster on my hip, and my wallet was already out of my pocket. I can't imagine any scenario where taking a CCW holder's gun is the safe option for the officer. If I wasn't a good guy, I wouldn't have informed him, so why disarm me?
.455_Hunter
05-02-2014, 17:16
The one time I was stopped and handed over my permit along with my license, the CSP trooper disarmed me, took my gun back to his car while he ran my license, and returned the pistol completely unloaded. He was polite about it, but it seemed foolish to me. The gun was safely in it's holster on my hip, and my wallet was already out of my pocket. I can't imagine any scenario where taking a CCW holder's gun is the safe option for the officer. If I wasn't a good guy, I wouldn't have informed him, so why disarm me?
Yes. Strange. And what is keeping you from having ANOTHER accessible firearm in the car if you have nefarious intentions???
All of my encounters with LEO, they did not care about my CCW in the least bit, let alone taking it away and fondling it.
Last time I got stopped, I was going through Kiowa on my way to Ben Lomond Gun Club, got pulled over for speeding. Had more guns in the truck than I could even count, and a loaded .38 next to my thigh, wedged between the seats. He didn't ask, and I didn't tell, just gave me a ticket and it was done. But he would have to have been blind to not see or notice all the target stands, ammo cans, and other range/shooting paraphernalia in the truck bed, or the stack of gun cases in the back seat and my passenger seat!
I guess the Kiowa cops are used to old farts with truckloads of guns and ammo going through their town on the way to BLGC.
BPTactical
05-03-2014, 10:48
The one time I was stopped and handed over my permit along with my license, the CSP trooper disarmed me, took my gun back to his car while he ran my license, and returned the pistol completely unloaded. He was polite about it, but it seemed foolish to me. The gun was safely in it's holster on my hip, and my wallet was already out of my pocket. I can't imagine any scenario where taking a CCW holder's gun is the safe option for the officer. If I wasn't a good guy, I wouldn't have informed him, so why disarm me?
I see that going well until one has a ND from handling an unfamiliar firearm. I would think CSP is inviting a tremendous liability.
NFATrustGuy
05-03-2014, 16:29
I see that going well until one has a ND from handling an unfamiliar firearm. I would think CSP is inviting a tremendous liability.
Or when one of them damages my Seacamp because it requires a special procedure when it's necessary to unload it without firing it.
I cringe at the thought of someone trying to unload and clear my 1914 Mauser .32 pistol. It ain't hard, but it ain't typical either.
If you put enough NRA and gun stickers on your pickup back window, you've already declared. Vet plates and a RecallMorse bumper sticker pretty much confirms it.
Sent from my subconscious mind.
This has been gone over on this forum many, many times and yet there are people who believe there is a state database. THERE IS NOT A STATE DATABASE. State law a few years back required it to be removed. THERE ARE LOCAL DATABASES. If you are stopped in the county in which you received your permit by a county deputy, it is possible their dispatch will also access their internal database for a CCW. That would be the ONLY way they would know.
As stated above, they do not know with the exception of what I referred to.
As a LEO, I do appreciate it when people advise me of their weapons status, whether it is on their hip, in their glove box or center console and they have to reach in any of those directions to obtain the requested documents. For other LEO's, it may concern them more than me, but I've been a cop for over 20 years now and have a level of comfortability that a new officer might not. And unlike that new officer, I am also very up to date on the various state and federal laws regarding firearms and know how it applies.
Thanks for the clarification. I was relying on something a state trooper told me some years ago but apparently the situation has changed.
The incident that DenverGP describes is one of many I've read that keeps me from divulging my carry status to an officer unless required by law, or should I be asked to exit the vehicle. Most cops I've encountered are first rate professionals but it's the exception that drives my decision. I want to go home safe, too.
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