Thank you all for the welcome to the community and for the replies and info. It’s much appreciated.
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Your state is also fairly stringent on timing of informing as in a guy went to jail for taking 40 seconds to inform the officer if I am remembering it right.
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@Todd30 said it, each state has there own requirements/laws and they can change often as well. The USCCA reciprocity and gun laws are accurate, it is always smart to keep up with any changes that may happen. I live in the same state as @DomineeRV127 and both times I have been pulled over I was not asked if I had any weapons but we are still required to tell. You don’t need to mention your ccw permit in PA but it can help the officer understand why you have a firearm in the vehicle.
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Just a fun fact, it has been years, but the last 3 times between myself and the wife, who has her LTC as well, I have no doubt that our having and presenting our LTC turned a citation into just a verbal warning being issued.
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It really depends on the officer honestly. I work fairly close with different departments and most of the officers here think we shouldn’t be required to inform. You will find the bad attitudes from MSP and large city LEOs.
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OK, here we go!!!
The wife got stopped yesterday by a state trooper for going 65 in a 60. She had no DL nor did she have her LTC as it was all stolen at Costco last week. She also had an expired license sticker on the car by 1 month (I bought the sticker and it is still in my car sitting there waiting for me to stick it on).
The State Trooper looked up her info based on her SSN, and came back and only gave her a written warning on all 3!
He said he appreciated her carrying! Wow, a great testimonial!!!
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It depends on the state. THEY MIGHT NOT OBVIOUSLY SEE that you have a permit. For example in Ohio there is a MANDATORY duty to declare that you are armed PERIOD! Also in Ohio it will automatically come up if you have an Ohio permit if they run your DL through teletype. In other states it may be the same OR in OTHER JURISDICTIONS it can just be the policy of the agency to have their dispatch to additionally run any individual that is run to check for to see if the person has a permit. In some instances teletype might be down and the officer wont ever know if the individual they are out with is clean, has suspensions or warrants (even for murder). Here Is The Deal. If you do not know if there is MANDATORY DISCLOSURE where you are being stopped you declare it, PERIOD, so you do not accidentally or unintentionally get in trouble! ALSO weather YOUUUUUUU are required to or not, NEVER LIE!!! IF YOU ARE ASKED, NEVER REACH FOR IT, tell the truth. Tell them where it is, your ankle, the glove box, the trunk, what it is, if it is loaded or not and keep your hands glued to the steering wheel or hanging out the window. Tell them you wont move until they instruct you. When you make Law Enforcement comfortable, espically if their back up is not close or possibly not even available things tend to go smoother. Go with the program. Do exactly what you are told. More officers are killed in domestics and traffic stops than any where else! If they want to secure it (and in many cases unload it during your encounter with them), let them. I have seen instances where drivers were so upset they were stopped and wigging out sooooo bad, they were given a property recipt for the gun. Since the subject made the officer feel unsafe, they were told to go to the station and make arrangements to pick it up from the property clerk after they calmed down. Frequently if it was legal for you to carry loaded you might get it handed back unloaded. I have told people after their ticket or warning that I wanted to have them not relaod in my presence. In some instances I have requested voluntary compliance to put it in their trunk until I departed. The important concern is the officers safety People do not like recieving tickets. Espically a serious one, you decide what is serious (how about passing a stopped school bus with all its lights flashing at 100mph in a 15 mph school zone with an unsecured infant). Yes some people are Stupid while in possession of a firearm. Do not think a ticket is no big deal, it might be the one that is the end of their job. It might be the one that gets them suspended and them not be able to get to work and feed their family. It might be so bad that it gets their insurance cancelled. If you are Legal (or not) you should do what you are told! If the officer is wrong NEVER argue about it on the street PERIOD. Be the responsible armed citizen. If it is not mandatory to disclose that is up to you. Many officers will appreciate you for it, some might be anti gun and maybe not gove you the warning they were going to give you and jam you up. BUT you always do the right thing. You can always complain later, get an attorney if you need to, but do not be the one that gets your self in in more trouble.
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The hands reaching out the window is a bad idea if im concerned, keep them on the wheel at all times. An officer may not be able to tell if your hands are empty at a distance. As they approach they will likely tell you to put your hands on the wheel anyway so your not “reaching for them” when they get to your window. I would get my license and make sure my insurance and registration are easy to access so I’m not having to reach around a glove box or center console while the officer is approaching. If like most people it is in your glove box ask the officer if you may retrieve your information and definitely make sure you don’t have a concealed weapon in there with it.
If you are required to notify then do it ,if not don’t unless for some reason they have to search your vehicle then I would let then know what to expect to find. Also consider getting a camera for your car, if the officer seems unprofessional in any way notify that the interaction is being recorded and it will likely change. Plus it can have the evidence you need in court, or could be the evidence against you which can keep you in line. Win win for you and the officer.
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