LEO Question ????

JohnnyC

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If I am stopped for a traffic violation such as speeding, red light, etc..... and I am carrying, what is your recommendation? I have seen varying responses ranging from doing nothing and just responding to the Officer's question and presenting just my driver's license, to presenting the Officer with both my drivers license and LTC-A when asked for the driver's license.

What would you recommend, please LEO only. Thank you, John
 
I recommend you do not speed while carrying. Seriously.

You do not need to tell the LEO in MA.

You will want to make him aware you ARE carrying if he wants you to get out of the car or straight up asks you.
In that case you might wanna say, "Officer, I have my LTC and and legally carrying my Glock (what ever floats you boat)."
"How would you like to proceed?"
 
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In that case you might wanna say, "Officer, I have my LTC and and legally carrying my Glock (what ever floats you boat)."
In that situation, I recommend that you limit yourself to: "Certainly, Officer. However, I have a license to carry and I am carry now. How would you like to proceed."

There is no need or benefit to telling him what kind of gun you are carrying, and I recommend against saying "I have a gun!"

And this question has been beaten to death on this forum -- do a search.
 
In that situation, I recommend that you limit yourself to: "Certainly, Officer. However, I have a license to carry and I am carry now. How would you like to proceed."

There is no need or benefit to telling him what kind of gun you are carrying, and I recommend against saying "I have a gun!"

And this question has been beaten to death on this forum -- do a search.

Correct, that line was the 1st thing that ran thru my mind and I didn't even put it. I made the edit.

Thank you sir
 
This is impossible to answer because everyone is different. I see no reason for people to tell me, a co-worker of mine believes he should be told. The only thing I can say for certain is if you are asked to step out of the vehicle tell the officer " i have a license to carry a firearm and am currently carrying one on my right side belt/ankle/ whatever".
 
I was taught, and I teach the following. Once you pull over, get out your driver's license, registration, and license to carry. Hold them in your hand, with both hands draped over the top of the steering wheel so the officer can see them when he/she approaches. When asked for your license and registration, hand over your LTC also, then put your hands back on the steering wheel, clearly away from whatever you're carrying. Then speak when spoken to and do as you're told. This approach gives the officer all the information he/she needs, and avoids the possibility of verbal misunderstanding.
 
I was taught, and I teach the following. Once you pull over, get out your driver's license, registration, and license to carry. Hold them in your hand, with both hands draped over the top of the steering wheel so the officer can see them when he/she approaches. When asked for your license and registration, hand over your LTC also, then put your hands back on the steering wheel, clearly away from whatever you're carrying. Then speak when spoken to and do as you're told. This approach gives the officer all the information he/she needs, and avoids the possibility of verbal misunderstanding.

Why offer that information up before asked?? Makes little sense to me to tell information that you are not sure the cop is even going to ask!!!
 
Everytime I see this question I can't help but think what does an LTC have to do with speeding? Officer says license registration.......
 
Everytime I see this question I can't help but think what does an LTC have to do with speeding? Officer says license registration.......

i have a personal preference of informing the LEO that i am carrying. it's situational awareness for all involved.

10 and 2, await instructions and inform. it's NOT that hard. -again, IMO... it's a courtesy i like to extend. just because.
 
i have a personal preference of informing the LEO that i am carrying. it's situational awareness for all involved.

10 and 2, await instructions and inform. it's NOT that hard. -again, IMO... it's a courtesy i like to extend. just because.

You just like to hear the officer call in.. "can you run a check on tall dark and handsome, oh, and he's packing"
 
You just like to hear the officer call in.. "can you run a check on tall dark and handsome, oh, and he's packing"

[rofl][rofl] i'm just not scared of police officers. also, even if it's a douche bag occifer, i doubt they'd pull ME over in my car with veterans plats. [laugh]
 
I would want someone to tell me they are carrying. If your honest and up front from the get go, more than likely it will be well recieved..........making the decision of the Officer of whether you get a ticket or not more favorable to you............just my opinion from a LE standpoint.
 
I would want someone to tell me they are carrying. If your honest and up front from the get go, more than likely it will be well recieved..........making the decision of the Officer of whether you get a ticket or not more favorable to you............just my opinion from a LE standpoint.

funny because this topic gets beaten to death. among my gun bunny fellow citizen soldiers / MP / LE.

it's a crap shoot. some say they DGAF while some say they want to know. i think it's bizzare. i'm not a cop, but i don't think i'd be to worried about a legal CCW holder, IMO i'd be appreciative if they told me. but that's just me. it's like a "hey, i'm your side dude" type of thing.

i'd be more worried about pookie in skinny pants at 7-11. it just seems like the lemmings have more rights than i do sometimes though.

hell, just taking wild ass guess, your probably more likely to die standing around texting during a detail. this is why you need decoys! errrrr. flaggers. [wink] j/k
 
Why offer that information up before asked?? Makes little sense to me to tell information that you are not sure the cop is even going to ask!!!

I was taught that there are many bad ways for the LEO to find out that you're armed. If you never get out of the car, then the LEO never needs to know. But if they do ask you to get out of the car, you don't want them to find your gun before you tell them about it. Telling them can be tricky. You don't want to cause the LEO to feel threatened. There have been documented cases where an LEO shot an innocent driver because the LEO perceived a threat. For instance, one driver died because a dispatcher made a typo when checking out the driver's license plate. The LEO was told "armed and dangerous", and he responded with lethal force when the frustrated driver made a gesture that the LEO misinterpreted as hostile.

A nervous driver might blurt out, "I have a gun!" in a way that a nervous LEO might interpret as threatening. Handing the LEO your LTC minimizes the opportunity for the LEO to perceive a threat.

There are lots of stories about how a routine traffic stop turned tragic. Many of these stories end with dead LEOs, and many with dead drivers, so I was taught to do all I can to minimize the LEO's anxiety.

Some folks hang onto the LTC unless/until they're asked to get out of the car. If that happens, then they hand over their LTC first, and await instructions. I hand them my LTC with my license, while scrupulously keeping my hands draped over the top of the steering wheel. The LTC tells the LEO that you're likely not a criminal. Some LEO somewhere checked you out and judged you trustworthy. It suggests to him that you may be armed, but in the least threatening way possible.

Bottom line, don't give the LEO any reason to perceive you as a threat.
 
Every cop worth his badge assumes you are carrying and are going to try and kill him when he approaches you. Don't offer unless asked or told to step out of the car. If a cop does not assume you are armed, he is going to get a rude surprise one day.

+1

however, unless bat shit insane - i don't think anyone sane would offer that bit of information if they planned on doing something.

i am advocating for people to what they feel comfortable doing.

in my case, i'm not nervous around LEO's with a gun on me. smile and nod if they make eye contact. [laugh]
 
I was taught, and I teach the following. Once you pull over, get out your driver's license, registration, and license to carry.
Here in MA, I recommend against volunteering that you are carrying. I know someone who was dragged out of the car at gunpoint, disarmed, cuffed, and stuffed when he did that. All for a minor speeding violation. An hour later, after backup arrived and the shift sergeant was consulted, said person was cut loose with their now unloaded gun.

Unless the officer asks you to get out of your car, they simply don't need to know.
 
There are lots of stories about how a routine traffic stop turned tragic.
There are a lot of stories about traffic stops of !#$!heads who attacked cops that turned tragic. Traffic stops of your average legally carrying concealed Joe that turned a royal pain in the backside? Absolutely. Traffic stops of your average legally carrying concealed Joe that turned tragic? Not a whole lot.

I've been stopped for speeding. I was carrying two guns. He didn't ask. I didn't volunteer. 10 minutes later I was on my way with a written warning.
 
I gave my .02 from a LE standpoint. I can tell you this..........you are better off having the Officer know you are LEGALLY carrying than him/her assuming otherwise. Think of it this.....

Your carrying a handgun, you get stopped, officer asks for your license and reg, you reach for your reg in the glovebox and the Officer sees the handle or part of the holster..................there is almost no good outcome for this type of scenario.

An officer is concerned about his/her safety on a traffic stop, it is one of the biggest unknowns a cop can walk into. In reality, you dont know whats on a cops mind. The cop is stopping you for a reason, you could have been speeding, your car could fit a description, in a high crime area, etc. Do the right thing and be up front. Most cops I know are pro carry, you wont have an issue for being up front about carrying.

The original poster asked for LEO opinion, not a "what would you do"..........there has been some bad opinions put forth that could get someone hurt.






Here in MA, I recommend against volunteering that you are carrying. I know someone who was dragged out of the car at gunpoint, disarmed, cuffed, and stuffed when he did that. All for a minor speeding violation. An hour later, after backup arrived and the shift sergeant was consulted, said person was cut loose with their now unloaded gun.

Unless the officer asks you to get out of your car, they simply don't need to know.

M1911, No offense and I dont doubt that you heard this story, but I am calling BS on who told you that. An hour is way too much time for a detainment, a half hour is the threshold I was taught, anything more would be a borderline rights violation.
 
An hour is way too much time for a detainment, a half hour is the threshold I was taught, anything more would be a borderline rights violation.
No offense dude, but I have never heard a police officer express concern over anyone's rights outside of training. The good ones do what they think needs to be done and the bad ones do what they think they can get away with.

In either case, they detain you as long as it takes.
 
There are differing opinions on this in both LE and non-LE circles, and many persons with an opinion are convinced their's is the only "correct" one. I will not add mine here as there would be no useful informational content by throwing mine into the mix.

BUT, there are a couple of objectively good ideas:

1. Know the state laws. While MA does not have a "mandatory notify" law, some states do - and failure to proactively volunteer the information is a criminal offense.

2. Do NOT carry your LTC where any part of it can been seen in your wallet. If you are telling someone you are armed, or have an LTC, you want do to so on your terms. This is doubly true if you are traveling out of state using FOPA86, or relying on a licensing exemption not all police may know about. I am familiar with one case in NY where the driver had some issues because the trooper saw the edge of a CT carry permit when the driver got his driving license out.
 
When you're pulled over, don't start moving around in your seat, don't start reaching for things like your license or registration, don't open your glove box. Just flip on the interior light (if it's dark out), roll the window down, and keep your hands at 10 and 2. When the officer walks up to your vehicle and asks for the license and reg, light up a Newport, set a single round of ammo on your dash, stare straight ahead, and say "Your move boss."

I read somewhere online that this is the best way to put the officer at ease.
 
Joe, et al:

I've been on both sides of this question and my opinion is that if you ccw correctly, keep the inside of your car "sterile" (no outward signs of guns/shooting), there is NO reason to tell in MA on a simple MV stop and it can lead to unnecessary grief to do so.

- I have stopped MVs where I had very good reason to suspect that the driver was ccw'g, but it wasn't visible and no action on the part of the driver made me feel threatened so I did not ask and he did not tell. In one case he blew a red light on a major highway at o-dark-thirty.

- I was stopped by a very nasty Boston PD officer on Rte. 3 heading into Boston one early Sunday morning. He crawled so far up my bumper (I swear he was within 1-2' of it) that I couldn't see his grill or the blue lights on his roof! I was dressed in a suit, ccw'g to a police assn meeting in Boston. I responded strictly with "yes sir" and "no sir" to his questions, offered nothing but an explanation that my speedometer was broken (true) and apologized. By his demeanor I know that HE (and I'm not broadening this to more than this ONE OFFICER) would have proned me out on the pavement if he had a clue that I was carrying. No thanks.

- The only other time, I was stopped in Newton for speeding and the officer was extremely professional. I didn't offer info and he didn't ask, but I think that in this case it wouldn't have mattered. At the conclusion he addressed me by my nickname . . . and although he did a textbook stop (kept to the rear of my door pillar) so that I couldn't read his nameplate or get a real good look at his face, his action led me to believe that he knew who I was and he probably was fellow member of one of the police associations I belonged to . . . but I'll never know for sure.
 
There are three things that can happen when interacting with a LEO while carrying:
1. They never find out about the gun.
2. They find out because you tell them.
3. They find out because they see it.

1 is the best, but 2 is way better than 3.
 
I would want someone to tell me they are carrying. If your honest and up front from the get go, more than likely it will be well recieved..........making the decision of the Officer of whether you get a ticket or not more favorable to you............just my opinion from a LE standpoint.

Have to agree here. Too many times being pulled over when I was younger and doing what was asked/needed in a traffic stop, probably saved me from too many points, or a flat-out arrests. Sometimes "not playing the hard line" or the grey-line, is a better option.

And maybe a LEO can answer this definitively: Carry licenses show up on your screen, don't they?
 
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LenS gave the best advice on this thread. If you even think for a second that your car isn't sterile from a flashlight sweep from the rear post (empty ammo package, range gear, etc...), you should play it safe, and advise the officer while handing over the appropriate paperwork. Do I prefer that people tell me? sure. Do I expect it? nope. If you have NRA, and GOAL stickers all over your car, I would advise the officer. Also be aware that there are varying tactics on a stop, so your gun may not be as concealed as you think. I'll leave it at that. You are possibly going to get a different response on a traffic stop in a large 'red' city vs. a smaller 'gun friendly' town like mine where 60% of the residents are gun owners.
 
I would say don't offer up the information unless you are asked to step out of the vehicle. You are assuming the LEO is a down to earth kind of person. Some are arrogant ass hats that would take that bit of information as if you were boasting that you were carrying. You only tell what you are legally obligated to tell. It's also legal to drink two beers within a few hours then drive, but if you got pulled over, would you offer that information up without being asked? Oh, by the way officer, I did have a few beers but that was a while ago....NOT!
 
You should hand him your driver's license and your license to carry. Have a $100 bill sandwiched in between. Works every time.
j/k
 
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