Open carry in NH

[BCEagleAce]

All - I am a mass resident but I'll be in NH this weekend. I'm planning on open carrying, and I know about not carrying loaded in a vehicle.

I know open carry is "legally" ok, but are there places where this gets odd looks? I've been to NH and I can't remember seeing anybody open carrying... how out of place will this be?

 

[appraiser]

Once you get north of "North Massachusetts" or about exit 3, nobody will care.

Not to be a wise ass, but if you are going with someone else, you can carry concealed as long as you have no ammo on you, so have someone carry your magazines for you and tell them to stick close.

 

[MaverickNH]

I've seen open carry as far South as Derry (Exit 4) and it seldom gets a 2nd glance above Concord. Farmers and people working in their woodlots often carry open I've noticed.

There have been a few issues in Manchester with people calling the police, so watch yourself there and maybe downtown in Concord..

 

[DirkDiggler]

you can't CCW in a car w/ a NH Non-Resident Pistol Revolver license?

 

[WaldoOneFive]

All - I am a mass resident but I'll be in NH this weekend. I'm planning on open carrying, and I know about not carrying loaded in a vehicle.

I know open carry is "legally" ok, but are there places where this gets odd looks? I've been to NH and I can't remember seeing anybody open carrying... how out of place will this be?

Do you have your NH Non-Resident permit? If so, then you're good all day long.

 

[MaverickNH]

http://pgnh.org/the_open_carry_debate_september_2009

The Open Carry Debate (September 2009)
by Sam Cohen, Executive Vice President and CEO, Pro-Gun New Hampshire, Inc.
Sept. 18, 2009: Four years ago, Paul Donovan, Chief of Police of Salem, New Hampshire -- and now an Advisor of Pro-Gun New Hampshire -- asked his staff to contact the state Attorney General's office about open carry. The AG's office replied that in New Hampshire, the constitutional right to keep and bear arms was not superseded by someone's "annoyance and alarm" at the sight of a gun. ("Annoyance and alarm" is the phrase taken from the state law about disorderly conduct, RSA 644:2.)

More recently, most of the country has heard about people openly carrying pistols near where the U.S. President was speaking -- in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and Phoenix, Arizona. (MSNBC editorialized about "white racist militias" in the Phoenix event, showing a cropped image of a man with a holstered handgun and a slung rifle -- although the uncropped image would have revealed him to be a black man.) In both cases, local police said that open carry of firearms was perfectly legal.

And now a federal judge has ruled that police may not detain someone for legal open carry: (IMPORTANT NOTE: The judicial ruling applies, so far, only to New Mexico.)

http://www.examiner.com/x-2782-DC-G...arrying-guns?cid=exrss-DC-Gun-Rights-Examiner

Excerpt: <<On September 8, 2009, United States District Judge Bruce D. Black of the United States District Court for New Mexico entered summary judgment in a civil case for damages against Alamogordo, NM police officers. The Judge's straight shootin' message to police: Leave open carriers alone unless you have "reason to believe that a crime [is] afoot.">>

In New Hampshire, the wisdom of open carry, although legal in most places, is still questionable -- although the tide is turning. Here's what I wrote about it several years ago, in the article found under the "Gun Law FAQs" (Frequently Asked Questions) article on this website:

<< Q: Can I carry a pistol or revolver openly, say in an exposed belt holster?

A: Yes. Furthermore, you do not need a License to Carry (the piece of paper says "Pistol/Revolver License") to carry a loaded handgun UNconcealed -- that is, visible, for example in an exposed holster -- unless you're in a vehicle. (See the previous answer about vehicles.)

Keep in mind that some people may panic when they see a gun, and if they call the police, the police may come to investigate - but the New Hampshire Attorney General's office has made it clear that open carry is a right, and that another person's "annoyance and alarm" doesn't supersede that right.

On the one hand, we will indeed lose our rights if we don't exercise them, but on the other hand, it's not smart to frighten or antagonize people, especially if you scare enough people to make the news - which may lead to legislation restricting open carry. Use good judgment. (Hint: look and act like a responsible citizen. It helps to be well-dressed.) Also, from a practical (as opposed to "political") point of view, if you're carrying openly in a place where there might actually be an armed criminal attack, you'll be the first target. >>

The question of whether (and where and when) to carry openly is still a difficult one, and I still advise caution and good judgment. For example, even though it's legal, I would not carry openly in a bank; for one thing, you could very well be shot -- maybe by a private citizen legally carrying concealed! Also, many businesses may ask you to leave if you're carrying openly, and if you're not prepared to do so, then you should carry concealed in those places.

Police in parts of New Hampshire may still react negatively to open carry on the street and other public places, and may detain you -- but if we allow for scare tactics to be used by police and others to stop open carry then we allow the right to devolve into a non-right. Now that the right to keep and bear arms is becoming more accepted in public consciousness, we believe the momentum should continue.

Be prepared to answer the question of why you're carrying. One answer is that you're adult enough to be trusted with the responsibility of being armed. (You can continue to say that you could carry concealed, but every so often people need to be reminded that self-defense is a fundamental human right.)

© 2006-2009 Pro-Gun New Hampshire Inc.
26 S. Main St., PMB 284
Concord, NH 03301-4809
Tel. (603)226-PGNH [226-7464]

 

[appraiser]

a former NES'er ( now banned) made it his goal to preserve the open carry RIGHT by OC'ing around Concord IIRC and he had a few chats with the local LEO's on more than a few occasions, and if you watch some of the Ridley Reports , Dave has had more than a few run ins too. But they kinda brought it upon themselves to make a statement, and I don't have a problem with that.

As for the car question, you can CCW in a car, but it can't be loaded, you can't have ammo on you, and some people have gone so far as to suggest that a loaded magazine you can get to is enough for LEO's to consider the gun loaded. Any handgun in a car, resident or not, without a permit from NH or recognized by NH, that is loaded is a misdemeanor no no for a first offense.

 

[Auspicious Aspect]

As for the car question, you can CCW in a car, but it can't be loaded, you can't have ammo on you, and some people have gone so far as to suggest that a loaded magazine you can get to is enough for LEO's to consider the gun loaded.

The bolded part is not based in statue. The law merely requires that the gun not be loaded, defined as "any pistol or revolver with a magazine, cylinder, chamber or clip in which there are loaded cartridges."

http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/rsa/html/XII/159/159-4.htm

 

[appraiser]

OK by your interpretation, you can have loose rounds on your person, but by my read, if you had no NH Pistol/Revolver permit, and you had a gun on your person in a car, or a gun in the car period, and you had ammo in magazines, or in the case of a revolver in speed loaders, IMHO the cops could claim the gun was loaded, kind of a constructive possession situation.

A loaded pistol or revolver shall include any pistol or revolver with a magazine, cylinder, chamber or clip in which there are loaded cartridges.

it doesn't say it has to be in the gun, and I don't want to be the test case.

 

[Coyote33]

I am thinking an unloaded .22 rifle and/or pistol behind the seat for traveling should OK then, right? Do they need trigger locks? Ammo in the cab OK? Thanks.

 

[garandman]

Interesting. My nephew is in NH police academy and they have some training scenarios involving "uncooperative" Free Staters.

And the Free Staters have some training scenarios involving stops by police, open carry, etc.

 

[mikem317]

Interesting. My nephew is in NH police academy and they have some training scenarios involving "uncooperative" Free Staters.

"Uncooperative". Got to love it. I guess anybody that doesn't kowtow to the state is worthy of harassment.