TexasCHLforum.com

Ruark wrote:

mojo84 wrote: I also believe cops typically respond to respect with respect. I've said elsewhere that I will go along with showing ID if I chose to open carry and get stopped till the newness wears off and people get more accustomed to open carry.

I disagree. The overwhelming majority of cops I've encountered have responded to my "yes sir, no sir" respect with a litany of personal questions. Where are you going today, sir? Shopping? Do you work in Austin? Oh, you're retired? Where did you retire from? When was that? What did you do there? etc. etc. etc.

Just for the record, I'm never, never belligerent or rude to LEOs. I might say, with excruciating politeness, "Uh, sir, we'd like to be moving along here, is there anything else I can help you with?" From there, depending on how it goes, I might proceed to the "am I being detained?" script. But again, always with extreme politeness. Regardless, I have a very clear limit on how far I will allow such a conversation to go.

Your post implies that you have frequent contact with LEOs. Are you stopped by a LEO often? If so, why? I drive a Corvette and I haven't been stopped more than 3 or 4 times in the last 15 years. I've never been stopped on the street, not once in 65 years.

Chas.

Police officers and deputies have been sizing up people for a long time now and open-carry will not be any different. More people talked themselves into tickets than out of them and so too with trips to jail. LEO and public response to open-carry will change over time, but how it will change will depend upon how people carrying guns conduct themselves with LEOs and the public. Be a jerk and you'll be treated like a jerk by citizens with cell phones and responding LEOs. If, and that's a very big IF, over time people open-carrying conduct themselves responsibly and respectfully, then it will become a non-issue just as concealed-carry has been a non-issue for almost 20 years.

The biggest danger to successful implementation of open-carry is the predictable response by people who love to be on video preaching to a LEO or citizen about the meaning of the Constitution. People who scream at LEOs on video like Grisham and Watkins will make the evening news and anti-gunners will loudly proclaim "I told you so!" So will Chief Acevedo, MDA, Sen. Ellis and others. The general public will be swayed to some greater or lesser extent depending upon the frequency and severity of the incidents. The more that they are on TV or Facebook, the greater the level of LEO interaction in response to MWAG calls. This will fuel the egos and provide photo ops and a bully pulpit for those who care far more about being in the spotlight than in changing Texas gun laws to the benefit of Texans.

Handcuffs? Hour-long detentions? Running the serial number on your handgun? Really? Going into a new era where open-carry is legal with that attitude will go a long way toward making dire predictions come true. People spoiling for a fight can usually fine one. Most COPs are mirrors; be respectful to them and they will respond in kind.

Chas.