New traffic, criminal effective Sept. 1

[barres]

OK, so if I'm on vacation in Wisconsin next month, snoop around a local gun store and find a pistol I gotta have, I can buy it on the spot?

Possibly, but I believe it would still have to be shipped to an FFL in Texas and you would have to have them make the transfer. You would not be allowed to take it with you in Wisconsin.

I could have done that before the law changed. No different than buying over the phone or online.

Correct. Federal law already forced handgun purchases to go through an FFL in the buyer's home state. This cleans up some problems with long-gun purchases in other states. If you find a rifle or shotgun you can't live without in Wisconsin next month, you can purchase it and walk out the door with it, assuming doing so is not a violation of Wisconsin law.

[tarkus]

I would show it...what I was saying is that what if a LEO stop me because he thinks I using the phone (new law no cellphone use in school zone) then he pulls me over in the parking lot...now I would be in violation for carrying on school property CHL or not if I'm correct...as I would give him my id and CHL...then of course he will ask if carrying....

Your instructor in your CHL class will cover the Texas laws about where we can and can't carry. If you want to get a head start, DPS has a pamphlet with the current rules. http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/ftp/forms/LS-16.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[jamullinstx]

Dexdahex,

It is not illegal for you to be in the school parking lot with your firearm if you have a CHL. You can't be in the buildings or at an event, like band competition, football game, etc. There is an exclusion in the federal 1000' law that exempts those with a state-issued license from the provisions in that law as well.

If you don't have a CHL, and have the firearm in your automobile, while legal according to Texas law, I would think you would be in violation of the federal statute since there is no exemption for those carrying under Texas' MPA.

[C-dub]

Failure to show CHL:
Isn't it also still true that we do have to have it with us? I mean that if we initially forget to show it, but the officer finds it when the DL is run and asks us for it we must still have it with us or be in trouble? If the officer begins to give us a citation for not initially I suppose we could plead our case and ask that the duty seargent be called to try and verify that there is no longer a penalty for this.

Another question is, do you have a weapon on you? If you don't than I don't believe there is any requirement to have the CHL on your person.

Correct and I knew this, but sometimes forget that it is not always a given that everyone knows. Thanks for clarifying.

[Fangs]

I can think of at least one instance where I would prefer to not show LEOs my CHL when asked for ID. I was recently at a friend's birthday party at an apartment complex where I used to live. There was a crack dealer, several pot dealers, and at least two meth heads in the two buildings closest to my friend's apartment. This is also the same complex where my previous roommate's cousin was robbed at gun point after delivering pizza to an empty apartment. I chose to carry and not to drink.

Now if LEOs showed up (which they did because there was a fight at the apartment next door) I would love to show my TXDL to prove I'm old enough to be around the keg (that "within 50' is possession" rule has almost jailed me before), but I would be hesitant to show my CHL just because of all the extra hassle it could quickly bring down on my head if the LEOs weren't fully informed on the law.

Now I handled this by offering my TXDL when speaking to them as a witness of the fight, with the new law change in mind in case they ran it and wanted to know why I didn't mention the CHL. As I see it, I can't get in trouble if I'm not asked to present ID, and if there was trouble it would go away with the law change anyway.

[Armed-Texan]

so now i have to put a sticker on my window that says my tint is legal? where in hades do i get this sticker? what if my tint isn't legal? omg, my future BIL who is a LEO got it done for my wife as a present to me, and they went a little darker since he is a LEO, i think the back three windows can be black but the front two have a certain limit right? geez, just more garbage for them to enforce, so they can pull the homies over and fish for dope charges AAAAAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHHH

[Originalist]

Most places that do tint (legitimately) place the sticker under the tint. And you thought it was advertising.

[TxCommish]

Most places that do tint (legitimately) place the sticker under the tint. And you thought it was advertising.

Aaaaaand, I think most of the law changes were more to "clarify" than anything else. Of course, there's always one or two that are just dumb. Happens every two years whether we like it or not.

[hirundo82]

One point that I haven't seen made, and wasn't aware of previously, is that changes in the DPS sunset bill now make it effectively impossible to get a Texas non-resident CHL. The document linked in the original post points out that HB2730 made it so that Texas drivers licenses and ID cards may not be issued to non-residents.

HB 2730 SECTION 13.03. Section 521.101, Transportation Code, is amended by adding Subsection (j) to read as follows:
(j) The department may not issue a personal identification certificate to a person who has not established a domicile in this state.

However, the rules for submitting a CHL application require that the applicant include the certificate number of an ID card or DL issued by the DPS:

Sec. 411.174. APPLICATION. (b) An applicant must provide on the application a statement of the applicant's:
(6) driver's license number or identification certificate number issued by the department;

It has been my understanding that to get a non-resident CHL one had to first obtain a Texas ID card. Am I correct that the change in the issuance policy makes it impossible to get a non-resident CHL?

[cbr600]

It has been my understanding that to get a non-resident CHL one had to first obtain a Texas ID card. Am I correct that the change in the issuance policy makes it impossible to get a non-resident CHL?

I don't think it will be a problem. I got a non-resident CHL a year and a half ago and didn't need a Texas ID card.

[roff]

* Defense to carrying a concealed handgun into a bar or similar establishment- A person with a CHL is not supposed to bring a gun into a bar or similar place and doing so can be a Class A misdemeanor. To be charged with such, the bar or similar place must post notice that it gets 51% of its profit from the sale of alcoholic drinks. If they do not have the notice, it is a defense a person can use if charged with a Class A misdemeanor for carrying a concealed weapon into a bar or similar place. Class A misdemeanors are punishable by a fine up to $4000, up to 1 year in jail, or both.


does that mean if i go into a place that i know is 51% but a sign isnt posted i can carry in there?

[Carrots]

To me It means that you now have a defense to a prosecution, NOT that you can't/won't be prosecuted. If the place should be posted 51% and you know that it should then carrying there is a choice for you to make. Having a defense to a prosecution is nice, but from a practical point of view whether you have this new defense or not if you are caught you can still be prosecuted and if you are then you will be having a bad day regardless. Just MO of course.

[quoheleth]

I would be in violation for carrying on school property CHL or not if I'm correct

You are traveling - that is, you are going from A to B with the school as a temporary stop inbetween, i.e., picking up Lil' Johnnie.
If you were going to school to meet with the teacher for Lil' Johnnie's behavior, then the school is your destination.

I seem to recall this being something a CHL classmate was trying to explain, and the instructor was nodding in agreement. But, I was trying to listen to the other instructor's answer of another question (tag-team teachers are sometimes a blessing, sometimes not-so-much).

To another point, thanks for the link to the new legislative guidelines. I was wondering about that just this afternoon.

Question: what's the current status of entering while armed properties owned/managed by city, county, and state: i.e., Harris County Public Library, a city community center, or something to that effect? My local HCPL branch still has the ghostbusters sign in the window. Is that legit - not because of the sign, but because it's a county facility?

Thanks,
Q

[C-dub]

Gunbuster signs are meaningless to CHL holders unless it is federal property. And even then it's only a reminder.


Hmm. What if I'm walking from my house to a friends house and I walk through the schools parking lot? As long as I have my CHL I think I'm okay. Right?

[ScottDLS]

To me It means that you now have a defense to a prosecution, NOT that you can't/won't be prosecuted. If the place should be posted 51% and you know that it should then carrying there is a choice for you to make. Having a defense to a prosecution is nice, but from a practical point of view whether you have this new defense or not if you are caught you can still be prosecuted and if you are then you will be having a bad day regardless. Just MO of course.

Carrying a handgun with a CHL was only a Defense to Prosecution until the law changed in '97. If you have a defense to prosecution, presumably your prosecution will be unsuccessful. The defense is that the bar didn't post a sign, not that you knew/or should have known that it was off limits.