TexasCHLforum.com

Please keep in mind that 46.02 will change significantly on Sept. 1, six weeks from now.

- Jim

TXI,

As always you are full of information. When something isn't addressed properly it usually becomes a gray area. It appears the stature doesn't address CONCEALING a long gun in a vehicle or in public.

I hope I haven't missed anything at this point. It appears though a LEO could make a charge that a rifle behind a seat or hidden was a concealed weapon as a rifle is definetly considered a weapon.

I am not arguing here, just trying to understand the rules as applied to OPEN CARRY of a long gun. I didn't ask the original question but since I had been informed you could be charged with a concealed weapon if the rifle was not in plain view ( hidden or concealed). As the original poster has said, he received conflicting information from different LEO's. I again wonder if the law is unclear on concealing a long gun.

I guess the bottom line is I know if the rifle is in plain view (open carry) that I am within the law. It appears that the law may be unclear as to a concealed rifle and I don't think I would want to be the test case.

There is no Texas law that says, "it is an offense to carry a concealed firearm" or "a firearm shall be carried in plain view" (except for security guards). Because there is no such law, it is legal to carry a concealed long gun.

Some other states do have such laws.

- Jim

seamusTX wrote:There is no Texas law that says, "it is an offense to carry a concealed firearm" or "a firearm shall be carried in plain view" (except for security guards). Because there is no such law, it is legal to carry a concealed long gun.

Some other states do have such laws.

- Jim

I thought that there was an offense to carrying a concealed weapon? Unless I have my facts wrong I thought that people could be charged with carrying a concealed weapon.

Maybe I am having a "brain fart" today.

Mike1951 wrote:I use the Rifle-It.

http://www.vdpusa.com/07-cat3.html

But it wasn't ok without some serious modifications.

I want one!

Right2Carry wrote:I thought that there was an offense to carrying a concealed weapon? Unless I have my facts wrong I thought that people could be charged with carrying a concealed weapon.

You may have read something like that in a newspaper or heard it on TV. They make up or garble charges.

A person carrying a handgun without a CHL* is guilty of "unlawful carry weapons," as described above in PC 46.02. It doesn't matter if the handgun is concealed or not, loaded or not.

*and not subject to an exception like traveling.

There are many charges that exist in other states that do not exist in Texas. We don't have rape, breaking and entering, or grand theft auto, for example.

- Jim

Right2Carry wrote:TXI,

As always you are full of information. When something isn't addressed properly it usually becomes a gray area. It appears the stature doesn't address CONCEALING a long gun in a vehicle or in public.

I hope I haven't missed anything at this point. It appears though a LEO could make a charge that a rifle behind a seat or hidden was a concealed weapon as a rifle is definetly considered a weapon.

There is no charge in Texas about a "concealed weapon". The law is not unclear AT ALL. If the law does not proscribe conduct, it is legal. No law in Texas proscribes the carry of a concealed weapon.
Specifically, no law in Texas proscribes the carry, concealed or not, of long guns other than what I have described.

Right2Carry wrote:

seamusTX wrote:There is no Texas law that says, "it is an offense to carry a concealed firearm" or "a firearm shall be carried in plain view" (except for security guards). Because there is no such law, it is legal to carry a concealed long gun.

Some other states do have such laws.

- Jim

I thought that there was an offense to carrying a concealed weapon? Unless I have my facts wrong I thought that people could be charged with carrying a concealed weapon.

Maybe I am having a "brain fart" today.

LOL I quoted the specific laws, and I included a link to ALL Texas weapons laws. Show me "carrying a concealed weapon".

Thanks to TXI for the valuable information. From the information I've garnered and after reading the laws, I'm not afraid to carry a shotgun concealed.

On that note, I will say that many LEOs are not clear on laws (as they are not lawyers) and might arrest me for carrying in that manner, a concealed weapon. I'm not afraid of that generally because I haven't been pulled over in years. There is always the chance of a car accident, though.

At any rate, I'm sure a public defender could get you out of those charges.

If you're carrying a concealed long gun in your vehicle, the police would need a good reason to search and find it. They are not going to bring a weapon charge if you are in an accident.

Some Texas police officials actually complain that they can't arrest people who have long guns in vehicles, so they do know the law. Every legislative session they try to change it so that it will be an offense for minors.

- Jim

govnor wrote: From the information I've garnered and after reading the laws, I'm not afraid to carry a shotgun concealed.

Here ya go:

Andrews custom leather.

Wow, I am late to this party. TXI has beat me again with the laws and is correct. I think most cops do know that a long gun is not illegal (and I really have no idea why anyone bothered Jim Dark). The ones I know are also all aware that black powder firearms are not considered firearms for the unlawfully carrying law. They may not be up on all of the fine points, like year of manufacture for that exemption, but they know the general rules.

I do not recommend the old Bubba racks, though I see nothing wrong with them. I just say to avoid them since they make your truck a target for car burglars (even if the gun is not in view, they think you might have it under the seat or something). The rifle-it rack looks good, but the one I like is the rack that mounts it along the front edge of the seat. This gives you easy access to it as you exit the vehicle if you need it, and at the same time keeps it out of normal view to prevent trouble. I have seen some truck seat covers that even have a pouch built in along the front of the seat for this.

Doing a quick search, I found this which might also work:
http://www.sportsmansguide.com/cb/cb.asp?a=88673

Unfortunately, I couldn't find the kind I was talking about - a metal two prong system that bolted underneath the seat and held the gun against the front under the drivers knees.

srothstein wrote:Unfortunately, I couldn't find the kind I was talking about - a metal two prong system that bolted underneath the seat and held the gun against the front under the drivers knees.

30 years ago, I had a setup that consisted of two brackets that fit in front of the seat, which were made from plastic coated rod bent into shape, that attached to the underside of the seat with springs that held them in place. It worked well with the bench seat.

I researched several overhead racks that I steered clear of because I couldn't determine for certain whether my overhead would accept the fastening hardware.

The Rifle-It was unsatisfactory as it came from the box. It mounted low enough that I could see my shotgun while standing in front of my truck. You will lose a couple of inches of visibility at the top of youir windshield so you must decide if this is acceptable. I am rather tall, but I can see forward with no problem. If I'm sitting at a red light, I have to move my head to see the red light.

Also, the foam that came with it was too thin. My sun visors remounted to the bottom of the rifle-it with screws that might have scratched the firearm.

I bought some 2" foam and some vinyl fabric that matched my interior. I cut a piece of the fabric and secured one edge under the interior molding above the windshield. I let it fold forward filling the previous visible gap, folded it back over the 2" foam, and secured the other edge folded under the foam. The added thickness of the foam provides enough resistance against the headliner when the firearm is inserted to secure the firearm.

As modified, I really like it. It easily holds my riot guns or Mini-14.

If I remember correctly, years ago there was an incident involving a motorcade carrying Patrick J Buchanan when he was a presidential candidate giving a speech at UTD in Dallas. There was a suspicious car following the motorcade who was stopped by the security detail escorting him around town. A big thing was made by the media of the fact that they found a loaded pistol grip shotgun concealed in his car. They had to let him go because he had broken no law. I agree with TXI and srothstein that carrying a loaded shotgun concealed or not is perfectly legal in Texas.

Great summary, TXi. I'd edit the 46.05 section to include the exemptions, though. Otherwise, someone could get the mistaken idea that machine guns, silencers, short barreled firearms, etc., are outright illegal in Texas, and that's not the case.

(c) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that
the actor's possession was pursuant to registration pursuant to the
National Firearms Act, as amended.