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I am fairly new to Texas and CHL lifestyle and I am confused about the 30.06 sign.

If I missed the properly posted 30.06 sign and some how I accidentally print/displayed the gun, can I be convicted Class A misdemeanor? Or is the conviction only possible when I refused to leave the business?

BCGlocker wrote:I am fairly new to Texas and CHL lifestyle and I am confused about the 30.06 sign.

If I missed the properly posted 30.06 sign and some how I accidentally print/displayed the gun, can I be convicted Class A misdemeanor? Or is the conviction only possible when I refused to leave the business?

Printing is not illegal. To be illegal, it must be discernible to the average person that it is a gun and then I think it is just called failure to conceal.

Next, not seeing a properly posted 30.06 sign, because they are not always prominently displayed at every entrance, hasn't been challenged in court yet to my knowledge. However, it is possible that one could be convicted and it would currently be a Class A misdemeanor. IIRC, a change to that in this session will make it a Class C misdemeanor. Moving along, though, if it did escalate to a refusal to leave it would then be criminal trespassing and I don't remember if that is still a Class A or something more serious.

Let's rephrase my question by asking if I am perfectly willing to leave, can they still charge me because I did not see the sign?

BCGlocker wrote:Let's rephrase my question by asking if I will perfectly willing to leave, can they still charge me because I did not see the sign?

Most probably not.

Let me add, there is no more failure to conceal. It is now Intentionally Display your firearm in the presence of a person in a public place.

Reading the current law strictly (IMHO, IANAL, etc), you could be convicted if you missed seeing a 30.06 sign and were discovered in the posted building carrying a concealed handgun. The way the law reads now you have "received notice" if a sign meeting the requirements of the statute was posted, even if you didn't see it.

Realistically though, it doesn't seem to happen. IIRC the latest DPS stats for 2013 show seven CHL holders convicted for unlawful carry by a license holder, and the year before that it was 10. It would not surprise me to find out that those cases involved more than simply walking past a sign, unseen or not, and someone happened to notice the person had a concealed handgun. I'll wager there was an "event" that brought police attention to those who were ultimately convicted.

Conceal well, keep a sharp eye out, and welcome to Texas!

ELB wrote:Reading the current law strictly (IMHO, IANAL, etc), you could be convicted if you missed seeing a 30.06 sign and were discovered in the posted building carrying a concealed handgun. The way the law reads now you have "received notice" if a sign meeting the requirements of the statute was posted, even if you didn't see it.

Realistically though, it doesn't seem to happen. IIRC the latest DPS stats for 2013 show seven CHL holders convicted for unlawful carry by a license holder, and the year before that it was 10. It would not surprise me to find out that those cases involved more than simply walking past a sign, unseen or not, and someone happened to notice the person had a concealed handgun. I'll wager there was an "event" that brought police attention to those who were ultimately convicted.

Conceal well, keep a sharp eye out, and welcome to Texas!

Thank you so much. Coming from Kalifornia, I am very much enjoying the Free State of Texas!

BCGlocker wrote:

ELB wrote:Reading the current law strictly (IMHO, IANAL, etc), you could be convicted if you missed seeing a 30.06 sign and were discovered in the posted building carrying a concealed handgun. The way the law reads now you have "received notice" if a sign meeting the requirements of the statute was posted, even if you didn't see it.

Realistically though, it doesn't seem to happen. IIRC the latest DPS stats for 2013 show seven CHL holders convicted for unlawful carry by a license holder, and the year before that it was 10. It would not surprise me to find out that those cases involved more than simply walking past a sign, unseen or not, and someone happened to notice the person had a concealed handgun. I'll wager there was an "event" that brought police attention to those who were ultimately convicted.

Conceal well, keep a sharp eye out, and welcome to Texas!

Thank you so much. Coming from Kalifornia, I am very much enjoying the Free State of Texas!

If HB910 passes it gets a little more freer. Under the bill walking past a 30.06 sign would be a Class C with max $200 fine unless you were personally given verbal notice by someone in authority that carry was prohibited and still refused to leave at which point it would become a Class A.

C-dub wrote:

BCGlocker wrote:I am fairly new to Texas and CHL lifestyle and I am confused about the 30.06 sign.

If I missed the properly posted 30.06 sign and some how I accidentally print/displayed the gun, can I be convicted Class A misdemeanor? Or is the conviction only possible when I refused to leave the business?

Printing is not illegal. To be illegal, it must be discernible to the average person that it is a gun and then I think it is just called failure to conceal.

Next, not seeing a properly posted 30.06 sign, because they are not always prominently displayed at every entrance, hasn't been challenged in court yet to my knowledge. However, it is possible that one could be convicted and it would currently be a Class A misdemeanor. IIRC, a change to that in this session will make it a Class C misdemeanor. Moving along, though, if it did escalate to a refusal to leave it would then be criminal trespassing and I don't remember if that is still a Class A or something more serious.

There is no such thing as printing. The definitions of concealed handgun found in 411 only applies to the term concealed handgun when that term is used within 411.

It matters not that someone may discern that you have a handgun. To violate the statute you must intentionally display the handgun in view of a person in a public place. Not even a private place!

If you are properly notified by 30.06 and proceed onto the property you are in violation.

Tex

BCGlocker wrote:Let's rephrase my question by asking if I am perfectly willing to leave, can they still charge me because I did not see the sign?

Yes, you can be charged and you can be convicted. However, it is unlikely that you would be arrested if you left.

Chas.

Beiruty, thanks for reminding me on the "failure to conceal" thing.

The Texan, really, no such thing as printing? I already stated that it was not illegal and Beiruty correctly reminded me that the statute was changed to "intentionally displays", which even further negates printing so severe that could have lead to a failure to conceal situation. I had a friend many years ago that considered a snug white t-shirt sufficient concealment even though I could tell what model gun he was carrying. He had not informed me that he had a CHL and I hadn't told him of mine yet either. We went to pick up some burgers for us and some friends one afternoon and this is when I saw his gun and asked him about it. If he were charged with failure to conceal back then and I were on the jury it would have been difficult for me to find him not guilty. I'm really not sure how that would or should be interpreted today with the current verbiage of the statute.