Posted: 7/22/2006 5:35:18 AM EDT
| Since it is generally held that open carry is legal in AL, does anyone actually do it? Would a LEO arrest you on sight and sort it out later? |
This has been gone over ad nauseum, and the conclusion is: some do it. I have. No problems. Choose your location intelligently, however. While I am quite comfortable doing it 'round my town of Gardendale, I would not venture into the Chief's Hoover, Al for love or money open carrying. Hell, don't even DRIVE through hoover with a large amount of money, or they will steal it from you unless you can prove it's yours. But I digress. I would also like to add that while it has generally been accepted as "legal" to open carry in AL, I for one question that based on the sentence in the law stating that "except as otherwise noted no person sghall carry about them a firearm on property not under his control", which does seem to contradict open carry. But then, there's the AG opinion that it is indeed legal. But then, that opinion was issued, when, like, in the 80's? I guess, it seems, that it is "legal by omission", and like stated, I and many others have/continue to do so, but I would advise to pick your venue wisely. Bama Shooter, what say you? What is your understanding of the law, and what is your personal and departmental policy regarding this issue? |
| I was thinking about this the other day in Wal-mart. I noticed a man who was dressed nicely and obviously not a security guard or police officer carrying openly. No one said anything to him. I guess they assumed it was ok or he wouldn't be doing something so blatant. That was the first time I've ever seen a non-LEO/security guard openly carrying in such a public place. |
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call the ag. it is legal. i've called, and talked to them in length. I was advised that it was in fact a loop hole, as there is no legistlation in place regarding the topic in either direction. I was told you can do it, but i wouldn't due to the lack of leo knowledge on the topic. Plus i just had a buddy go through the academy that Auburn pd sends you through.... he posed the question and was told yes it was legal, but not recommended. oh, and watch the places you frequent the most. Check out thier entrances. If they have it posted... you'd better not take it in with you. (IE: Montgomery, Eastdale mall; there is a sign at all "mall" entrances that states that you may not possess a firearm on the premises.) third edit.... we should start a petition to send to the govenor to sign it into law that we can carry openly. i've always been an advocate of it. |
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Hehe heh, as for the hoover police chief, I'm just a little leery. A couple years back, after a cash seizure by them, I wrote a letter to the B'ham News condemning the act of cash seizures requiring the proof of legality as being backwards to our law system which it in fact is. My letter, specifically, caused the Chief to have to call a news conference defending his actions, and i and my letter were mentioned by name. Don't think he likes me. As for cash seizures, all of you here had bloody well be terrified of this little wrinkle in our "War on Drugs(the CONSTITUTION), as it does indeed upend our supposed "innocent unitl proven guilty" premise, now doesn't it? Oh, yeah, the original subject, open carry: cool. 
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There is no law against open carry. When Charlie Graddick was the AG in about 1986 he wrote an opinion stating it was legal. I would be very cautious, lots of LEO do not know it is legal. I was involved in a lengthy discussion concerning this subject on an LEO only board. Several members stated they would hook someone up for it. Even after several of us pointed out that it is legal. Hopefully the seargent on duty will show up to unarrest the person. 
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Personally, I would not do it. My personal experience is that a lot of cops around here do not know the law. Anyway, they could arrest you for something else like disturbing the peace. I feel that it is better to play is safe than sorry.
I won't mention the police department on the Western side of Birmingham that is going thru an open vehicle on the side of the road every day that I go thru, looking for the next big haul. |
I think I'm with you on the caution issue. I was speaking to my step-son today and he was convinced that not only would all LEOs know that it was legal, they wouldn't harrass you. I told him that no, LEOs wouldn't necessarily know that it was legal, they can't know everything all the time, and that even if they did know it was legal they still might hassle you. It would all come down to who the LEO was and what their world view was. Being arrested, even if they turn around and let you go, is no fun. With that said, we did do some open carry today as an experiment and no one said peep. No LEOs were around though. He was also convinced that all LEOs would know which carry permits their state honors, and I told him no, not all of them would. The better ones would. However, like all professions you have your good ones and your not so informed ones.
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No really interesting places. We went to the Jet-Pep in Prattville, and to a U-haul place in Montgomery. Haven't tried any of the large places like Wally's World. Even if no one harasses me today, or tomorrow, someday it will happen. I've been trying to decide if the advantage of comfort and accessibility is worth that harassment when it comes. I am seriously torn on this issue. What would you guys have in the way of good covering clothes there at TacSupply? |
| just the usual 5.11 button down tops and/or the vests. I, like you, am torn on the issue. will it be worth the hassle when it happens. you've seen my every day setup. 5.11 button down with a galco holster otw. i'm not the kind of guy that looks right in a vest. we do have the 5.11 dress coats... but those are long sleeve and i'm sure could get very hot. |
You, me, boat. I have never worn a vest and it wouldn't fit with anything else I have. And I'm not sure I want to redo everything I have clothing wise to carry. On the other hand, I'm not sure I would want to deal with the "Man with gun!" calls either. |
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i have open carried several times, espcially on the way to the range. Seldom get more than a nod from anyone. Although i did get some looks saturday as i was wearing my xd45 in my blackhawk thigh rig in the gas station when headed to the range. that said, i olny do that up here where folks know me. As TCN said, i'd be VERY leary doing it south of bham. |
| did a little open carrying tonight. Went to bp station on harrison road (all montgomery), quiznos on the atlanta hwy across from head school, and books-a-million at east chase. no harrassment, although i did get asked by a patron at the book store why i was carrying openly. i educated him throughly. |
I'm curious as to what you told the person at the book store and how they reacted to your explanation. |
Ditto |
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it was a guy sitting in the cafe. i had grabbed a book on ham radios and joined my brother who was already sitting there reading a graphic novel. in a very casual way they gentleman asked if i was security. i said no sir. he then made a comment like, so why are you carrying a gun? I replied with something along the lines of, cause it's my right and it's legal. He stated that he didn't think you could carrying a firearm. I told him that in the state of alabama you could apply for a concealed carry permit, which would allow you to carry the gun hidden. I then explained to him about the two thing (brain fart on terminology... it's early) that the AG had written (one in 78 and the other in the late 80s) that stated you didn't have to have a permit to carry openly, and that there was no law against doing so. He was like, Oh, I didn't know that. He then asked about my gun, what cal it was and where he could get one. My brother and I talked to him about hooking up with the options group and taking thier basic handgun course for safety's sake and told him about the range. Out of the 9 people in quiznos, 5 at the gas station and over 30 in the bookstore he was the only one to ask about it. though i did get a few odd looks from the bookstore people. Hell i even asked two of the employees questions on where to find certain types of books.... just to see what thier reaction was going to be. it was like no one cared. |
| open carry is a common sight in downtown montgomery, where lots of LEO/state agency office types work wearing civilian clothes. Of course, they usually wear suits. I only open carry when wearing a suit; I think people assume you are some sort of detective etc. I'm guessing one would be more likely to be hassled if you were dressed very casual... |