I posted this at Glocktalk as well, but interested in opinions here as well. I should add that in VA, CHL holders are not required to inform LEOs that they are armed and it is my policy not to do so unless I am asked to step out of the car (or under other circumstances that warrant disclosure):

Ok, got stopped and given a verbal warning 2nite by one of our local officers for speeding. I was not carrying a handgun. Now, rants about the low limits in Williamsburg aside (I think he was really more concerned about DUI, as the bars were just closing and it was New Years), I shut the car off and turned the lights on. Kept hands on top of wheel.
Officer took license/reg and came back. Handed me my license and reg and THEN asked if I was "carrying a weapon in the car." The truth is I had an unloaded and cased M4 in the trunk, but I told him "No" because I assumed he saw me flagged as a CHL holder and was concerned about an accessible handgun. But why ask me that so far into the stop, and what would he have said/done next if I were carrying and had said "yes"? He just let me go after that and I thanked him and told him I would slow down.

Just seems odd to me. Maybe he wanted to tell me to let him or another officer know immediately next time if I was armed?

The answer you got over at GT was most likely on the mark, ref: the stop needing to be concluded before he could initiate further inquiries which might give him cause for a search.

There is also the possibility that after he ran your DL he was then aware of your having a CHL. Some states give the LEO that info when the DL return comes back.

Not to change the subject....  but. I just moved to VA and my permit should be here in a week. Being a shall issue state, no training was req. Can you tell me any other laws i should know about? It's not my first permit so i know the basics, wasn't sure about the pullover thing till now. WA you don't have to tell, MI you do. Do you know where i can get a full copy of the regs? Is there one?

[URL]www.state.va.us[/URL]

Main thing you need to be aware of is that you are not allowed to carry concealed (open is ok) in any place that serves alcohol foron premises consumption, regardless of whether YOU are drinking. So if you go to Ruby Tuesday's to eat, it either stays in the car or you "unconceal" it if you think you can get away with it.

You are not required to inform LEOs that you are carrying, and I generally don't unless they specifically ask or if I were to be asked out of the car or told to do something else that would lead to it being found.

I believe schools and state parks are off-limits also in VA.  So are state and county courthouses.  Obviously, post offices and other Federal Buildings are a given.

There’s also some strange problem with local ordinances in the Chesapeake area that I’ve never quite understood.

I understand your VA driver’s license is flagged in the DMV computer that you’ve got a CCW.  That’s probably why the officer acted as he did.

Schools and courthouses are pretty much a given anywhere. The state parks I never heard of, and the federal one (other than courthouses) and post offices you are incorrect. It is legal to carry in those for lawful purposes. However, there is a CFR that says you may not carry any firearm for any reason in a post office, but that would seem to preclude mailing a rifle to an FFL or manufacturer (which is otherwise legal). It's like a $50 fine.