Quote:
Originally Posted by bk9360
The explanation of that law, as it was given to me, is that just the sight of a gun can be argued as "threatening." As the language reads, its an "or" not an "and" so only one of the 3 have to apply for you to be found unlawful. If the 80 year old lady at the grocery store sees either the imprint or the gun itself because of a movement you make and it freaks her out, she has then felt threatened by the fact you have a gun. I realize its dumb, but as the law is written I do not see this as much of a stretch.
Hard thing is, LEO's have no reason to be as careful as civilians because if they are caught with a weapon "peaking" out, they can flash a badge and all is well in the world. That same 80 year old woman who is scared to death because she saw your gun would be quickly calmed if you were able to pull out your badge and say "sorry ma'am, but i'm a police officer." As for the rest of us, we must be extra careful.
Remember, its our word against theirs. If you have a trustworthy witness with you when it happens, no worries. But if its just you and the old lady...personally I'd hate to have to explain to a cop that grandma over in the corner is crying for no apparent reason and that I'm not the bad guy.
That being said, I really do not see it as a big issue. I think if the police are called on me for someone "seeing" my gun, it'd be an inconvenience for me and I'd feel bad that I've freaked someone out, but I don't see it going to court or anything criminal. However, still something to keep in mind and try to avoid as much as humanly possible.
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I think you hit the nail on the head. In our state, we are cautioned about "imprinting" and "profiling" our weapons for others to see. It's why it's called a "Concealed Weapons Permit."
The last thing you want is to alarm someone. But then again, in my neck of the woods, you see open carry a lot.