I had a run in with a CCW'er last night...

[rebelracer79]

wow, good thing she wasn't pulled over by two jumpy cops, or even if she had a shady apperance I could see where that could get her shot. I havn't been pulled over since I got my CCL, but I hope I can just do my part right.

 

[Buzzdraw]

One lesson from this thread is that the backup officer cannot instantly be aware of info gained by the primary. The second lesson is that the SDA carrier must be alert for the presence on scene of officers other than those initially contacted.

 

[MrShooter]

It's all too often that I keep seeing posts and threads that discuss how horribly wrong the police are when dealing with CCW permit holders, how we are relegated and compared to thugs, Nazi's, how were stupid and don't think and how we get the law wrong, how we don't use any common sense. Do you ever think that perhaps there are CCW's out there that don't think either and are part of the problem....

Well let me start by telling a story....Last night I pull in right behind another officer who is initiating a traffic stop He goes to make contact with the driver and I provide cover by making a passenger side approach. We both make it to the car at the same time, the windows are down and there are two passengers in the vehicle, the driver and the front seat passenger, both are young women.

I hear my partner tell the driver that he had stopped her for her excessive speed and ask for her driver's license and insurance verification. I see the driver hand my partner what appears to be a driver's license and as soon as she hands him the ID without pausing she leans over and opens the glove compartment and too my surprise I see a Glock sitting in the glove box with her hand centimeters from it...

At that point my buttholle puckers a little, I draw my gun while issuing commands and yelling gun so my partner knows whats going on...I end up pointing my gun at the passenger and the driver while yelling attempting to control the situation....

Now as Paul Harvey used to say...The rest of the story....When my partner asked for her driver's license and insurance unbeknownst to me the driver handed him a driver's license and a CCW permit and without pausing she went to go get her insurance verification that she keeps in the glove box...right next to her glock.

I have no idea she just gave my partner the CCW permit and I don't know if she is getting ready to get her insurance or pull a gun and start shooting. The reality of police contact with citizens is that we do not know what you are going to do. You could be the sweetest, nicest, cutest thing on the planet and we still don't know if your just standing there with a smile on your face and murder in you heart or if your are what you appear to be.

Now let me say that this Young Lady did not break any laws but her absent mindedness almost got her shot...

It was legal for her to carry, It was legal for her to carry in her car, She made proper notification as required by law, and I applaud her for having her gun with her. I think every american that can legally do so should carry a gun everywhere they go. But... she could have slowed down and done better.

Advice to other CCW holders when you are on a traffic stop....

1. Keep your hands visible, turn on your dome light if you can before the officer gets to your vehicle.

2. At the first opportunity make notification to the officer that you are a CCW permit holder, provide him a copy of that permit and your Identification.

3. Pause and Wait for instructions or questions from the officer (Like, Do you have your gun with you know...Where do you keep your gun ect....) By pausing and waiting you give the officer time to process what is going on and to more importantly let other officers present know what is going on so when the glove box opens and the cover officer sees a gun you don't get at .357 sig screwed into your ear.

4. I recommend that if you carry a gun in a vehicle that you never keep it with important papers like your insurance or registration. ( I highly recomend that you carry on your person and not in the glove box or center console...the gun is easily left behind or forgotten when you get out of the car and it just happens to magically appear when you go to get those papers when asked for them by LE.)

5. If you do have the gun in the glove box with your insurance...get clarification from the officer that it's OK to get your insurance. Say something like, "Officer, as I just told you I have a loaded gun in my glove box, that is where my insurance is in the vehicle do you want me to get the insurance verification now?" pause and wait for a response from the officer he or she will tell you what to do next. 99 percent of the time we will tell you to get the insurance.

6. After you have given the officer your paperwork sit calmly in the vehicle with your hands on the steering wheel and wait for your verbal warning, written warning, or citation.

AS I said earlier that this girl did nothing wrong legally she did not exercise very good common sense.

Now let me tell you what happened....after my partner told me she had a CCW and I calmed down, said a few choice words, and cleaned the brown of of my backside I chose to use this as an opportunity for education on her part because I am a advocate for CCW I did not want this girl to be scared and not to ever carry again.

while my partner was calling in her information I began speaking to her at her drivers side window. I first apologized for frightening her and her passenger and I then told her why I had pulled a gun on them. She seemed to under stand my point of view. I then told her what to do in the future if she has contact with the police on a traffic shop and she has her gun with her. I then urged her to use this as a lesson and I then thanked her for exercising her constitutional rights and urged her to continue to do so...

Over the years I have seen CCW permit holders do some really stupid things and guess what guys...every time a police officer meets a stupid CCW holder acting stupidly they take that experience with them and you all get a bad rap.

If you act properly the police will act properly....Nuf said.

Just putting this out there, Im sure anyone who has said any negative comments about a police officer who did wrong ( and was fired for his actions ), that was only commenting on that PARTICULAR individual. Not every law enforcement entity. Our LEO's are great people who want to do good for our communities and I have much respect for them, especially being in the COPS program.

We are ALL people and people do stupid things.

On a side note: I agree with you 110%. You handled the situation as it should have been. Being that I thought it was required to verbally announce that you have a gun and are a permit holder. As i always do, met very many nice LEOs that way... when in a traffic stop or checking an tripped alarm on any of my businesses.

 

[kinggabby]

I don't have my CCW yet but this will be taken to heart for when I do. Thank you for sharing this post. Keep up the good work and stay safe out there.

 

[jimeradams]

Excellent post, OP! Thanks for your insightful comments on what can be a very nervewracking part of law enforcement!

 

[gillman7]

I believe in clear communication as well. It is my practice that as the officer gets out of his car and starts walking toward mine, to roll down my window, and yell "I have a gun, I have a gun" as loud as I can so they are aware I have a CCW badge. It is amazing how police officers overreact when they run into a real patriot.

 

[gerhard1]

Many years ago when I lived in the state of Washington, a co-worker told me about an encounter that a friend of his had with the Washington State Patrol.

The friend had been pulled over and he had his papers in the glove box, but he also had his handgun in the same place. Perfectly legal, but when he got his registration out of the box his gun was also visible, and this rather upset the trooper. Everything worked out but when the traffic stop was over with the last thing the trooper did was to give the driver an enrmous paperclip and strongly suggested that the driver clip the paperwork to the sunvisor when he had the gun in the glove boix.

This is something that I took to heart and have always done.

 

[AKguy1985]

I keep my insurance in my wallet, that way i am not reaching in the glovebox for anything. I just wish the OHP and RCSO would educate their officers that Utah non resident carry permit is legal and recognized in oklahoma. All the contacts i've had in the past year with LE none of them have ever heard of it.

 

[GlockCop]

I believe in clear communication as well. It is my practice that as the officer gets out of his car and starts walking toward mine, to roll down my window, and yell "I have a gun, I have a gun" as loud as I can so they are aware I have a CCW badge. It is amazing how police officers overreact when they run into a real patriot.

I LOLd.

 

[trade_sniper]

Don't we have it in the on-board computers in the cruisers yet that we possess a CCL? Seems like I remember hearing something about that a while back. When you run our tag during the initial stop? Shouldn't that show insurance also? Will be nice when we don't have to carry insurance verification. Or do those things only come up after you run our DL number? I would think the insurance would be associated with the tag, but maybe the CCL is associated with our DL?

I agree 100% with the way you handled the situation.