open carry

[norwood]

do any of you open carry? just wondering how many of you feel about open carrying. And if you do do you open carry a loaded weapon? i always understood you could open carry but it could not be loaded.. so what is the point then?  just curious what people here think of this subject. If it has been discussed here already i appologize i could not seem to find the topic anywhere.

also does anyone know if you are allowed to carry concealed on your own property? say in your yard or driveway?

Jon

[Moosie]

Jon,

I do not open carry. I carry concealed so that no one knows I'm carrying a firearm.  I'm always puzzled about those who are not law enforcement and are determined to carry a gun openly.  It certainly is your constitutional right to bear arms.  In  DE you can carry openly with a loaded gun.  However, if you choose to do so, be prepared to be detained and questioned by the long arm of the law.  You can be arrested for causing something along the lines of causing a disturbance.  (Not sure if this is the exact charge).

As for carrying a gun concealed on your own property, i believe that if it's outside your residence that you can be arrested for carrying a concealed deadly weapon. That said, who would know you were carrying concealed unless you showed it to someone or pulled it out to use it. 

If you have a specific concern / situation, there are other ways to protect yourself without carrying concealed. 

There is another forum for open carry.  Cant remember the site address, but try googling them.

Rebecca

[norwood]

Rebecca

   I agree with you about open carrying. It is our right but a right i would rather not deal with the hassles that come with exercising it. I have been to that open carry site and those guys have balls to exercise their open carrying rights. power to them. I just don't have the time to deal with being detained for something like that. i support them but it is not my desire to open carry.   

now as fas as no one would know if i was ccw on my own property. I sure wouldn't show it to anyone  and i wouldn't pull it unless i needed to use. If i needed to use it is where it would get sticky. And i wouldnt want to lie in a statement to the state police if anything were to happen.       

you would think if on your own property you could carry concealed. Inside i open carry on my hip if i am working late in case i get the unexpected knock or pounding on the door. (it's happened before) But a lot of times im at my shop at night after dark, cleaning out, servicing the trucks outside or sometimes going in and out of the building loading up for the next day. I'm on a street that has a lot of foot traffic from the trailer parks (anyone living in a trailer park please do not take offense) back and forth to walmart or the liqueur store.  I have had some strange interactions with some of these people either asking for gas money for their car "down the road" or flat out asking for a few bucks. Usually a sharp get lost will diffuse the situation but i feel it is just a matter of time before a situation arises where i'm threatened in a bad way. I hate having to disarm myself when going out of the building yet still remaining on my own property. I guess i could open carry but would just rather not.

[trevor]

Jon,
Here's the link should anyone reading this thread need it: http://deloc.org/ A number of the folks here at deccw also are members at deloc.  They also have some info re: ccdw: http://deloc.org/ccdw.php, as well as a pretty good reference for Delaware firearm laws: http://www.deloc.org/forums/index.php?sid=cd0d47266d3f8bd714d176fe3ac54ef9 Another regional resource is http://www.pafoa.org/

I have just recently received my DE ccdw. Sure, it took some time (I started back in aug), and some money, but I'm glad I did it. It keeps you legal, and buys some peace of mind as well. Like Moosie, Open Carry did not appeal to me. There are still place where cc is precluded, but you can carry most places you'd like to. Having the ccdw for me was both simpler and imho, safer.  I added FLA and PA licenses as well. One funny thing is I now have stopped shopping in NJ and MD. They probably don't care, but I'd rather shop where I don't have to go unable to defend myself and my family.

[norwood]

trevor

   Thanks for the links i will read up on everything i can.
    
    i'd love to go for my ccw permit here in DE. And i plan to soon as i think my dui is 5 years old. Some here have said it may cause a road block or a speed bump for me so i am planning on letting a little more time pass before i apply as to possibly having a denial on my record. And spend the time educating myself in the meantime practicing with my handguns. I may go for my FL and VA Non resident CCW since they seem to be more concerned with having more then 1 dui in the past 5 years it should not effect me getting it.

Jon

[Moosie]

Trevor, thanks for posting the info on DELOC. 

Jon, I agree, those guys have balls to open carry.  It's just not my thing.  I'd also encourage you to call and talk to someone in the prothonatary's office and ask them about your DUI.  Explain to them you don't want a refusal on your application record for your CCDW, etc.  They may be able to give you some *hints* as I'm sure they aren't allowed to give you an sort of true advice.  But, it couldn't hurt to make the phone call. 

I can say that I wouldn't want to be in your shoes regarding the interactions you've had all while being on your own property.  BUT, before I say I'd be open carrying, you also need to be more aware of when *legally* you're allowed to shoot or even pull your weapon without getting in trouble, how to handle different situations, etc.  Carrying a firearm is not the answer to every situation (as we all know).  SO, how are you going to handle those... it all comes down to training and practicing.  Be sure you're doing those if you're open carrying. 

Good luck!


Moosie

[norwood]

I will give them a call and let you know what i get out of them.

and i would never pull a gun unless i saw someone reaching for his weapon. But i do plan on getting as much training on those types of situations as i can before i get my CCW. I just hope the process does not become harder over the next couple of years if i have to wait that long

jon

[Hank]

Hi Norwood/Jon.
I don't know if you know John Davis from JD Defense on Rt.9 In Georgetown going West from Rt. 113 John and His son have the range and he also runs a CCW course. John Is also a retired Georgetown police Lieutenant, and he Is sharp on the laws. I took my CCW from him and he and I see eye to eye, He Is one of the good guys and not an A hole, If you are In the area, stop In and ask him, If you need, you can tell him that I sent you, Hank, the guy who put the shelves up for him In the back room, but make sure you ask for John Sr. his sons name Is John also.

I want to get down to see him myself, I have not been over because of my wife going for chemo. If you want my last name e-mail me at
( hankandmary@comcast.net ) I don't what to pin point my self by putting my last name on this blog. And by the way his gun prices are very good, he does not keep any out but he will order them for you, If you don't mind waiting a week or so, he Is a Smith & Wesson dealer. I'm not running any adds for him, just a little FYI.

Good luck to you Jon, and for the rest of you, I guess after seeing this, you will know that things can haunt you for a long time after they are over, a word to the wise, for all.
Semper Fi all. Hank

[Sigarms12]

Just an FYI if you guys have a question for some one that you dont want posted in an open forum you can use the message system. 

[norwood]

Hank

    I have never been to JD's and do not know John that i know of. Small area so who knows I may have met him sometime and not even know it.  But I know some people who shoot there and have said good things about him. I may stop by and talk to him and sign up for his CCW class regardless of my situation just for the experience. If i do i will shoot you an e -mail. thanks for the info and advice.

right now I'm in the process of joining the Bridgeville Rifle and Pistol club.

jon

[Hank]

Hi again Jon.
I'm also a member at Bridgeville, A nice range, If you going to shoot the pistol range 25-50 Yards you may want to build some target franes to hang your targets on, they use 4' X 8' sheets of O.S.B. and some people think It's ok to patern there shotguns there and they shoot the crap out of the back stops, so bad that there's no place to hang your targets. Good luck.
Semper Fi all. Hank.

[Hank]

Hi again.
I wanted to answer the question about open carry and I got side tracked, sorry.
I don't like open carry, I think that most but not all carry for attention??? or they want to tell people to stay clear of me, I'm bad, or, I'm not someone you want to fool with??? I grew Up In New York City late 30s early 40s and as a kid we would practice looking tough and mean, we practiced with giving each other dirty looks ( If looks could kill ) and this was done to keep the bad guys away, and anyone else that may have bad Ideas.

This Is one of the reasons people think all people from New York are bad, or not so nice. they have that look about them!!! Another reason I don't like open carry Is, I don't believe In showing everyone my hold/hole card, like In poker. Some think that by showing someone that you are carring a weapon, they will try to egg you on, a crazy??? and others think because you are carring a weapon, that you are looking for trouble, and that sooner or later you will use It??? and the lists go on and on.

 Also please remember that I said I think and that I also used a lot of marks. I don't like putting everyone In the same box, everyone Is different In some way.
This Is also what I think about the open carry, and I'm not trying to tell anyone what they should do. We all march to to our own drummer.

Semper Fi all. Hank

[GunEnvy]

I kind of agree with you on this Hank. Only time I would consider open carryu would be if I were doing a late night bank drop or something, but other than that I wouldn't want the attention. Last night I was at dinner and when I stepped outside to catch a smoke my coat and shirt were caught on my gun and I could hear 2 people remark that I had a gun. That was enough attention to make me feel uncompfortable.

[norwood]

I agree Hank, and also grew up in NYC, left there when i was 27 or so

[Sigarms12]

Ok here's my feelings on OC. I purchased my first pistol at 21 and looking back on things I was far from mature enough to be carrying a loaded gun back then. I guess what I'm getting at is if you want to OC that's a choice you as an individual needs to make but the other question people should be considering which most people dont consider is am I ready to strap a gun on my side and maybe have to use it and am I mature enough to do this and yes I know the same can be said for CC but OC is a hell of a lot easier to do.