Unarmed Florida CCW Gun Owner, Unwelcome in Maryland

[SHORT-N-SASSY]

[SIZE="3"]"The state of Florida might have codified his Second Amendment rights, but he knew he'd be passing through states where recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions affirming the rights of individuals to keep and bear arms have been met by hostile legislatures and local officials." (http://tbo.com/list/columns-tjackson/jac...-20140112/)

ETA: Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA) response to the Tampa Tribune article (http://www.facebook.com/TheMDTA/posts/78...ream_ref=5)
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[Variable]

Thanks for posting this.

I would have been insanely angry. I'm not sure I would have had the restraint to handle that as well as he did.

[montana]

Ninety minutes later, or maybe it was two hours — “It felt like forever,” Kally says — no weapon found and their possessions repacked, the episode ended ... with the officer writing out a warning for speeding 71 mph in a 55 mph zone.

“All that time, he's humiliating me in front of my family, making me feel like a criminal,” John says. “I've never been to prison, never declared bankruptcy, I pay my taxes, support my 20 employees' families; I've never been in any kind of trouble.”

Face red, eyes shining, John pounds his knees. “And he wants to put me in jail. He wants to put me in jail. For no reason. He wants to take my wife and children away and put me in jail. In America, how does such a thing happen? ... And after all that, he didn't even write me a ticket.”

How does this happen in America, " It happens when people vote for the wrong people" plain and simple.

[tplace]

Anyone know where this stands now? Was the officer ever disciplined?

[Kikn]

Anyone know where this stands now? Was the officer ever disciplined?

Why would he be in trouble?

He is just a mindless drone following orders from politicians. He was doing their bidding, it's exactly what his superiors asked for.

The one that need to be held accountable for such travesties are the politicians that made the laws that put them both in that position. Politicians that make laws that are later deemed unconstitutional should be tried for treason. IMO

[cory]

....The one that need to be held accountable for such travesties are the politicians that made the laws that put them both in that position. Politicians that make laws that are later deemed unconstitutional should be tried for treason. IMO

Agreed!!!

[NugginFutz]

In contrast to the case where the newly minted CCW license holder traveled into New Jersey a with her weapon in ignorance of their law, this person took the safe course and locked his up before traveling. That should have been the end of the story.

What concerns me is that a bunch of glorified Mall Cops, the MDTA, were so easily able to determine the driver was also a gun owner. Although the MDTA is being cagey about how they knew, it was likely his Conceal Carry license from Florida that they discovered. They have license plate readers, some are connected to Criminal Background Check programs and Permit/License Holder lists from the different states that will supply them with that information. This is troublesome enough, but even more troubling, it became a case of guilt before innocence, resulting in hyperbolic response by the mall cop (I mean MDTA) to summon backup and totally subject this family to state sponsored terror. It is also interesting to note that according to Maryland law, a driver is NOT required to inform an officer that they have a CCW license or are carrying a weapon during a traffic stop. (link)

So my question is this: Are we now to the point where the lawful exercise of our 2nd Amendment rights is now considered a threat, and reason to detain a citizen? On the face of it, this incident would appear to say so.

[Slappy]

In Texas it is made available if your license is ran, if you are a CHL holder it is part of your license info. It is not on your DL but it does come up on the DL check. BANG BANG!!

[cory]

In contrast to the case where the newly minted CCW license holder traveled into New Jersey a with her weapon in ignorance of their law, this person took the safe course and locked his up before traveling. That should have been the end of the story...

I completely disagree! How is making your family and yourself a soft target the safe thing?

[NugginFutz]

I completely disagree! How is making your family and yourself a soft target the safe thing?

Cory - I wasn't really speaking toward personal safety. Perhaps a better choice of words would have been "he attempted to avoid any misunderstandings" while traveling through the eastern seaboard. He specifically said it wasn't worth the potential problems. Whether we agree with him or not, his actions were intended to specifically avoid this type of incident.

[LRRPF52]

Easy solution to this: Don't travel through enemy territory. It's the same response I have when people complain about their children being mistreated in public school or daycare. You know what those places are about, so why complain when they deliver?

In the meantime, we need to support the enforcement of the Constitution in States that have been taken over by imbeciles, since there are good people being violated there on a daily basis.

[lamrith]

This is a really old story, and MD is a complete nightmare with respect to gun laws as are many Eastern states (NJ, NY, MA) Just curious why it is being brought up again and stirring everyone up?

Driver could have diffused the situation before being asked to exit his vehicle by asking why he was being pulled over to begin with and what was probable cause for the stop. This cop had no probable cause or justification for the stop, and realizing they have someone that knows their rights can often alter the course of the interaction. Instead he went on a fishing expedition and got a nibble. Once he has the driver out of the car and then gets a non matching answer from the wife everything changes. (not that I agree with that, just saying it does)

Best thing though is to talk to our family members ahead of time and tell them to keep mouth shut and not offer guesses at anything when speaking with the police or anyone for that matter. If they do not know something for a fact, keep mouth shut. "I don't know" from the wife and it would not have escalated like it did. Her making a comment it could be in the vehicle gave the out of line officer the probable cause he needed to go gustapo. My wife and kids know that we do not speak to anyone about the fact that I carry, even a LEO. Those questions are for me and me only to answer.

[bwaites]

When the British stopped American ships and searched them, then forced Americans to serve on their ships because they were still supposedly "British subjects" it caused the War of 1812.

Wonder how far we are from that?

[biodsl]

This is a really old story, and MD is a complete nightmare with respect to gun laws as are many Eastern states (NJ, NY, MA) Just curious why it is being brought up again and stirring everyone up?

Driver could have diffused the situation before being asked to exit his vehicle by asking why he was being pulled over to begin with and what was probable cause for the stop. This cop had no probable cause or justification for the stop, and realizing they have someone that knows their rights can often alter the course of the interaction. Instead he went on a fishing expedition and got a nibble. Once he has the driver out of the car and then gets a non matching answer from the wife everything changes. (not that I agree with that, just saying it does)

Best thing though is to talk to our family members ahead of time and tell them to keep mouth shut and not offer guesses at anything when speaking with the police or anyone for that matter. If they do not know something for a fact, keep mouth shut. "I don't know" from the wife and it would not have escalated like it did. Her making a comment it could be in the vehicle gave the out of line officer the probable cause he needed to go gustapo. My wife and kids know that we do not speak to anyone about the fact that I carry, even a LEO. Those questions are for me and me only to answer.

Perhaps not all of us had heard this story before. I don't disagree with anything in your post. It's good advice. Let's not forget the most important point of this story; an over aggressive officer abusing his authority. It's not okay to pull a motorist without probable cause. An out-of-state license plate is not probable cause. Being a CCW holder is not probable cause. This 'transportation' cop needs to be held accountable for violating the rights of the citizen.

[lamrith]

Perhaps not all of us had heard this story before. I don't disagree with anything in your post. It's good advice. Let's not forget the most important point of this story; an over aggressive officer abusing his authority. It's not okay to pull a motorist without probable cause. An out-of-state license plate is not probable cause. Being a CCW holder is not probable cause. This 'transportation' cop needs to be held accountable for violating the rights of the citizen.

I certainly don't disagree with anything in yours either. This Officer was most certainly well beyond his authority or any probable cause to have even pulled them over, let alone pull the driver out of the vehicle.

[Mountain Man]

I lived in MD most of my life until the gun laws forced me out 2 years ago. None of this is surprising at all, and they are just as hard on the locals about enforcing their draconian gun laws. State-level police have a very well interlinked computer in their patrol cars that gives them access to a lot of data from different sources. Because of MD's recent push to tighter gun laws, it would not be unreasonable to think the Police are given information about drivers cross-checked with CCW permit holder lists. MD does not allow reciprocity with any other state's CCW permit, and MD permits are notoriously difficult to acquire.

Had plenty of interesting encounters with Transportation Authority while living there as my daily commute took me across the Chesapeake Bay bridge, a 5 mile span with tolls, where MDTA was the primary Law Enforcement agency.