No Decency IMO

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damyankee

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Hi all, was at a wedding tonight. At the reception out of nowhere a cop who was dating one of the ladies at the reception came wearing his gun open carry style(not in uniform just a polo tee with insig on it). After my stint in the military I am definately going to pursue an LE career. My point here is that to me, that was disrespectful, even if your going to carry at a WEDDING at least CC.......

anyone agree with me? or am I being a jerk? just curious....
 
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I have a cop friend who says people like that are "badge heavy." They just can't resist showing how they are "more equal than others" at every opportunity.

Gregg
 
Maybe I am just out of the loop, but I didn't know it was considered disprespectful to carry at a wedding.

If he has just been a normal civilian open carrying, would you still have considered it rude? CCW?

Is the issue here a cop out of uniform open carrying, or someone open carrying at a wedding? And what exactly is proper wedding edicate in this regard?
 
So a police officer was carrying a gun at a wedding. So what. You say you wanna be a police officer. Maybe you should learn about police culture. There were many guys and a few girls carrying at my wedding. Some were LEOs some were farmers,ranchers and hands. I thought it was normal.

A guy should carry his best "BBQ" gun at such events. That should include his best leather too.

Perhaps you may have some personal hangup,

Now it would be "GD " disrespectful to me if they openly carried an UGLY gun.
 
Interesting. I was at a wedding in Phoenix where the minister was packing, only concealed when he was wearing his jacket. Nobody seemed to mind.

Maybe whether or not this is rude depends upon where the wedding takes place. Or maybe it depends upon whether or not one is the minister.
 
musta been a low rent reception if he was allowed in wearing a polo shirt. last i recall, a fellow is expected to wear a button up shirt, tie, and jacket to such an affair.

and yes, it does sound like he is compensating for short tackle.
 
We're all for out-gunning and out-manning the BGs right? He's a cop. I see nothing wrong with him open carrying. Depending on what state you're in, some LEA have a 24/365 policy in regards to being "on duty". Would you have had any beef with him if he was just a regular guy open carrying? If not, why be upset if he is doing something not only allowed an encouraged by his job, but usually encouraged by us as well.

I am planning on being a LEO too. And I will probably open carry much more when I am. I know a few people on this forum have a pretty "the cops are against us" attitude, but I don't. I know a handful are bad apples, just like any other job, but I think most are out there for the right reasons in the right way. As long as he's not hassling others for jollies, I see nothing wrong with another one of the good guys out making and armed impression on any would-be BGs.
 
Sorry, but I don't see the problem... especially if he was wearing a department polo identifying him as a police officer.
 
"In Georgia, carrying (even with a permit) at a wedding reception would probably be illegal, at least for non-LEO's."

Why? Are weddings covered in the law there?

Or, are you thinking that all weddings are in churches?
 
Was he carrying casually or did he want to make sure everyone saw it? Like my mom used to say,"It's not what you said,it's how you said it." I guess that can apply to how you carry as well. Although most people,even anti's,don't mind a cop carrying at a wedding.

I'd have more of a problem with the polo...'course I went to one friend's wedding in Tony Lama's, nice jeans and a button-down shirt and I was the best dressed guy there.:rolleyes:
 
Guntalk (that's Tom, right?),

Yes, any wedding in a church would definitely be off limits to carry. If the wedding reception was on church property, that would definitely be off limits too.

Also, as you probably know, Georgia has a very vague ban on carrying at a "public gathering". Nobody in Georgia, including the Attorney General and the courts, seems to have any idea what exactly is and is not a public gathering. The Attorney General has released some "unofficial" statements about what might or might not be a public gathering, but this does little to clarify the question.

It is conceivable that local police officers would interpret a wedding reception as a public gathering. Whether or not that charge would later stand is unknown, but it would sure ruin the wedding reception for someone to get busted, even if they were later absolved. I think you could argue in court that a wedding reception is private and not public, but it would be hard to convince the police at the scene of that, especially if it was held at a facility otherwise open to the public such as a meeting hall or hotel ball room.

Police are not well informed on this issue. About 6 months ago, a man was arrested for carrying into a Wal Mart store, on the grounds that Wal Mart was a public gathering. I believe he was later absolved of any crime. Gun show organizers in Georgia also use the "public gathering" clause to prohibit carry.

The bottom line is, the local police will have a lot of say in deciding what they think is and is not a public gathering, and while they may later have to reverse their opinion, the vagueness of the law has a chilling effect on carry at public events in Georgia.
 
The only thing that'd offend me is if he was carrying it in something ugly like an Uncle Mike's.

Always wear your best to a wedding.
 
I'm with justashooter

The disrespect was showing up at a wedding without a jacket and tie.
 
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This is too vague and the original poster has responded to any of the questions you have all asked, so...

I'm gonna go with the cop on this one, and assume he was on sort of "on call" situation. If I was a cop, I'd never be without a sidearm, no matter what.

My father in law is a professional firefighter, and he always has his fire/ambulance pager on him. If it went off during a wedding, sure, that'd be a disturbance. But "no decency"... that's a little harsh.

I wouldn't have given this a second thought, other than being appreciative there's a cop at my wedding.
 
Maybe he was working.
We had rented a hall for my 1st marrage that required security after 10 pm if booze was served. They allowed you to choose either their guards or you could provide your own ( approved of course, not Uncle Jim). We ended up with a off duty county cop in uniform from 10 until they shut down the party.

Just a thought..........
 
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