CCWP in Florida and traffic stops.

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Miguel Santa

Miguel Santa

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As a responsible gun owner, what is your duty when a police officer stops you for a traffic violation? I believe that if you have a CCWP when he/she runs your license it will definitely come up. So if you are carrying your weapon in your car, what do you do? Let say I don't have a license, my firearm is in a case in the back seat and I get stopped, what do I say or do?
 
You are completely incorrect. Your CWFL (Concealed Weapon Firearm License) is NOT connected to your DL. That permit is issued by the AG Commissioner.

There is also NO duty to inform in Florida

There is no requirement to have a permit to transport your gun.

Perhaps you had better read the FL statutes
 
Thanks for the clarification, I did read the Florida statutes, but it is not clear if an officer asks if I am carrying or have a gun in the car.
 
Miguel Santa said:
Thanks for the clarification, I did read the Florida statutes, but it is not clear if an officer asks if I am carrying or have a gun in the car.
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If an officer specifically asks you should answer truthfully. I would NEVER volunteer the information unless legally required to do so.

I haven't been asked in over 12 years but the last time I was I said nothing and handed him my permit. He immediately began screaming at me and threatened to take me to jail. I shut up until he got done screaming and told me He was going to let me go with a warning.
 
You are not required to volunteer the information. Answer truthfully if asked directly. Just make sure your weapon is "Securely Encased," and you SHOULD be golden if the LEO is experienced and honest.

As always, Police are not lawyers and may themselves be ignorant of the law. Some folks like to carry a copy of the relavant statutes in the vehicle.- cant hurt.

I will say, although a snapped holster is considered securely encased, I dont recommend it. I had an idiot buddy who was being an uncooperative jackass when he got pulled over for speeding and his gun was "found" loose on the floorboard next to the unsnapped holster. If he had just been polite and reasonable, Im certain he wouldnt have gotten jammed up on the weapons charge.

Of course I had another buddy who got stopped at a DUI checkpoint. The officer saw his CCW and asked if he had a weapon. He responded truthfully that his .45 was in the console compartment and would the officer like to inspect it? He was handed back his license and told to have a nice evening.

As in all interactions with law enforcement, know the law, be respectful, comply with commands, and youll be fine.
 
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Miguel Santa said:
As a responsible gun owner, what is your duty when a police officer stops you for a traffic violation? I believe that if you have a CCWP when he/she runs your license it will definitely come up. So if you are carrying your weapon in your car, what do you do? Let say I don't have a license, my firearm is in a case in the back seat and I get stopped, what do I say or do?
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I've found this website to be very helpful when researching these types of questions. https://handgunlaw.us/
 
The "securely-encased" requirement does not apply to CWFL-holders. CWFL-holders should simply keep the firearm concealed from view (advice: do not store it in the same place as vehicle documents.)

Florida statute does not require a CWFL-holder (or anyone else, for that matter) to volunteer information regarding the presence/possession of a firearm. Florida statute does indeed require that information be disclosed to any LEO who asks, while in the course of duty, about the presence/possession of a firearm.

The concealed carry of a firearm without a valid CWFL (or license/permit from a Florida-recognized other state) is a felony in Florida. Even if it's "securely-encased", having it on your person, or so close to your person as to be as readily-available as if it were on your person, still constitutes concealed carry.

I hope this helps.
 
Miguel Santa said:
Very interesting and informative website, it had the answers of many of the questions I had, thank you for such a great link.
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You're welcome. Something you should keep in mind as you do this research and ask these questions is that you should never just take the word of someone on an internet forum (or in meat space, either). Always go to the official source. If the person on the forum offering info cannot provide that source, you should consider their information highly suspect and not to be believed until it can be verified. Not saying that that's happening in this thread (as far as I can tell), but it certainly has on this forum and many others.
 
I totally agree, some information could be just word of mouth and can't be checked or may be inaccurate. Normally, if the majority of the members are saying the same thing or agreeing, I tend to believe that the information is valid.
 
Miguel Santa said:
Thanks for the clarification, I did read the Florida statutes, but it is not clear if an officer asks if I am carrying or have a gun in the car.
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IF asked, then you answer truthfully; if he does not ask, you have no duty to volunteer that information.
 
I’ve been stopped twice in the 25 years of driving and both times I simply handed the officer my Florida DL and CWP at the same time. Neither time was it a problem.

About 20 years ago I was stopped by Florida Fish and Wildlife. He asked for my ID so I gave him my DL but not my CWP. He ran my ID in over his boat’s radio and whoever was at the other end respond back that I was basically good to go but also warned the officer that I was a CWP holder.

Regardless of what people say it does appear that Florida DL and CCW is linked.

Dan
 
I'm going to unpack a few of these.
Miguel Santa said:
As a responsible gun owner, what is your duty when a police officer stops you for a traffic violation?....
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Your legal duty is defined by statute:
a bunch of Florida legislators said:
....The licensee must carry the license, together with valid identification, at all times in which the licensee is in actual possession of a concealed weapon or firearm and must display both the license and proper identification upon demand by a law enforcement officer. Violations of the provisions of this subsection shall constitute a noncriminal violation with a penalty of $25, payable to the clerk of the court..... Fla. Stat. Ann. § 790.06 (West)
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So, if you're carrying your pistol, you have to carry your license and some other proper identification, too. You don't have to inform, unless the officer asks. If the officer asks, you have to present your ID and your CWP.

I'll tell you that at this point, how you say something can be every bit as important as what you say. From an officer's perspective, there's a world of difference between the two following scenarios:
  • Officer asks for your CWP and you reply, "Yep. There it is and yes, I'm carrying a pistol. It's a small semiauto in a holster just behind my right hip."
  • Officer asks for your CWP and you reply, "I KNOW MAH RAHTS! I KNOW MAH RAHTS! I HAVE A GUN!"

Obviously, there's a whole spectrum of possibilities in between those two, but the point is that you should be aware of how you are likely to appear to an officer. Context matters, too. If it's 2 a.m., and you're in a bad neighborhood when you get pulled over, you're likely to have a jumpy officer on your hands.

Trunk Monkey said:
I highly recommend that you take a basic introduction to concealed carry class that includes a block on the legalities in your state
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This would be an excellent start.
NIGHTLORD40K said:
....As always, Police are not lawyers and may themselves be ignorant of the law. Some folks like to carry a copy of the relavant statutes in the vehicle.- cant hurt. . . . .

As in all interactions with law enforcement, know the law, be respectful, comply with commands, and youll be fine.
Click to expand...
Good points. I don't carry a copy of statutes, and I don't know of any officers that would be willing to read them on the spot. Not because they don't want to know the law, but because that would take too much attention from the stop at hand. Still, it can't hurt you to have them in the car.

In any event, the side of the road is not the place to have the argument.
 
I live in Florida and one time I got stopped about 4:00 in the morning. The officer was headed home when I rolled through a stop sign in our neighborhood in front of him. I did all the right things when he pulled me over. Turned on all my interior lights, rolled down all my windows ,put my hands on the top side of my steering wheel and didn't reach for anything unless I asked the officer if it was ok and admitted to what I had done and said I was in the wrong. He then asked me If I had any weapons in the car and told him I had a pistol and knife on me. Showed him my carry permit and he asked me where my gun was. I told him and he said just leave it there. Went to his car ,ran my drivers license saw it was clean. Came back ,gave me my license back and admonished me about running stop signs in our neighborhood. Then we had a very nice discussion about hand guns. What he liked to carry and what did I like to carry and so on. He let me go with no ticket and thanked me for being so nice. Now I have a new friend in the neighborhood. It pays to be polite and honest.
 
Available from the NRA store is "Traveler's Guide to the Firearm Laws of the Fifty States". A guide to having a firearm with or without CCW. What is required during a traffic stop. State reciprocity. FL is a good permit to have BTW.
Also a handy app "CCW".
 
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