Legal vs Moral

[Grandpa Shooter]

I didn't want to hijack the thread about traveling between states with a firearm so I am starting a new one here. I was telling my wife about the thread and mentioned that one of the posters commented that he would lock his gun in the trunk to avoid possibly being arrested and jailed while traveling through Illinois. We live in Ky and travel to Arizona and go through Illinois often. She posed a question I could answer for me because she knows my and my values. However it does bear posing as a general question for anyone who cares to answer.

You are traveling and come to the border of a state that is unfriendly toward guns. You tell your wife you need to stop and lock the gun up to avoid the possibility of legal penalty. She says to you, "What about me, don't I get a vote in this?" Now you have a conundrum. How do you balance legal and moral issues and obligations? This is a hypothetical question only for the sake of discussion and not a statement of intent. The question remains, What do you do?

 

[Corpral_Agarn]

I find it best to make sure you and yours and squared away first.

After that play the odds, I guess

 

[jmorris]

I contact the State police before I ever am in route. Keep the contact information of the officer I spoke with before hand to ensure I was in compliance in my cell phone. If I am traveling with something the NFA wants me to let them know is going out of my State, I square that away too, before hand. My wife knows I do this before every trip just like making sure the tires are properly inflated and we have a full tank of fuel.

We could vote if she wanted to, better do it before we hit the road or the decision has already been made. I don’t see it as a moral or legal issue though, I guess if she wanted to break the law, she wouldn’t ask me to, rather just do it herself and not tell me.

 

[JN01]

If you have a carry permit from your state, Illinois allows you to legally carry inside the car only. I would suggest keeping it off body (in a console or whatever) in the event you are stopped and asked to step out of the car which would result in you illegally carrying concealed if it is on your person.

In other states that don't have reciprocity, you would be the one being arrested, not her, so I would say she doesn't get a vote. If she doesn't like it, she could get her own license and gun and take her chances with non-compliance.

 

[Grandpa Shooter]

If you have a carry permit from your state, Illinois allows you to legally carry inside the car only. I would suggest keeping it off body (in a console or whatever) in the event you are stopped and asked to step out of the car which would result in you illegally carrying concealed if it is on your person.

In other states that don't have reciprocity, you would be the one being arrested, not her, so I would say she doesn't get a vote. If she doesn't like it, she could get her own license and gun and take her chances with non-compliance.

Kentucky is a Constitutional Carry state which means I don't need a permit to carry on my person. If we are traveling, obviously there will be potty breaks and gas fill ups. How do you avoid stopping in states that are unfriendly to guns, and how do you live with yourself is something bad happens to your wife while your gun is locked away so you can potentially avoid charges? That is the legal vs moral part of the question. How do you weigh your fear of prosecution against your moral duty to protect your wife, daughter, son, etc.

 

[rbernie]

She says to you, "What about me, don't I get a vote in this?"

If she doesn't like it, she could get her own license and gun and take her chances with non-compliance.

That would be my response. Her vote is / was to either be in control of her own self-defense, or to outsource it to somebody else and take her chances.

Ya can't have it both ways.

 

[JN01]

Kentucky is a Constitutional Carry state which means I don't need a permit to carry on my person. If we are traveling, obviously there will be potty breaks and gas fill ups. How do you avoid stopping in states that are unfriendly to guns, and how do you live with yourself is something bad happens to your wife while your gun is locked away so you can potentially avoid charges? That is the legal vs moral part of the question. How do you weigh your fear of prosecution against your moral duty to protect your wife, daughter, son, etc.

Gotcha. Tennessee is considering a Constitutional carry bill, but even if they pass it, I will retain my license just so that I can legally carry in reciprocal states. I guess I would say that if you are basically just going through a state on the interstate, your odds of coming into contact with LE (traffic stops, accidents, etc) are much higher than the possibility that you will need to defend yourself. A stay in prison can wreck your life nearly as bad as a bullet.

 

[jrmiddleton425]

The question remains, What do you do?

If I can halfway read a map, I would bet you're taking I-64 through Illinois to get on I-44.

Short of not going through Illinois, do with the gun what Illinois law requires. Get gas, use the bathroom, etc. at your last stop in Kentucky. Put the gun away and spend no longer in Illinois than it takes you to get across it.

Be careful out there. But remember that "be careful out there" includes "stay out of jail."

 

[Frank Ettin]

Off topic for the Legal Forum. Moving to General Discussion.

 

[3Crows]

The law is the law, comply or go around another way. Let's not exaggerate the possibility of befalling criminal activity, Yes, there are a few bad people out there and a whole lot of good people. I would bet your chances of crossing Illinois without immediate access to a firearm to be pretty dang good.

 

[Robert]

THR's stance as a forum is to follow the law. That being said, posting on the internet about breaking laws, even small ones, is not the best idea. Even hypothetically. None of this goes away, ever. So, do what is best for you.