Open Carry False Arrest: City Pays to Settle Civil Lawsuit!!!

[divemedic]

“I’m not trying to suggest we should go back to the days of the Wild West,” North said.

I think it is great how most people believe Hollywood's image of the Old West. The so-called "Wild West" had less crime and fewer shootings than we do today.

 

[Jdude]

Open carry at Malls is just plain idiotic

We won't keep our rights by hiding them while among strangers.

but you may be shot by mistake by someone convinced you are a lunatic about to do mayhem.

I've open carried into the mall a few times. Didn't shoot anybody, didn't get shot. The clerk at the comic book store jokingly said "hey, don't rob me" to which I replied "So much for that plan... Will you take cash for these comics?"
Open carry is a natural, reasonable method of exercising our rights.

 

[Big Mike]

Open carry at Malls is just plain idiotic

My take, just becase we can doesn't always mean we should. For those who live in an Open Carry state, how many of you carry everywhere you can all the time? If you can and don't, why? Just because I didn't openly carry when I could've didn't mean I diminished my right to do so if I needed to.

I've lived in open carry states and other than carrying openly when hiking or just out in the great outdoors, I always carried concealed-all this because I didn't feel like spending every free minute of my time out explaining to people (including law enforcement) that it is a "right" for me and just about every other citizen in the state to do so.

Now, if I lived in a more rural, gun friendly open carrying state and I happened to be openly carrying and there was a culture where people often carried openly (and it is accepted that law enforcement knew the laws), and I needed to goto a mall, I probably wouldn't give it a second thought to openly carry.

One more thing, it seems like at almost every mall I've been to recently, there is a "no weapons" prohibition policy posted on the entry doors. Depending on your state, such a posting can mean your blatantly breaking law in that area, or is nothing more than a warning that if you do have a weapon you'll be asked to leave.

Mike

 

[chupacabrah]

Open carry at Malls is just plain idiotic

who let the anti join?!!
...jk

I open carry sometimes, helps to raise awareness and more often than not its more comfortable. I CC more often than OC, but it has its place, and there's nothing wrong with it if someone chooses to OC. It's a CHOICE (aka freedom)

 

[LAK]

“‘We have a policy of arresting anybody carrying any type of firearm without a concealed-gun permit.’

Yep, making an arrest based on "we have a policy of ... " in place of the specifics of the law and jurisprudence = false arrest.

Criminal charges, or in the case of a complicit DA a civil suit, for false arrest are the best way to approach this kind of thing almost universally. Add malicious prosecution for a stupid and complicit DA.

 

[MinnMooney]

This dude made the police realize that they can't get away with "just enforcing a policy" that is illegal. Whether I fully agree with someone open-carrying in a mall environment or not makes little difference. He made the police change their "policy". If the police didn't then it will cost them over & over again. The next case will probably bring the litigant even more money due to the fact that the police now have a case on the books (sorta) telling them that what they did was not the law.

 

[armoredman]

I open carried in AZ since I was 16, and yes, it was legal then, too. Hassled ONCE by a mall cop, told to leave three dining establishments. Not one place that told me to leave is open or under same management, or they changed thier policy.
The malls are posted no weapons since the late 80s, which is thier loss. I can shop places that don't restrict carry. I have had a CCW permit since 94, but I still occasionally open carry, and never get grief.

 

[Z-Michigan]

I think the pros and cons of open carry is a separate discussion (one that's been beaten to death, and beyond, in other threads).

I'm very pleased that this guy's rights were vindicated. Not pleased that the chief apparently intends to keep violating other people's rights. That should result in greatly increased financial damages for future lawsuits, notwithstanding the confidentiality on this settlement.

I would guess that the settlement dollar amount could be obtained through a FOIA inquiry by another taxpayer in that town. It might take some wrangling, but it should be forthcoming.

Settlements are routinely confidential as to dollar amount, for various reasons - including to minimize embarrassment to the paying defendant, and to hopefully avoid telling other plaintiffs what their case might be worth and therefore presumably encouraging them. Here I think we can guess that the guy got $10-20k, based on his comments. That's not nothing, but it's not terribly big. Probably reasonable for the situation, I guess.

 

[rino451]

Open carry at Malls is just plain idiotic

Meh... Programming's nearly complete, is all.

 

[Erik]

"“It’s not the people who are openly carrying weapons that you need to worry about,” Marchiafava said. “It’s the people who carry concealed guns that you need to be concerned about."

Uh, no.

But I'm happy he won his settlement.

 

[Jeff White]

No need for two long threads on this topic: http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=206399