Virginia open carry policy?

[RetiredUSNChief]

The only thing I will add to the above is to suggest you know what the provisions are for a Terry Stop. Google the term and learn how it applies to firearms carry.

Learn the difference between a seizure (being detained) and a ‘friendly chat’. The police cannot detain you for lawful behavior. Since open carry is a lawful behavior the police cannot detain you merely for doing so. They can, however, engage you in a friendly chat which can appear to be the same as being detained.

This is why we suggest that if the police stop you while you’re carrying openly you should immediately ask, “Am I being detained?” If they don’t answer then ask again. If they say no, politely wish them a nice day and move along. DO NOT engage them in a debate or try to educate them on the lawfulness of open carry- they already know. If they say yes, that you are being detained, ask, “For suspicion of what crime are you detaining me?” If they offer something that isn’t a crime like, “You have a gun so we have to ID you” or “We got a call about your gun so…” ask for a supervisor. Again, do not try to debate or educate, that’s not why they’re there so you’ll be wasting your breath. Most of the time, if it even gets that far, they know the ‘concerned citizen’ is watching so they want to appear to be doing something about it- this is why they seem to want your ID so badly- for appearances. Don’t give it to them unless they are going to issue you a citation (jaywalking or whatever).

Ummm...

One would do well to research Terry Stops as applicable to the jurisdictions they are in.

For example, your advice to "Don’t give it (your identification) to them unless they are going to issue you a citation..." is not applicable in all jurisdictions. In some, you will be required by law to do so upon request and may indeed be further detained. These are colloquially known as "stop and identify" laws and they vary from state to state for the states that have them.

(Virginia does not appear to have a stop and identify law. However, about half the states do.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stop_and_identify_statutes

And a Terry Stop is a detention, or "seizure", however brief it may be.


Now, one can argue this many ways, and an officer of the law may likewise pursue Terry Stops and stop and identifies in a variety of ways as well. For example, you have no idea what report actually brought the officer to the scene. It may simply be a report of a Man With a Gun or it might also be a MWAG report in the vicinity of a crime. The first may not constitute "reasonable suspicion", but the latter may very well.

Until the officer is satisfied, based on the report which brought him to the scene, he will pursue the Terry Stop and stop and identify until he is, one way or the other.

Therefore polite discourse IS recommended (as you pointed out) to facilitate the communication that will resolve this.

Bottom line is politeness and a firm understanding of the laws in the jurisdiction BEFORE doing such things as refusing identification.

 

[627PCFan]

Side benefit to OC only and not getting a permit: the cops don't know your armed in a traffic stop. If I could do it over again I would not have gotten one .

 

[HighExpert]

Another advantage to having the concealed permit is when you are hunting. You cannot open carry when hunting unless you have a concealed permit unless the hand gun is a legal hunting weapon and there are few areas where it is. For 627PCFan, you might want to rethink that attitude toward LEOs. You get one in a high stress situation you may find their training is not enough. I find "No Surprises" to be the best policy.

 

[bogon48]

The replies above have provided plenty of good URLs. However, I would also consider a copy of "The Virginia Gun Owner's Guide." It is a good reference and has been updated. It covers almost everything you can think of that pertains to VA gun ownership, including the ownership of automatic weapons and the use of lethal force. It's available on Amazon and in some gun stores.

The law changes here from time to time, but usually for the better. For instance, it is illegal to publish the names of concealed carry license owners. In the past, this was a problem in some areas. Overall, the laws here are pretty sane.