$28,000.00 is not a threat to a cop. Guns are.

 

How do you figure?

 

28k could be drug money.

 

lumps of steel in my trunk, not so much.

 

I just don't get it. I AM NOT A THREAT to law enforcement. I have no issues with them and in fact have a few family friends who are law enforcement in my home town.

 

I don't see where guns in the trunk of my car are anyone's business but my own. They affect only the bad guy who intends me harm.

I meant a direct threat.

 

IE: you can not put a bullet in 28k and shoot someone with it. It is not a deadly weapon.

Little late to the party, but IMO a LEO is going to ask if there's anything he should know about prior to conducting a search. At that time I would inform him that I have firearms in the car and I have an FID yadda yadda. HOWEVER, I would venture to say that not a single person on this site would do anything that would make a LEO want to search their vehicle.

If he happens to see a gun case while walking back to my car or back to his, there is a threat level that I don't want to cross.

 

 

i drive a car not a pickup truck.. so if a cop ever "sees" my firearms OR even the box they are in.. something has gone terribly wrong.. there's never random ammunition sitting in plain view.. there are never ANY weapons sitting in plain view.. im not some kind of drug runner or anything.. so there will never be a "need" for an officer to search my car.. i dont break the law...

 

my car has ONLY been searched one time in my life.. and that is when a state trooper observed a pr24 in the passenger compartment of the vehicle.. he indicated that the presence of this "weapon" granted him cause to search the vehicle.. i had nothing that mattered in the car and was unsure of the legality of having the pr24.. so to avoid any confrontation i allowed it.. he politely returned the pr24 to me and asked that i NOT keep it in the passenger compartment of the vehicle.. we placed it in the trunk and that was that..

 

one other time i was pulled over for speeding and asked to have my car searched when i was younger.. this is pretty much how it went.. i was younger.. and it was pretty late at night so i would assume he was just fishing..

 

do you know why i pulled you over tonight..

 

no im sorry officer i do not...

 

you were going XXmph in a YYmph back there (it was maybe like UNDER 10 over don't remember the details it was a long time ago).. can i see your lic, reg, ins...

 

sorry about that here are my documents...

 

do you have anything in the vehicle i should know about?

 

no sir i do not..

 

if you have nothing illegal in the vehicle would you have any objection to me searching..

 

i do not feel i have done anything to warrant you needing to search my vehicle, so no i do not consent to you searching it...

 

if you don't have anything in there why do you care if we (there were two cops at this point) search..

 

to be blunt i just don't have the time to waste sitting here while you conduct an unnecessary search of my

vehicle..

 

Sit tight im going to go discuss this situation with the other officer, ill be right back..

 

came back with a written warning and i was on my way.. i think that randomly having your car searched if you are not acting like a nut job is pretty unlikely..

If he happens to see a gun case while walking back to my car or back to his, there is a threat level that I don't want to cross.

 

 

i drive a car not a pickup truck.. so if a cop ever "sees" my firearms OR even the box they are in.. something has gone terribly wrong.. there's never random ammunition sitting in plain view.. there are never ANY weapons sitting in plain view.. im not some kind of drug runner or anything.. so there will never be a "need" for an officer to search my car.. i dont break the law...

 

I don't have drive a p/u either to the range, or when transporting guns . . . Its a SUV with windows in the back.

 

YOU know that you are not a drug runner, but the police do not know that. Do you really think they know who is running drugs and who is not?

If a cop sees a gun in your car you are going to have a gun in your face, dragged out of the car, handcuffed, after that you'll be asked questions and legality of the gun will be established.

 

The Law for transport:

 

Shall be carried unloaded and contained in a closed and fastened case, gunbox, securely tied package, or locked in the trunk of the automobile in which it is being transported, and in the course of travel, shall include only such deviations as are reasonably necessary under the circumstances.

 

The firearm should not be directly accessible from the passenger compartment of the vehicle. If the vehicle does not have a compartment separate from the passenger compartment, the firearm and ammunition must be in a locked container other than the vehicle's glove compartment or console.

 

 

If a cop sees your gun (versus opening sealed containers), you are not transporting it legally and should face the consequences.

I meant a direct threat.

 

IE: you can not put a bullet in 28k and shoot someone with it. It is not a deadly weapon.

 

 

A cased, unloaded weapon in your trunk is no more a threat to a LEO then the $28k in cash

Exactly. . .

 

I didn't mean if they were being properly transported. IE: he sees the butt of a gun under the seat or something like that.

There is no statute requiring you to notify police if you are transporting firearms in your vehicle. In fact, for the privileged few who have carry permits, there is no statute requiring a permit holder to notify that he is carrying.

 

Since there is no notification statute, it cannot be held against you in court if you do not notify, and somehow the police find out during a traffic stop.

 

Furthermore, the state supreme court held in State v. Carty (2002) that police cannot even ask for consent to search vehicles during routine traffic stops. Apparently the state constitution is good for something; a higher protection of privacy rights.

 

You can read about that case here:

 

http://www.erowid.org/freedom/courts/st ... ent1.shtml

 

Police do not have probable cause just for a routine traffic violation. The threshold for probable cause is only satisfied if the officer can articulate a reasonable belief that you either did commit, are committing, or about to commit an indictable offense.

 

I don't have drive a p/u either to the range, or when transporting guns . . . Its a SUV with windows in the back.

 

YOU know that you are not a drug runner, but the police do not know that. Do you really think they know who is running drugs and who is not?

 

well i dont drive an SUV either.. so for ME if a cop sees my guns something has gone really wrong.. that was the point..

Obviously i live in PA so I carry. I mostly carry unconcealed on my hip. Including my local two bank branches weekly. Run into a number of cops on foot and no problems.

 

Regarding "pulled over," I have three experiences.

 

Once pulled over concealed, didn't say anything.

 

Once I was in a mega-stripmall and made a bad left turn and a cop followed me to my parking spot, rolled down his window and asked me to come over to talk to him. It was cold and I told him to hold on just a second, went to my back seat to retrieve my coat and put my coat on. I was exposed the whole time, but don't know if he saw my sidearm or not. He probably did. I walked over and we did the usual thing minus ID or registration, just all the "I'm sorry, that could have been bad" and he went away.

 

I was pulled over a few months ago with my sidearm unconcealed. Like the last story, but this time really pulled over with the cop at my door. Since I was unconcealed, I told him up front I have LTCF and a sidearm on my right hip. If I was concealed I wouldn't have said a word. He asked if I had a "permit" and I said, "Yes." He asked where my registration and DL were and I said DL is in wallet on the dash and registration/insurance is in center console. He told me to take the DL out of the wallet and give it to him. Then to get registration and insurance out of center console. Then he asked about my NJ plates which I will not discuss. He said to keep my hands on the wheel and he would be back in a minute. He never asked for my LTCF. Came back and gave me a warning for speeding. Never got the old, "I really appreciate you telling me about your gun," just plain professional transaction with no frills.

Obviously i live in PA so I carry. I mostly carry unconcealed on my hip. Including my local two bank branches weekly. Run into a number of cops on foot and no problems.

 

Regarding "pulled over," I have three experiences.

 

Once pulled over concealed, didn't say anything.

 

Once I was in a mega-stripmall and made a bad left turn and a cop followed me to my parking spot, rolled down his window and asked me to come over to talk to him. It was cold and I told him to hold on just a second, went to my back seat to retrieve my coat and put my coat on. I was exposed the whole time, but don't know if he saw my sidearm or not. He probably did. I walked over and we did the usual thing minus ID or registration, just all the "I'm sorry, that could have been bad" and he went away.

 

I was pulled over a few months ago with my sidearm unconcealed. Like the last story, but this time really pulled over with the cop at my door. Since I was unconcealed, I told him up front I have LTCF and a sidearm on my right hip. If I was concealed I wouldn't have said a word. He asked if I had a "permit" and I said, "Yes." He asked where my registration and DL were and I said DL is in wallet on the dash and registration/insurance is in center console. He told me to take the DL out of the wallet and give it to him. Then to get registration and insurance out of center console. Then he asked about my NJ plates which I will not discuss. He said to keep my hands on the wheel and he would be back in a minute. He never asked for my LTCF. Came back and gave me a warning for speeding. Never got the old, "I really appreciate you telling me about your gun," just plain professional transaction with no frills.

 

of course he did you have a gun on your hip. just kidding..

Personally I have been pulled over more times than I care to count. I have a bit of a lead foot , but I have not been pulled over with firearms in the car yet. When it does happen I won

Yes

Personally I have been pulled over more times than I care to count. I have a bit of a lead foot , but I have not been pulled over with firearms in the car yet. When it does happen I won

Personally I have been pulled over more times than I care to count. I have a bit of a lead foot , but I have not been pulled over with firearms in the car yet. When it does happen I won

I wish I could say I was surprised. I think most of us have been through something like that. Like you, I'm not lying down next time.