Quote:
Originally Posted by FenwickHockey65
I think the practice of informing the officer of a firearm, whether required to or not, is more of a courtesy thing than anything else. I've heard stories of officers letting people off on violations simply as a thank you for doing so.
|
EXACTLY my point.
some jurisdictions informing the officer is the law, sometimes not a requirement.
BUT, PERSONALLY, if you are a LEGAL CCW holder, and are carrying, I already know you have been fingerprinted, trained atleast to some standard etc. If you let me know up front, and you have no outstanding warrants etc, I will almost always let you go.
On the other hand,
people often forget that many cops are trained to spot what is know as "printing,' i.e. giving away the fact that you are carrying a weapon (legal or illegal.) So alot of times, we will notice the weapon. If you didnt tell me upfront, the list of petty things I can hit you with is endless.
This ranges from "Objects hanging from mirror,' Tint violations, ANY saftey inspection issue (such as horn not functioning or burned out tail light, tire tread depth, etc. Many of which require you to personally go to an inspection station and prove the item is working which is a major pain in the a$$.)
I could even "theoretically" hit you with one of these violations, and your tail light was fine, but you would still have to prove that it was working, and GOOD LUCK proving that the officer lied- Generally, at most he would say "It was out when I pulled them over, must be a short." and get a walk. Remember, it is not your word vs. the cops word, it is your word vs. the STATE's word, and the state never, ever likes to admit it is worng or can be flawed.
Another favorite of mine was to hit you with "Failure to Turn Wheels To The Right during a Traffic Stop," This was a very little known law, that most cops never enforce, but if you pi$$ed me off..
Anyway, my whole long winded point, was that generally attitude is everything and that officers get yelled at, cussed at, spit on, etc. all day long. A little courtesy goes a LONG way.