Libertarian ping! To be added or removed freepmail me or post a message here.
Posted on 06/18/2008 10:21:41 AM PDT by neverdem
WEST VALLEY CITY - With his Smith & Wesson .40-caliber semi-automatic holstered on his right hip, Travis Deveraux addressed the mayor and City Council on Tuesday.
Deveraux says he has been harassed by West Valley City police for carrying that gun and treated like a criminal.
"A criminal does not want [police] attention, and they will not openly carry a gun," Deveraux said.
With 10 other gun-toting civilians - who came from as far as Bountiful, Santaquin and Lehi - to support him, Deveraux told the council that their police department has consistently overreacted to his gun carrying. And in one occasion last year, he said, the police officers violated his civil rights.
Deveraux said he was walking around his neighborhood to exercise last December, when he was stopped by a Granite School District officer and "informed that if I touched my gun, I would be killed." The officer called West Valley City Police Department, Deveraux said, three squad cars arrived, and he was detained and his gun taken from him - then, after a few minutes, he was released.
Those were violations of his federal and state constitutional rights, said the Swede who became an American citizen this January.
And they are civil rights abuses that he has only encountered in West Valley City, Deveraux said.
"I don't blame them for being a little bit extra careful," he said, noting that the crime rate is high in Utah's second largest city, "but there's a line they crossed between being a little bit careful and a little bit too careful."
Assistant Police Chief Craig Black said he hadn't been aware of the incident involving Deveraux until hearing about it at the City Council meeting. He said there would be a review of the case by the professional standards board to determined what happened.
Matt Murray, of North Salt Lake, said he has never been bothered by any police officers for openly carrying his gun. Kevin Jensen, of Santaquin, said he has had a few police encounters that were "very professional . . . they just want to make sure you're not a nutcase." But Lehi resident Jeramiah McDonald said he has had problems similar to Deveraux's.
McDonald said that because he is only 19, he can't apply for a concealed-weapons permit and his only option is to openly carry his guns.
Because he felt police officers violated his civil rights, McDonald filed a lawsuit.
Deveraux said he doesn't want to sue anyone, or get an officer fired or fined. He wants West Valley City officers to be trained, or receive more training on gun rights.
Mayor Dennis Nordfelt encouraged Deveraux to file a complaint with the professional standards review board, which oversees any resident problems with the police department.
Black said his officers are trained on gun laws.
mariav@sltrib.com
yeah!
...how often are we pissmires told that ignorance of the law is no excuse!?!
First off... The police officers in Utah are top notch. Not “liars” and such. Secondly, Other than SLC, you can carry your guns openly with no problems. The guy in the article is right though, the police need to be trained about the gun laws. Moreover it’s the policy that needs to be changed. Also it was a school police officer that stopped him meaning he was on school grounds. Having a gun on school grounds in Utah is against the law.
“Guns BAAAAAAAAAAD! BAAAAAAAAAAAAD!” bleat the sheep.
The so-called “Peelian Principles” were codified subsequent to the establishment of the London Metropolitan Police by Sir Robert Peel on September 29, 1829. We in the US would do well to enact these same reforming principles for our police. They are:
1. The basic mission for which the police exist is to prevent crime and disorder.
2. The ability of the police to perform their duties is dependent upon the public approval of police actions.
3. Police must secure the willing co-operation of the public in voluntary observation of the law to be able to secure and maintain the respect of the public.
4. The degree of co-operation of the public that can be secured diminishes proportionately to the necessity of the use of physical force.
5. Police seek and preserve public favor not by catering to public opinion, but by constantly demonstrating absolute and impartial service to the law.
6. Police use physical force to the extent necessary to secure observance of the law or to restore order only when the exercise of persuasion, advice, and warning is found to be insufficient.
7. Police, at all times, should maintain a relationship with the public that gives reality to the historic tradition that the police are the public and the public are the police; the police being only members of the public who are paid to give full-time attention to duties which are incumbent upon every citizen in the interests of community welfare and existence.
8. Police should always direct their action strictly towards their functions, and never appear to usurp the powers of the judiciary.
9. The test of police efficiency is the absence of crime and disorder, not the visible evidence of police action in dealing with it.
Sadly, almost all law enforcement in the U.S. today operates contrary to these principles.
Skandanavian-American.
“Assistant Police Chief Craig Black said he hadn’t been aware of the incident involving Deveraux until hearing about it at the City Council meeting. He said there would be a review of the case by the professional standards board to determined what happened.”
Blah, blah, blah police-speak for screw you, you miserable little civilian peon, get out of my way before I step on you.
Only civilian review boards in all jurisidictions will help, although I suspect in many cases, the cops will pack them with police groupies.
“Having a gun on school grounds in Utah is against the law.”
Wrong, Schools are not prohibited carry locations in Utah. Just ask the University of Utah.
LEO’s attitude towards armed citizens in this country is damn scary. There’s an episode of Cops taped in Cincinnati. Two shirtless, convicted felons get into a fist fight in front of a convenient store. A friend who was described as “never been in trouble a day in his life” decides he needs to leave the scene because things are getting ugly. A couple of thugs can’t pull him out of his car because he’s wearing his seatbelt, but he can’t manage to get away from them. He has a CCW permit and decides to get his gun from the glove compartment. The gun isn’t loaded of course, because he’s following the law. He’s so nervous that he drops the ammo while trying to load. Nonetheless, it scares the thugs off. Right about then, the cops roll up on the scene. And guess what? The ONLY guy who goes to jail that night is the dude with the CCW for unlawful transportation of a firearm. WTF? Every time I see a re-run of that episode, I start yelling at the TV. Hope that kid found a good attorney.
Can I encounter and interrogate police officers to determine for myself that they are not "nutcases"?
I walked out of a gun shop in Helena, MT a few years ago carrying a brand new semi-automatic assault rifle. (Illegal in California, Connecticut, and New Jersey, thank you) A police car screeched to a halt as I walked down the street and two officers jumped out. They looked at me and said, “Duuuude. Nice piece. Can we have a look?”
Those are the kind of police officers who respect citizens’ Second Amendment rights.
They were more than likely checking you out, but in a much more diplomatic way. They didn’t sense a real threat in you but managed to ease their minds. They did a good job, you didn’t feel threatened and even got the chance to show off your new purchase.
I live in an open carry state and although I’ve never had any problems with LEO’s, I know a few that have. When it comes to the suppression of 2A rights, I think charging officers with CR violations is a good start.
Eh, maybe not. Montana’s open carry for handguns and I was never challenged when I did so the 5 years I lived there.
Not very well, obviously.
Great information. Thanks.
Ping
Libertarian ping! To be added or removed freepmail me or post a message here.
My dog was born in a stable but that doesn't make him a horse.
Great work there. Got a good chuckle out of that.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.