Posted on 10/27/2013 8:26:54 PM PDT by smokingfrog
There is anger and frustration tonight as Department of Public Safety officers arrest two members of Open Carry Texas at the capitol.
OCT member Amanda Andeen says, "Two of our party members were carrying two pre 1899 black powder replica revolvers, they were holstered the whole time, they were never drawn or displayed rudely by any means." Andeen's boyfriend is one of the men arrested. The group had been attending a Let's Roll America protest at the capitol.
DPS spokesperson Tom Vinger said, "The men were openly carrying suspected deadly weapons and were given the opportunity to leave the area, but refused." But a spokesperson for open carry Texas told us the pistols the men carried were black powder replicas of pre-1899 revolvers and therefore exempt as a firearm.
(Excerpt) Read more at keyetv.com ...
This was at the state capitol in Austin, where it has happened before, so it is hard to believe that the DPS officers did not know that the cap and ball revolvers are legal to openly carry.
I am sure that they did, otherwise they could have arrested them for openly carrying.
Instead, they arrested them for trespass. The question is, is the arrest for trespass legal?
Someone made the decision the “chill” the open carry of replicas. Who made that decision?
I saw the video where they arrested one or two people for sitting in the street blocking the path of the Ranger’s vehicle. One will be arrested for sitting in the street and refusing to move.
Of course, if they are blocking traffic, that is different from a simple arrest for trespass.
Back on this thread (and many others) we saw how Grisham is an attention whore looking to SET BACK the second amendment as he STAGES gimmicks to call attention to himself.
He's at it again. He didn't get arrested again - but two members of his little group did.
And still some peole think he's their poster boy for gun rights. Hoo Boy!
Ping to post 44. A little backstory on Chris Grisham invloved in Saturday’s arrest.
So... You are still on the side of the Left-wing gun haters then?
At least you are consistent in your disregard for the letter of the law and your utter contempt for individual Rights.
Unless the cops have a reason to suspect that the gun is other than the person carrying it states, what authority do the police have to question the person?
Here in the People's Republik of Kalifornia, the state claimed the authority to outlaw bearing of LOADED firearms and permitted the cops to seize any persons firearm to determine whether it was loaded or not.
This is less of an issue now that UNLOADED bearing of arms has been outlawed.
I'm embarrassed for Texas to think that Arizona has overtaken them in gun rights and there isn't outrage on the part of Texans that this is so.
Why don’t your put your rear end on the line and get arrested too? If you agree with Grisham and what he does - then go get a toy pistol and face off with some LEO.
I dare you.
If you don’t get shot and killed like that 13 year old boy in California - then you can come back here and share - first hand - your story of getting cuffed and arrested.
Until then - shut the hell up.
Wow... You’ve really made your case for your support of gun control there.
Such brilliant argumentation. Truly a credit to your Cause.
How about supporting an Individual’s Rights for a change. Or is that too much to ask?
It is illegal to open carry a handgun in Texas. If a Texan has a concealed carry permit, a concealed handgun may be carried. A person carrying a visible handgun will be stopped whether it is loaded or not as the law doesn’t distinguish between loaded and unloaded. Until new law is written, it is illegal to open carry a handgun.
If what he's doing is not illegal, then why get concerned over his activism about it?
Why does the Right always lament over those who fail to play by Marquess of Queensberry Rules, when the Left routinely storms government offices, chains themselves to trees, occupies public parks, and heckles public appearances to make their points?
-PJ
Thanks for the update.
You make a good point concerning the drawbacks of malicious flaunting, but my interest in this case concerns the officer’s/law’s behavior which is obviously not on trial. I have yet seen anything by OCT that troubles me especially the replicas.
As a side note, not all black powder pistols and rifles are alike in their treatment under the Federal and State laws. Some of these weapons are still classified as firearms subject to certain laws whenever they use fixed ammunition, whereas cap and ball weapons may not be treated as a firearm subject to those laws. In other cases a replica is treated differently than an original antique. LEOs have not infrequently been unable to recognize the differences in these laws and have acted accordingly.
Thanks for the details.
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