The Risks of Open Carry for Handguns: Why Concealment is Wiser.

Phoenix, AZ— For many decades, Arizona only permitted the open carry of firearms, reserving concealed carry solely for sworn peace officers. However, open carry of handguns, in particular, is fraught with risks and is more likely to lead to a breach of peace than firearms carried discreetly.

When you openly carry a handgun, you are more likely to encounter unstable individuals who might confront, complain, or even attempt to disarm you. But there’s an even more alarming scenario: imagine someone sees you with a gun, feels threatened, and falsely reports to the police that you pointed the weapon at them. The police respond to find you openly carrying a firearm, and there’s a so-called “victim” willing to lie under oath. In Arizona, aggravated assault laws, especially those involving gun-pointing, are severe, carrying a mandatory five-year prison sentence without parole.

Even if you know you did nothing wrong, the trial may not go in your favor. The accuser could perjure themselves, and the prosecutor might paint you as a danger to society. With no evidence other than your word, the risk of conviction looms large. Facing such a scenario, many people, fearing the harsh sentence, may opt to plead guilty in exchange for probation or a shorter jail term—yet this still results in a felony conviction and a lifetime ban on owning firearms.

In states that only permit open carry, it might actually be safer to risk violating a misdemeanor law that forbids concealed carry. In a self-defense situation, how you carried the gun won’t be easily proven unless you self-incriminate. Arizona, after 14 years of my lobbying efforts eventually allowed for concealed weapons permits and later removed the requirement altogether. Therefore, there’s no practical reason to openly carry a handgun, as doing so diminishes any tactical advantage you might have in a self-defense scenario. It’s best to keep your firearm out of sight and out of mind.

As one of the first firearms safety instructors in the state, I’m proud to say my students have always acted responsibly. When it comes to long guns, however, situations of unrest may necessitate openly carrying rifles or shotguns. Recent history has shown us examples, such as Korean shopkeepers during the Rodney King riots in LA and that Kenosha riot that showed Kyle Rittenhouse defending himself against three thugs trying to kill him. 

While we must defend open carry laws for such situations, it is generally wiser to conceal handguns to avoid unnecessary and potentially life-altering conflicts. Never forget when you’re carrying a weapon conflict avoidance is rule number one.

When dealing with high crime rates, why should you carry a gun?

Los Angeles, CA—Ultra-left-wing Governor Newsom released over 100,000 dangerous felons from California’s prisons, with many more criminals released from local jails. Newsom and various mayors supported the idea that those arrested and accused of crimes should not have to post bail to ensure their court appearances.

Prosecutors in Los Angeles and San Francisco are simply refusing to file cases against criminals for so-called “social reasons,” aligning with their political agendas. We have a legislature that consistently supports gun bans, despite the clear language of the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

California has too many judges who reflect the values of the far-left Democratic party that appointed them, rather than those of the Constitution.

Several factors obstruct truthful crime reporting. One major issue is the excessive wait time to reach 911 emergency operators. It's not unusual for desperate callers to be on hold for up to half an hour. I know of a critical burglary-in-progress call in Los Angeles that was finally answered by police four hours later.

Due to poor police service, people know that reporting crimes like theft and robbery is often futile. Police respond late, rarely make arrests, and if they do, cases rarely proceed to conviction. Without calling the cops, there's no evidence that a crime occurred.

To make matters worse, a frustrated LAPD administrator went public with the fact that the LAPD was deliberately underreporting crime to the FBI and the public. She was heavily disciplined for telling the truth.

San Francisco and Los Angeles both have mayors who hinder the police from doing their sworn duties.

The United States Supreme Court ruled in June 2022 that most gun bans and regulations are unconstitutional. Instead of obeying this ruling, California officials have consistently fought against it, forcing ongoing litigation.

One thing is for sure: the people of California are on their own. They must rely on self-help or receive no help at all. Failing to take steps to protect yourself and your loved ones significantly increases the risk of being murdered.

Regarding the unconstitutional gun laws still on the books in California, it is absolutely necessary to break them. If you plan to use firearms for self-defense, common sense, not laws, dictates that you get appropriate training. Local California governments make obtaining permits prohibitively expensive for some, and the time required to get proper carry permits defeats their purpose. You don’t need permission from these political figures to engage in constitutionally protected activities.

Thankfully, the Fourth Amendment protects us from unreasonable searches by government agents. If you're not misbehaving, they have no right to search you or use evidence from such a search against you in court. Most Americans can live their entire lives without being searched by police.

Let me make this clear: if a crime happens in your presence, by default, you are the first responder, and whether you act like one will determine whether you have a fighting chance to survive.

Never let politicians stand between you and your right to protect yourself and your loved ones. You are in the United States of America, not North Korea.

The Volatile Counterproductively of The Open Carry of Firearms

Phoenix, AZ—Most of my blog visitors know my strong and unyielding opinion on our rights to keep and bear arms.  I have personally fought bad gun laws through civil actions in the courts.  I have lobbied for gun rights at the State Legislature for many years.    

Open carry of firearms has its place.  On the range, while hunting, at various firearm related events.  That would also be a reality during serious civil unrest or worse. 

Open carry is indeed a Constitutional right but that alone does not make it in anyway clever or socially acceptable. 

The whole point of firearm concealment is to place robbers, rapists and killers at a serious tactical disadvantage.  Since self-defense is the goal why would anyone want to give a criminal the advantage and ability to overpower and disarm them by openly carrying? 

Open carry does not belong at the local Starbucks, Chipotle, or in mixed company.  By mixed company I mean around other than likeminded gun owners.  

Open carry has become a “in your face” form of protest and considered by gun rights haters as pure intimidation designed to incite.  Open carry may be your right but using it for political provocation is counterproductive and dumb. 

If you want to influence those people with irrational fear of firearms please teach them safety and take them shooting.  Unnecessary open carry makes as much sense as trying to calm an angry bull by waving a red cape.

Arizona for decades banned all concealed carry but allowed open carry without a permit.  The problems created by open carry were substantial.  Ignorant gun haters were always calling the cops when they saw guns and become angry when the cops would not arrest an open carrier.  

Often the complainants would exaggerate and claim that the gun was pulled or pointed at them!  The gun carrier often had to stand trial for Aggravated Assault on the unsubstantiated claims of some lying jerk. If the judge or jury believed the complainant a mandatory five-year prison term would be handed out!  

As a criminal defense investigator I’ve had many first hand experience with some of those horrible cases.

Finely, Arizona accepted concealed carry and later went the extra mile of not requiring permits of any kind. Those phony Aggravated Assault complaints dropped dramatically.

Unnecessarily carrying of an exposed firearm is downright dangerous.  There is of course the criminal that would like to simply strong-arm the gun away from you.  Then there are those dim bulbs that believe that you are carrying exposed because you want to intimidate, frighten or even assault them.  Open carry is too often the subject of unnecessary and unwarranted verbal arguments and disturbances. 

Simply stated a person carrying and exposed firearm is much more likely to be involved in a breach of the peace than having it concealed.   

We cannot change the thought process or behavior of the intolerant, ignorant and malicious people in our world.  Why would you want to give them a tool they’d use to insult, attack or cause your arrest, prosecution and possible conviction?  If they can’t see your gun it won’t be the subject of controversy or worse.

Nobody wants to be a legal test case for gun rights considering the high price of lawyers and the reality of judicial tyranny.   Most people don’t understand that you can challenge the constitutionality of gun laws without violating them or being arrested.  You simply file a civil complaint in court to challenge the law asking for a Declaratory Judgment striking down the bad law.  

It helps to have the NRA or SAF paying your lawyers too!  That’s the gentleman’s way of winning.  That’s what the various plaintiffs did in the Landmark Heller and McDonald cases that were favorably decided in the U.S. Supreme Court.

As for the debacles at Starbucks and more recently at the Chipotle restaurants nobody takes in account what the business owners need.   To take sides on the volatile gun rights issue is insurance that one side or the other will boycott that business.  

No business wants to become embroiled in a political issue of any kind.  Why would you want to force an innocent business owner to take a position when you know it may destroy his or her source of income?

Please leave innocent bystander businesses out of your political arguments.

As for open carry, it has its place well outside of political statements, demonstrations or inciting hateful conduct.  Rather than provoking those gun-rights haters, kindness and tolerance goes so much further.  

All of my gun owner friends are gentle law-abiding folks that understand the necessity of the ability to defend themselves and families from the unthinkable.  

Being hostile, rude or insulting has never accomplished anything positive for anyone.  Simple kindness and a warm smile wins every time! 

Let me also say business that through posted signs seeks to preclude law abiding gun owners, deserve to be boycotted.  Some of them are learning the hard way that such signs invite armed robbers. 

New Illinois Law on Concealed Weapons Does Little to Comply With The Law of The Land.

Chicago Plaintiff Otis McDonald is on the Right at the U.S. Supreme Court. 

Chicago, IL—For decades Illinois politicians have violated the rights of citizens to keep and carry firearms guaranteed by our Second Amendment.  Ban after ban has been put in place and with each new restriction crime skyrockets.  Unconstitutional gun laws have protected the thugs, thieves, rapists and killers of The Land of Lincoln.

First it was Heller vs. D.C and then it was McDonald vs. Chicago the courts reaffirmed gun rights but the plaintiffs in those cases won’t live long enough to enjoy their rights because of obstructionist delays by tyrannical politicians that are apparently above the law of the land.

The 7^th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the gun carry ban and ordered Illinois to allow law-abiding citizen’s rights restored.  The politicians grappled with the idea and failed.  The finally passed a confusing 168-page law laced with Gun Free Zones everywhere.  If any gun carrier were to guess wrong a jail cell would be waiting for them.  Frankly the new law cures little.

In addition to all the obscure Gun Free Zones are endless delays in implementing the system and actually issuing the permits.  Otis McDonald is a senior citizen and may not survive long enough to get his gun permit that he and the other plaintiffs won in court.   That goes double in the most dangerous city in America where he still can’t legally protect himself.

Mary E. Shepard and the Illinois State Rifle Association filed the original lawsuit demanding Illinois follow the law of the land using the Supreme Court cases as authority.  They won but there's no end to the shenanigans the defendant politicians have invented to obstruct, delay and disobey the Court;s order. We have two new court motions dealing with the same controversy.

One is by the plaintiffs complaining that the new law is in violation of the courts order and intention to restore gun liberty.  The law has built in bogus delays and is loaded with impermissible bans.  They are asking to enjoin the entire mess of old and new law making the state’s Firearm Owner’s Identification Card a defacto Concealed Weapons Permit.

The second is a request to dismiss the entire action by the offending politicians claiming that the new Concealed Weapons Law cures the requirements of the Court’s decision and therefor the lawsuit should be dismissed.  I assume that Illinois Attorney General has been smoking crack if she really believes any of the crap she wrote.   Both new motions are below. 

   Motion for Injunction to end Gun Ban

   Motion to Dismiss Re: concealed weapons

Concealed Weapons and Illinois, the Future

Chicago, Il—When it comes to Chicago’s politicians corruption and arrogance knows no bounds.  The Looney Left Wing rules the State of Illinois because of the heavy population of Cook County.  The rest of the somewhat vast land mass of the state is politically conservative, crime free and under the thumb of dictators they despise.

Chicago’s politicians and their appointed bureaucrats have routinely violated citizen’s gun rights for more than three decades.  They have falsely arrested and convicted people for merely keeping and bearing arms under peaceful conditions. 

Finally challenges to Chicago’s gun bans and the state ban on carrying concealed weapons has been ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. 7^th Circuit Court of Appeals.  They have been given a six-month grace period to craft law that does not violate citizen’s rights to carry concealed weapons.  Of course that does not sit well with these jerks that think they are above the law.

Instead of making a new law as they were ordered.  They’ve crafted amendment after amendment that only makes new gun bans and obstacles for law-abiding gun owners.  The bill to legalize concealed weapons is nowhere near being accomplished.  Frankly that’s really the best solution.

When the 180 day grace period expires and there is no new legislation that can pass muster with the 7^th Circuit every citizen with a valid FOID card will be able to carry a concealed weapon virtually anywhere. 

The FOID cards are issued by the Illinois State Police after background checks and identity verification. It’s a slow process that creates yet more impairment to the right to keep and bear arms.

The arrogance, ignorance and hostility of Chicago politicians will backfire as freedom, liberty and the right of self-defense returns to the Windy City.