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Tommy B wrote: I assume the gun and magazine were unloaded on the scene of arrest. My friend, who is from Louisianna, assumed they were illegal here because he says they are illegal in Louisianna. He also does not have a CHL but was traveling from Louisianna to Houston that day so that is why he was carrying.

srothstein wrote:I agree that you should choose your battles wisely, but I do not see this as a battle. The officer was wrong to keep the ammo.

The best way to handle this, IMHO, is to visit the Chief and ask him to clarify with the officers what the laws on weapons are. You could also ask the Chief if there is a policy on ammo, and again, ask for it to be explained to the officer. This way, you are assuming, and the Chief will be more likely to agree, that it was a misunderstanding and not a criminal act.

There are two reasons I say to do it this way. The first is the old saying: Never attribute to evil that which is explainable by stupidity. The officer may really have been a thief, or he could have recently moved down here from New Jersey and not yet realize our attitudes are very different. It truly could be an honest mistake.

Second, there is another old philosophy that you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. By assuming the innocent mistake, the Chief is not having the department look nearly as bad and is much more likely to be receptive to the discussion. If it turns out it was a mistake, you have contributed to improving the department through the education process. If it turns out to be a theft, the Chief will know and find out and be able to handle the situation. In the latter case, the Chief will let you know and ask for a formal complaint UNLESS the whole department is corrupt. There is a small possibility of this being true, but I would not want to bet on it being true.