Can't carry in a bar, but can bring a long gun??

[tarkus]

Based on the above law if you were to walk into a bar with a long gun and the Police were called you will be charged and convicted with Disordery Conduct.

Keep it concealed. Nobody will know and nobody will call the cops.

[srothstein]

§ 42.01. DISORDERLY CONDUCT. (a) A person commits an offense if he intentionally or knowingly:
(8) displays a firearm or other deadly weapon in a public place in a manner calculated to alarm.

Based on the above law if you were to walk into a bar with a long gun and the Police were called you will be charged and convicted with Disordery Conduct. I have seen it happen many many times all over the State. If someone calls 911 to report the incident they were alarmed. On the other hand I have been to a local skeet/sporting clays club that has an alcoholic beverage license for on premises consumption and there is a gun rack just inside the door. No one is alarmed that you have a shotgun at a skeet range and so Disorderly Conduct does not apply.

It's been decided many times that the mere presence of a firearm does not cause alarm

While I knew you were talking about Texas law, my first thought was to tell that to the soccer mom in Pennsylvania.

If you do have a reference case, I would appreciate it. I agree with the concept but I am unaware of a case that says so. I also remember an incident with Jim Dark from TSRA (IIRC) a couple years ago where he was hassled because someone saw the rifle he was carrying in his car. It was a black powder rifle, so it was not even legally a firearm, but the police were not easily convinced about it.

[srothstein]

Perhaps, but had a TABC officer tell me years ago that "technically" no firearms (including long guns) were allowed where alcohol was sold or consumed unless you were the owner, operator, authorized employee, guard, etc.

He was wrong when he said it, and there is a simple way to prove it (well this may go away soon but exists now). Wal-mart sells alcohol in almost every store. They sell firearms in most of them also. Someone must be in possession of the firearm in the store, and even if they walk you out you would have the firearm in the parking lot.

The truth of the law is that it is mentioned in PC 46.02 that unlawfully carrying is enhanced to a felony if it is on a licensed premise. But this does not apply to long guns and never has. The other part of the truth in what he said is that the licensed premise does include the whole parking lot. It gets very confusing sometimes with defining premises differently in different sections of the law but they do it.

And for anyone curious about it, here is a link to the TABC rules on firearms in licensed premises:

http://info.sos.state.tx.us/pls/pub/rea ... ch=36&rl=1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

If the link does not work, check Texas Administrative Code, Title 16 (Economic Regulation), Part 3 (TABC), Chapter 36 (Gun Regulation), rule 36.1 (the only one in the chapter).

[KBCraig]

It's been decided many times that the mere presence of a firearm does not cause alarm

While I knew you were talking about Texas law, my first thought was to tell that to the soccer mom in Pennsylvania.

If you do have a reference case, I would appreciate it.

According to the threads on opencarry.org and pafoa.org, there is plenty of Pennsylvania case law that firmly establishes that open carrying is not disturbing the peace.

I also remember an incident with Jim Dark from TSRA (IIRC) a couple years ago where he was hassled because someone saw the rifle he was carrying in his car. It was a black powder rifle, so it was not even legally a firearm, but the police were not easily convinced about it.

Yes, he was hassled. The police were wrong. But they weren't so wrong as to arrest him and charge him, because they knew (either beforehand, or learned it during the encounter) that Jim's exposed rifle wasn't a crime.

[Elvis]

Hmmm, I don't know of any Texas case law on disorderly and causing an alarm in a bar. I personally have had 2 convictions but in both cases the defendant was in a bar with a rifle or shotgun to ventilate someone and the patrons were plenty alarmed. I always assumed the law referred to the perspective of the public being alarmed and not to the intention of the defendant to cause alarm. The Wal-Mart example is a moot point as I believe we are talking about a licensed business for “On Premises Consumption” and not a retail store.