TexasCHLforum.com

I got an interesting call from a former student. His cousin or some such (who did not take my class but has a CHL) was wearing his pistol in a Supertuck with his shirt tucked in over it. Unfortunately he had his extra magazine in a regular pouch of some sort exposed. I don't have all the details yet, but will post them as I get more details. I'm not sure what agency or town this occured in, but he was given a citation for "brandishing a weapon".

Naturally I reminded him what I said in my class about extra magazines, as well as "you can beat the rap but you can't beat the ride". In my opinion, I don't recall seeing a magazine listed as a weapon, however common sense would tell anyone familar with firearms that a magazine on your belt probably means you are carrying.....bad juju.

I would imagine after spending some money on a good lawyer , his cousin will beat the rap, however wouldn't life be easier if we just didn't make it so obvious we are carrying?

Whoa! That ain't right. A magazine doesn't count unless it is in the gun at the time. I hope he beats it or get's it dismissed.

Did they actually cite him for intentional failure to conceal? Or did they write him for disorderly conduct, or something else? There is no actual 'brandishing' law in Texas.

Looks like he ran into an ossifer named Richard.

Keith B wrote:Did they actually cite him for intentional failure to conceal? Or did they write him for disorderly conduct, or something else? There is no actual 'brandishing' law in Texas.

Oh man. I forgot about that one. Good catch.

Good question. What did the actual ticket say? There's no state law on brandishing but I wouldn't be surprised if some town has a municipal ordinance.

I know that would violate preemption but that's kind of like saying 30.06 signs at the Reliant and GRB gun shows are void. It doesn't mean the cops won't do anything.

Hoosier Daddy wrote:Good question. What did the actual ticket say? There's no state law on brandishing but I wouldn't be surprised if some podunk town had a municipal ordinance. I know it violates preemption but that's kind of like saying 30.06 signs at the Reliant and GRB gun shows are void. It doesn't mean the cops won't do anything.

If it was a disorderly conduct charge, it is a big deal. IMO, that is one of the catch-all laws that, if they are convicted, can prohibit a person from getting a CHL. I would like to see this changed in the next session.

Keith B wrote:Did they actually cite him for intentional failure to conceal? Or did they write him for disorderly conduct, or something else? There is no actual 'brandishing' law in Texas.

Thank you! I started to spin up when I read that title...but once I read your post, I spun back down...whew, rant averted.

Heartland Patriot wrote:

Keith B wrote:Did they actually cite him for intentional failure to conceal? Or did they write him for disorderly conduct, or something else? There is no actual 'brandishing' law in Texas.

Thank you! I started to spin up when I read that title...but once I read your post, I spun back down...whew, rant averted.

Hey, my first thought after seeing the title was that someone got in trouble for waving a Cosmo around in the presence of children.

What City was he charged in?
Maybe we can all chip in and get Charles to handle this?

Then hopefully Charles can hand a slap to the Municipality and set a precedent to other Cities that may consider this type of action to be acceptable.

I'll be interested to see the actual citation/result of this.

I hope it all turns out alright for the guy who got the ticket.

I find it hard to believe this was only a ticket...

I would be interested in where this offense occurred and what he was charged with. There are no offenses in Texas where you can be written a ticket for displaying a weapon that I am aware of. 46.035 is a class A misdemeanor and 42.01 is a class B misdemeanor. Both cases require the arrested person to be taken before a magistrate (i.e. booked into jail).

This might just be an easy case to win. The courts may not have the jurisdiction to hear it if it goes to a municipal or justice court.

srothstein wrote:I would be interested in where this offense occurred and what he was charged with. There are no offenses in Texas where you can be written a ticket for displaying a weapon that I am aware of. 46.035 is a class A misdemeanor and 42.01 is a class B misdemeanor. Both cases require the arrested person to be taken before a magistrate (i.e. booked into jail).

This might just be an easy case to win. The courts may not have the jurisdiction to hear it if it goes to a municipal or justice court.

exactly.