Discussion about specific topics of Delaware law. Suggest new topics of discussion in General Discussion forum.
 #102907  by astro_wanabe
 
slickvic107 wrote:Ok one more dumb question. If my wife and I are both OC, and we get in a car, she is in the passenger seat she is allowed to hold both guns in the open correct?
Um, just to be clear here, you're asking if she can carry the 2 guns on her lap or in her hands?

While I don't see anything obviously illegal about it, I'm just going to go out on a limb here and suggest that carrying a gun in your hand / lap when a cop walks up to your window probably won't end as well as some other carry options. (To be clear, I'm making a slight funny here. PLEASE do not have a gun in your hands when a cop walks up to your window). I'd suggest trying to secure them both to your dash, and keeping your hands well away from them if pulled over. There are several methods for securing a holster on a dash, and if that doesn't work for you you could perhaps try a simple paddle holster clipped to each of your seatbelts over your chest (although I have personally always been leery of having anything between me and the airbag). If you do the latter I'd recommend putting your hands on the steering wheel or dash if pulled over. If you need suggestions for mounting holsters (permanently or not) on your dash just search the forums or ask.

Trying to OC in a vehicle with passengers is definitely a tricky proposition, especially if you're a passenger in the rear of the vehicle. It's one of the reasons I finally broke down and applied for my CCDW. I understand getting a CCDW isn't cheap or quick, and sympathize if it simply isn't in the cards for you right now.
 #104212  by slickvic107
 
Thanks for the feedback. I need to get my CCDW just haven't had the time to start. A friend of my wife's is a State Trooper and she had asked him about me carrying my gun in my truck. He told her that if he were to pull me over and my gun was in my vehicle and not locked in case out of reach I would be arrested no matter what. That the Law states that you must have the gun unloaded and in a case out of reach. I have read all the documents, and I even asked him where in the code does it say that all I get is Title 11. If I have the gun on the passenger seat when I am alone is there a chapter or other document I can have on me to show the officer that I am not breaking the law? This ST was pretty adamant about stating that there is no legal way to carry a loaded firearm in the vehicle. That it needed to be unloaded and ammo in a separate place.

And I may have asked this but if I put my gun in the open center console, there is a small tray where lets say if the vehicle was a manual shift the shifter would be, and is visible on both sides of the vehicle is this considered in plain view. The plain view of other ppl vs plain view of officer confuses me a bit.
 #104218  by astro_wanabe
 
slickvic107 wrote:A friend of my wife's is a State Trooper and she had asked him about me carrying my gun in my truck. He told her that if he were to pull me over and my gun was in my vehicle and not locked in case out of reach I would be arrested no matter what. That the Law states that you must have the gun unloaded and in a case out of reach. I have read all the documents, and I even asked him where in the code does it say that all I get is Title 11. If I have the gun on the passenger seat when I am alone is there a chapter or other document I can have on me to show the officer that I am not breaking the law? This ST was pretty adamant about stating that there is no legal way to carry a loaded firearm in the vehicle. That it needed to be unloaded and ammo in a separate place.
First, police are the last authority I'd go to with a legal question (or rather, I won't go to one simply BECAUSE they are a cop). They aren't lawyers, are not required to give you correct info, can outright intentionally lie to you, and are often protected from any serious personal repercussions should they make a mistake in interpreting the law on the job. Nobody here is a lawyer either (that I'm aware of), but we'll usually at least look up the code before offering an opinion as fact.

OC is legal in Delaware simply because there's no law prohibiting it. There's a law against carrying a CONCEALED deadly weapon without a license, but nothing expressly forbids OC. There's no section explaining that OC is legal because by default, if an action is not prohibited, it is lawful. If the cop can't even find the section he thinks you'd be violating he'll have a hard time charging you with it. That said, arguing the law with a cop on the side of the road probably isn't going to work out very well for you anyways.

In the past there have been a couple incidents where individuals were illegally detained or arrested for OCing. IIRC one individual was held for a couple hours before they realized there was nothing to charge him with, then he was released and eventually received some sort of settlement for the violation of his rights. LE agencies in Delaware should really be aware of OC's legality by now. I haven't heard of any such incidents happening in the past several years.
slickvic107 wrote:And I may have asked this but if I put my gun in the open center console, there is a small tray where lets say if the vehicle was a manual shift the shifter would be, and is visible on both sides of the vehicle is this considered in plain view. The plain view of other ppl vs plain view of officer confuses me a bit.
Whether you're carrying "openly enough" must meet a higher standard than just being "in plain view" like a cop needs to seize contraband. Meaning just having a tiny bit visible so a cop can barely figure out what it is won't cut it. This court case decision may help:
A weapon is "concealed" if it is hidden from the ordinary sight of another person, i.e., the casual and ordinary observation of another in the normal associations of life; however, since "ordinary observations" are not the same as the observations of an investigating police officer, a weapon concealed from an ordinary person may be in the plain view of a police officer. Robertson v. State, 794 A.2d 267 (Del. 1997).
So if someone can walk up to your window and at a glance see the gun out in the open then you're likely ok, if they see a piece of it sticking out of a hidden area then that's possibly going to get you a felony. It's a bit of a grey area with serious consequences so I'd recommend being cautious. If it's a shallow tray easily seen by someone walking past, say the same as if it were sitting on the passenger seat, then it's probably ok. If it's a deep tray that you'd have to take some effort to look down into then it would probably be too concealed. I'd err on the side of caution until you get the CCDW. Sorry if that doesn't really help much.
 #104219  by NCC
 
Very sound advice astro_wanabe.
 #104234  by Boots
 
slickvic107 wrote:... if I put my gun in the open center console, there is a small tray where lets say if the vehicle was a manual shift the shifter would be, and is visible on both sides of the vehicle is this considered in plain view. ....
For Open Carry, stay away from the center console.
 #104766  by airman1968
 
I am a licensed out of state conceal carry individual visiting Delaware. If i am out and about in my car and decide to leave the vehicle and not keep my weapon on my person. Can I leave the weapon in the car, glove compartment etc.? Loaded? out of site.
 #104767  by phlydude
 
For compliance, remove the magazine from weapon and ensure that the chamber is empty. Store the firearm somewhere where it cannot be reached (preferably in a locked/secured area - most times this is the trunk) while sitting in the driver's seat and the magazine can be anywhere else in the vehicle.

However, if you are coming to DE, you might as well open carry your weapon instead of leaving it in the car. I personally would never leave a weapon in my car or truck unattended unless I was at the range and changing from pistol to rifle and didn't want to haul all my stuff between the lines.

I tend to think that I'd rather OC than explain to the police (and insurance company) that your weapon is no longer in your possession and possibly being used to commit felonies.
 #104772  by CorBon
 
airman1968 wrote:I am a licensed out of state conceal carry individual visiting Delaware. If i am out and about in my car and decide to leave the vehicle and not keep my weapon on my person. Can I leave the weapon in the car, glove compartment etc.? Loaded? out of site.
What state is your permit from?
 #104790  by Glockamole
 
Airman if your permit is recognized by Delaware then you can conceal it anywhere I would think even if you're not in the car. When I visit Delaware I conceal carry most of the time with my Utah permit. If I'm running in and out of a few places I'll open carry. When I'm driving I usually take my firearm and put it in my center console so if need be it's easy to get to. I rarely will leave it unattended in the car unless going into a place that I wouldn't want to bring it. I went for a massage one time while on vacation and didn't think it was a good idea to leave it laying around in the place. For the times I leave it I have a small travel safe cable locked inside my trunk.
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