Post questions here about open and concealed carry, as well as general law questions.
 #112063  by KiaYuki
 
Ive been in Delaware for a few months now, finally going to get my pistol soon. But Ive read up and down all over this forum and Im somewhat confused and uncertain about how feasible it is to even OC since it feels the law goes out of its way to discourage it. And so Im here, asking some questions once more.

1.) How serious is this "No gun school zone law"? Like, Im new to Delaware Still, I drive the same roads every day but I dont know every route, And I know that at some point im gonna come across a school at some point or another. Like do I need to go out of my way to OC? Do i need to be worried every time i pass by a school im gonna get nailed because im driving on a public road? I mean, Its a public road. (And I undestand that it is federal law, But I come from Arizona. Your vehicle is treated as part of your home. And the public road, is just that. Public, As long as the gun does not leave your vehicle on school grounds there no crime, and as long as you dont go into GFZA properties youre safe.) So, What kind of advice or information can someone give me for this?

2.)In the event I do need to leave my firearm in the car, How do I go about that? Can I unload it and put the firearm in a lockbox under my seat, and the mag in the glove box? Do I need to have the pistol in the trunk unloaded and locked separately.
 #112067  by astro_wanabe
 
There are 2 "gun free school zone" laws - state, and federal. For adults the state one just adds an extra charge if you commit crimes from a specific list while in the zone, so it isn't really a big deal. The federal one is more restrictive and there are only a few exemptions to have it not apply, such as being on private property or having a license to carry the gun from the state you're physically in. Unlicensed OC on public roadways, not connected to a school sanctioned event or anything, generally is not going to fall under any of those exemptions. You should read the Federal code section to see the exemptions and what they do - and really don't - cover. Will you get caught or prosecuted? It's pretty unlikely unless they're already trying to get you for something else, but yes you can and you probably shouldn't chance it. Getting a DE CCDW should protect you as it is a license to carry a gun granted by this state. Actually with a CCDW there's nothing inherently illegal about carrying on school property. It's probably against school rules and you might be asked to leave though. Our list of places where we can't carry at all is pretty small - courts, detention facilities, things like that. Check around for a list of places you can't carry in each state and you'll see ours is surprisingly short.

Here your car is just a car. Doesn't really carry any special protections. You can't have a loaded long gun (or have its magazine loaded) in your vehicle thanks to an anti-poaching environmental regulation. For handguns the law makes no distinction between being fully loaded or not. The gun itself being either openly visible or concealed and how accessible it is are what are important. There is no law for OC - only one that prohibits carrying the firearm concealed on or about your person without the license. So you can't conceal it on your person or somewhere you could easily grab it like a nearby purse or the glove box / under a seat while driving. It basically needs to be as blatantly visible as it is when you are carrying it OWB on your belt while walking around in order to be de facto lawful. Even keeping it on your waist is discouraged as your body and the seat will conceal it. Recommended locations are secured to the dash (such as a holster with velcro) or on an empty passenger seat (you can buckle the seat belt and clip a holster to it to keep the gun from sliding around).

Generally I don't recommend leaving guns in vehicles if you can avoid it. If you absolutely had to for some reason try to minimize how much you have to handle the gun to avoid a negligent discharge. A holster that allows you to remove it with a quick detach system can let you move the gun from your person to a lock box without ever exposing the trigger, but they do tend to be bulky. Anyway I'd recommend storing it in a purpose-built locking box that has either a strong steel cable or bolt-down options for securing it to the vehicle. You don't want to give a smash-and-grab thief the opportunity to take your lock box away from the vehicle to break into it later. Where you secure the box in the vehicle is not dictated anywhere. If it's close enough you could quickly reach it when you get back in the car then you'd better be careful to always remember to take it out though, otherwise you'll be CC'ing without a license.

Feel free to post up any ideas of how you were planning to secure it in your vehicle. We're not lawyers but we can at least offer the voice of experience.