CCW and Alcohol at Restaurants

M

MtnMike1

New member
I'm new to CCW. Got my license mainly to carry while camping, hiking and motorcycling. Since being a member here and another forum it sounds like many folks carry all or most of the time. Here in NC the law was changed last year allowing CCW in Restaurants/Bars that serve alcohol. Sounded very risky to me when I first heard about it but I guess the bad guys were already doing it. Anyway, the law does not allow for alcohol consumption while carrying, makes sense to me. Most of us carry for self defense without knowing when that may be necessary. Thankfully for most of us it never is.

Recently I've been thinking about this. My wife and I regularly go downtown Asheville and other places for dinner. I normally have a beer or two or wine with dinner which makes me outside the law if I carry and in a world of trouble if I did have to draw or fire my weapon.

What do you guys do in this situation.
 
Do not consume alcohol when in possession of a firearm!

Easy: Don't drink.

Seriously. Don't drink.

The law says don't drink when you are carrying a gun. Common sense says don't drink when handling firearms. There is nothing confusing about it.

If you are going out to drink, leave the gun at home.


Asheville is a beautiful town by the way. Just got home from a bit of vacation there.
 
^^^^THIS^^^^^

I carry everywhere, all the time. That means no beer. No wine. Nothing but soda.

If i decide im going to join in and have one or two. The gun gets taken out and locked up in the car. It will stay there until we get home again

No a big issue for me as i dont drink much these days

Just like driving. They just DONT mix
 
Recently I've been thinking about this. My wife and I regularly go downtown Asheville and other places for dinner. I normally have a beer or two or wine with dinner which makes me outside the law if I carry and in a world of trouble if I did have to draw or fire my weapon.
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If it's against the law to drink while carrying, then the answer is simple. Don't do it.
 
Whenever I am going to have a drink while carrying my gun gets locked up in the car. If a mad gunman happens to rush into the restaurant/bare while I am unarmed, than so be it. Life is too short to not let your guard down and enjoy yourself every now and then.
 
No law against carrying in bars in Vermont...I have known many people over the years that have carried in bars, and have never seen or heard of a gun drawn in anger...

Having worked bars in my youth, I found that the people that got into trouble were the ones that would get in trouble with, or without a gun...

In my experience, less regulation of a person's rights has not, and will not, lead to a 'Wild West' mentality, no matter which right(s) we are speaking of...

I'm a firm believer in treating adults like adults...

ADDING:

I do however have to agree that if it is illegal where you are, do not intentionally break the law...

Work to change it if you feel the need, but do not break it...
 
Pick one, drink or carry. Or convince someone in your group to be the designated defender/driver.

Downtown Asheville is pretty tame, other than beggars and new-age hippies.

I loved the "Keep Asheville Weird" campaign last year.

And howdy, from Guntertown !
 
MN law says .04 is over the legal limit to carry.

When I go out to dinner with my wife I carry and have one beer or one glass of wine.
 
I'll have a beer or shot of whiskey, Not in a bar (Not Legal in Washington state, but Legal in Oregon) while I carry. I'll never carry if I have more than one drink.. But, it is good advice not to carry if you have had alcohol, because I am told if you ever need to use your gun in self-defense and it was found you had any alcohol in your blood at the time, it is just one more thing a scummy lawyer will use against you in court.
 
Good laws but not perfect !!!

Recently I've been thinking about this. My wife and I regularly go downtown Asheville and other places for dinner. I normally have a beer or two or wine with dinner which makes me outside the law if I carry and in a world of trouble if I did have to draw or fire my weapon.
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Sadly have to admit that a very good buddy of mine and his wife routinely go out twice a week and often drink over their legal limit. Simply put, they really enjoy these "outings". He was "really" concerned as to what he should do even though it was obvious. Suggested that he needs to leave it at home and as a back-up, have a gun case in the trunk and when he pulls up to the "Joe's", put it in the trunk. ..... ;)

Might add that when Iowa went to shall-issue, there were three sections in the law that did not leave me warm and fuzzy. Like you, one is carrying in bars. When one goes over the legal limit to drive, your permit is revoked. As in most cases, the law to carry in Iowa is not perfect, it is still a good law. .. ;)

Be Safe !!!
 
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MtnMike, you need to clarify your question for us.

It's illegal to carry and consume in NC and most places, so if violating that law is even a consideration, you've already failed and placed yourself in the category of "bad guy". So I’ll assume your question was more along the lines of… “I intend to go out drinking and of course cannot carry when I do, so what should I do with my gun?” Ie, should I leave it at home? In the car? Give it to wife? Check it with the hostess? Ask a cop to watch it?

So what exactly is your question?

HINT: I'm trying to give you an out.
 
Thanks for the responses. First of all I don't carry when I go out for dinner or when I consume alcohol. I actually carry rarely but I was wandering what most folks who full time carry do in situations where they may have a drink at dinner in a public place. Although as mentioned, Asheville is pretty tame but in larger cities with more crime the risk may be greater so I was curious how full time carriers handled the situation.
 
In TN it is a misdemeanor to consume any alcohol while carrying a firearm but even worse you can lose your carry permit for 3 years if you are caught. As much as I enjoy a beer, it's not worth it. I have one of these lock boxes that you can lock to your vehicle with a cable and I'll put my gun in there if I decide to have a drink somewhere.
 
Doesn't it bother anyone that when someone chooses to drink, they take off their gun and lock it in the car? Then what? Drive home?

If you're going to drink and drive, why not drink and carry?

Bob Wright
 
:) It would be possible to have a member of the group you're with drive you in your car.

...but if the law says "zero alcohol when carrying", and you're a 200lb man that has one beer with dinner, the law will probably say you're not impaired to drive, although you cannot be carrying a firearm.

Seems silly, I agree, but the law doesn't need to make sense.
 
If you have to use your weapon in self-defense and there's a quantum of doubt, the presence of alcohol in your system could be a problem. An aggressive prosecutor could use that to question your judgment.

How much? I can't say, but I wouldn't want to be in that position.
 
I don't really drink aside from the occasional one beer or glass of wine at home, I wouldn't carry and drink in a restaurant even if it were legal.

One peculiarity of Ohio law; if you are carrying in an establishment that serves alcohol and take one sip of alcohol, you have committed a felony. If you are anywhere other than one of those places and are falling down drunk while carrying, you have committed a misdemeanor.
 
I was wandering what most folks who full time carry do in situations where they may have a drink at dinner in a public place.
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Me? I order iced tea. Unsweetened, with a slice of lemon, please.

Either that, or I leave the gun at home.
 
In TX it is legal to carry in a restaurant that serves alcohol as long as less than 51% of their income is derived from the sale of alcohol to be consumed on the premises. If the restaurant does derive more than 51% of its sales from selling drinks then it must post a legally defined sign to warn CHL holders.

It is not illegal to drink while carrying in TX but it is illegal to carry while intoxicated. The law does not define intoxication for the purposes of this particular restriction which means that there is no legal threshold established that one could point to as a defense--i.e. "I'm under 0.0X% so I'm legal". The general consensus is that it's wiser not to drink while carrying to avoid the issue entirely.

Generally speaking, I'd rather have a carbonated soft-drink than an alcholic beverage (yeah, I know, I have real refined tastes) so it's never been an issue for me.
 
I may have a glass of wine with dinner if I'm with my GF. It's not an issue here in PA. No law against It. nothing in the law as to limit. If your BAC is high and you wind up using your firearm the DA will no doubt bring it up at trial.
 
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