gun in car? Inform the cop when pulled over? in Florida

K

khuengo

New member
I am Florida resident, over 21 and travel alot within Florida. I always carry my Beretta 92FS loaded with safety on in the holster secured encased in the compartment of my car and it is legal according to The 2005 Florida Statutes
Title XLVI, Chapter 790.25.3.
(l) A person traveling by private conveyance when the weapon is securely encased or in a public conveyance when the weapon is securely encased and not in the person's manual possession;

(17) "Securely encased" means in a glove compartment, whether or not locked; snapped in a holster; in a gun case, whether or not locked; in a zippered gun case; or in a closed box or container which requires a lid or cover to be opened for access.

My questions is suppose I got pulled over by cop or highway patrol (speeding for instance), by law, would I have to inform the cop that I have a gun in my car (not on or above my body, just in unlocked compartment) ? I know I should but just dont wanna :p I read the entire chapter but found no info but by reading topics here, I always see you guys inform the cop about your gun then the cop checks your CCW blah blah.... Is that neccesary/required?

I do not have CCW and not gonna to apply for one because I am not permanent resident/citizen but legally own guns.

Thanks
 
Any one on the Florida

packing dot org can answer...
I think you don't have to infom the LEO unless they ask in florida.... but I could be wrong.
 
Only the people who live in states that require notification inform a LEO that they are carrying. Unless I am asked if I have any weapons I don't need to say anything where I live. You need to check Florida's regs. Why don't you have a carry permit?
 
Check over at packing.org to verify, but in Fla there is no duty to inform and I recommend against it

If for some stupid reason you have your paperwork in the glove box with the gun or if you are removed from the car you should tell the officer first, if not don't

I was recently pulled over and had to tell the officer that I had a gun in my glove box
I five minute defective tag light stop turned into a 30 minute drama because I left my paper work in the box with the gun.
 
I'm in Florida and I don't have to inform.

But I keep my CCWL in the same little wallet insert that contains my DL, and, if I'm ever stopped (one should never say this, but it's been a while) I'll hand that to the LEO. As I see that he's found the CCWL, I will announce that my gun is in my glove box (which is where it is) and ask what he'd like me to do.

Being as how life is full of little surprises, I'd hate to somehow have the stop turn into a search and have to inform the cop after the intent to search is announced or, worse, just let him find it.
 
Quote : I was recently pulled over and had to tell the officer that I had a gun in my glove box I five minute defective tag light stop turned into a 30 minute drama because I left my paper work in the box with the gun.

That is exactly reason I do wanna tell LEOs about my gun. When travel, I always put papers to the side of the driver side door and gun in glove compartment.

O.o.., typo. I meant I do NOT wanna
 
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Eligibility Requirements

You must be a citizen of the United States OR you must be deemed a lawful permanent resident alien by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS formerly INS).
If you are not a citizen of the United States, you must submit documentation issued by the USCIS proving you are a permanent legal resident alien who has resided in your state of residence for at least 90 consecutive days prior to the date the application is submitted.

I am a foreign student studying in US underl F1 type visa, not eligible as permanent legal resident (I think)
Dang, I am dying for a CCW :(
 
I guess I don't get it.

As has been pointed out, there is no duty to inform in Florida. So, unless it's on your person and you've been asked to step out of the car (or you make the mistake of keeping your registration with the weapon), why would you mention it at all?

What I'm getting at is this:
We all constantly argue with anti's that a firearm is simply a tool, capable of no action on its own. By volunteering that you have a weapon in your glove box, you announce that you believe it's something more dangerous than a simple tool. The weapon is legally resting in its holster, in a glove box, threatening nobody. Why bring it up and invite the possibility of someone, unfamiliar with the action, handling it?
Rich
 
Rich, how often do you plan exactly what will happen when meeting a person you've never seen, and then have things go exactly the way you planned?

When pulled over, I don't expect my car to be searched. I radiate no reason for it. But once I was pulled over and it came very close to that because the police thought I was somebody else. Luckily for me, the person they thought I was was right across the street and they found him before it went any further.

So, in a traffic stop I hope for the best but plan for the worst, which is a sudden interest in searching my car before I can explain what's going to be found.

I just don't want to end up handcuffed in a police car, even for a few minutes, if I can avoid it.

I will admit to having conducted a couple of "tests", though. Not while driving, but at home. I have had a lot of officers visit recently due to circumstances I'm trying to get under control. On two of the approximately 10 visits, I went outside carrying my concealed .45. I made sure I stood by the police car and officer during the entire visit, one of which lasted 25 minutes. The test was to see whether somebody familiar with arms could surmise I was carrying, and the purpose of that test was to try to reassure myself that I was concealing effectively.

But those were specific intentional instances.

I just don't see any reason the police should not know I'm armed. There seems to be a variety of attitude in my local police force. It ranges from the unimpressed "just because you have a CCWL doesn't mean you're less likely to shoot somebody" through the indifferent "so what did you call me here for", to the enthusiastic "do you want to sell it?". Overall, I think being forthcoming about the matter has gotten me better police service.

I'd be interested to know why you think that information should be withheld from them. Seriously. You strike me as one of the more reasonable people here, so I'd like to hear what you have to say.
 
Rich

Apologies, I just looked again at the last part of your post. You did give some reasons, and they're reasonable.

Just let me add one more thing to what I said before. I see a lot of police lately. When they come to take notes for a police report, I invite them in and sit at the dining room table. I make sure my gun is stashed someplace, like in my briefcase. But I don't bother to hide my belt with attached holster, whose home is the same table.

Of the maybe 12 or so officers who've sat in that spot over the last 4 months, I am very sure they saw the holster and know very well what it is. With the exception of one, there was never any interest shown in my gun or whether I had one or where it was.

The one exception was initiated by me, not the officer. I was asking him to review some of my home security, and I asked a couple questions about trespassers. His answers presumed I had a gun.

I once visited the Pompano Beach police station. The visitor parking was full, and it wasn't clear (Wilma had damaged the signage) that I had parked in the employee parking lot until I tried to buzz myself in at the back (officials only) entrance. Even though I was not where I was supposed to be, and was parked where I was not supposed to park, when I asked an emerging officer if I could keep my clip (I don't like to leave it with the gun in my vehicle) when I went inside (at the correct entrance to which he was leading me) he thought about it and said it would probably be better to return it to my car.

He walked with me there and asked if I had a permit. I said yes, and that satisfied him without seeing it. When I opened the car and slipped the clip under the seat, I asked if he needed to see the gun (by then I realized I was improperly parked, so I figured I should be extra-nice). He declined, and then showed me the front entrance.

In other words, no officer has ever shown any unusual interest in my gun, except the one who asked if I wanted to sell it.

All of this is not to say I'm right. I just haven't had an experience that says it's unwise to let cops know you are armed if you are.
 
Folks, check the original question.

had nothing to do with carrying on your person in a car. Just having a gun in the car... properly secured per Florida law. When do you inform the LEO of the weapon.... per the law or not?
 
Invention-
it just seems that what you're doing (unintentionally, I think) is bordering on flaunting your possession of a permit. "I make sure they see my holster"; "I asked him to hold my 'clip'". Yet, as you say, virtually no one is interested...and I suspect those that are find your behavior a bit eccentric.

It's just a firearm, I-45. If it's holstered in a glove box and the cops come across it in a search (has happened to me), so what? Firearms in glove boxes are legal and common place in the Great State of Florida, permit not withstanding. Any cop who would cause you to "end up handcuffed in a police car" because he came across a legally transported firearm faces some real problems. My point is that it is simply not germane to the stop, unless the officer has some reason to fear you. If you were a Kung Fu Master, would you announce that to the Police every time you crossed paths?

Certainly, there are times that a Police Officer should be notified that you're carrying a pistol. But a routine traffic stop is not one of them...and, certainly, asking one to "hold your 'clip'" would be an eyebrow raiser to any person, when your car is available for storage a few yards away.
Rich
 
As a Floridian I have pondered this issue. My conclusion is that I do not intend to inform a LEO about it unless exposure of the weapon is imminent. Then I don't want to surprise the officer and hear the loud shout"GUN" as the officer goes, understandedly,for his/her gun.
 
That is exactly reason I do wanna tell LEOs about my gun. When travel, I always put papers to the side of the driver side door and gun in glove compartment.
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Not sure I understand the reasoning. If you do not have to handle your gun to produce your papers why would you feel the need to inform the officer and possibly put him on edge.
My experience tells me that they do not automatically feel a bond with simply because you tell them that you have something in your car that could suddenly end their career.

I was taken to the back of my very distinctive truck, made to sit cross legged on the sidewalk, after being frisked in full view of my community, my vehicle was then searched (although very brief and basic) by his partner
If the officer was alone I would probably have been cuffed and placed in his car while he retrieved my info.
If a more seasoned officer had not been there I think I would have anyway.

If I had simply reached into the pocket on my door, where I normally keep my paperwork for my other cars, I would have been given the repair warning and sent on my way.

And by the way when I informed the officer that I had a gun in my glovebox he stepped back and said to his partner at the rear passenger side of my truck "He's got a gun"
I did not see the other officer's reaction but I would imagine certain unmentionable parts puckered
 
Quote : I was recently pulled over and had to tell the officer that I had a gun in my glove box I five minute defective tag light stop turned into a 30 minute drama because I left my paper work in the box with the gun.

That is exactly reason I do wanna tell LEOs about my gun. When travel, I always put papers to the side of the driver side door and gun in glove compartment.

O.o.., typo. I meant I do NOT wanna
 
I've been driving a long time and have been stopped a few times. Never, ever, once been asked by a cop to permit him/her to search my car. I agree with Rich. What's the point of bringing "gun" into the equation/conversation? (1) It's none of the cop's business if I have a handgun legally in my vehicle and (2) what posslble purpose would I have in informing a cop about something that's none of his/her business? and (3) it's none of his/her business if I'm legally carrying in my vehicle or anywhere else.

Like joab said, if I have my proof of insurance, etc., in the same compartment as my handgun, I'll definitely tell the cop. However, having something between my ears besides pablum, I always have everything that a cop might wish to see in my hands when he/she approaches.
 
I once was stoped for rolling through a stop sign were the wheels did not stop for a second. Wanted my insurance papers and auto reg. I told the police man that I had a gun in the trunk and I think the insurance paper was in the trunk (I had just moved to Florida) "I don't care about the gun, I want to see your proof of insurance he said". That was a small town, I do not know about the big city what they would have done.
 
However, having something between my ears besides pablum, I always have everything that a cop might wish to see in my hands when he/she approaches.
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That is my usual plan. But it was a new truck and by the time I realized where the registration was I had to make the decision whether to retrieve the papers and hope I got them before he saw the gun or sit back and play dumb.
I considered telling him that I did not have the registration with me, things may have gone smoother that way
 
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