What constitutes concealed carry

w_houle

New member
I realized today that if I was to carry in my holster and just put my coat on that you could not see that I was carrying. Would this constitute concealed carry?
 
Yes. If the weapon and holster are not visible, it is concealed. However, if your holster and weapon become visible at any time during you carryiong, then it is no longer concealed. Pretty simple.
 
For open carry to be legal the gun has to be viewable from the front and rear. So if you have no CHP and are carrying in a SOB holster, that would be considered concealed even though it is not covered by a garment.
 
Case law for your state (count/city/town) will define what is considered 'concealed'.

In Virginia the gun must be 'readily apparent', but even that varies across the state.

A 'belt buckle' gun was held to be concealed since it was not apparent the gun was real.
 
Concealed???

w_houle,

Creature says "...if your holster and weapon become visible at any time during you carrying, then it is no longer concealed. Pretty simple". The mileage you can get out of his statement will vary from state to state and "ain't necessarily so"!

You might want to take a look at this ongoing discussion:

http://glocktalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=804729
 
Right brickeye, it depends on your local laws. In Texas, a gun is not concealed if it is discernible via normal observation. In other words, printing bad enough can mean that the gun is not concealed.
 
This is not rocket science. Technicalities are best left to the lawyers. Since we are not in court and we are not quibbling over semantics, if you can see any part of the holster/gun...and or it is printing badly, then chances are it is no longer considered concealed.

Kind of a "rule of thumb" definition...adjust accordingly.
 
I like NH's law better. Since open carry is not illegal, ever, if someone actually slips with their jacket and shows a holster, the worst that can happen is scaring some of the sheep who come up from MA, who usually think it's a cop anyway. There's no legal issues for that.

So if you have no CHP and are carrying in a SOB holster, that would be considered concealed even though it is not covered by a garment.

Except that would be an incredibly stupid thing to do. IMO, uncovered SOB is pretty much a gun out of your sight and control. All it takes is someone distracting you while their partner slips up behind you to take a free gun, the SOB holster is out of your line of sight, but accessable to anyone else. I think a DA would be justified in charging someone with negligence in not being in control of their firearm if that happened.
 
In some states, a hunter without a ccw may carry a handgun under the outer garment in inclement weather. Personally, I never did that until I held a ccw permit.

Also, I have read things regarding a weapon in plain view that appears to something other than a weapon being a concealed weapon under the law. That has kept me from wearing the mini-revolver belt buckle holster. YMMV
 
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