What to say to a police officer

P

Pep in CA

New member
Suppose I'm on my way to my local shooting range and I have my guns locked in my trunk. A police officer pulls me over for some reason and asks me if I have any weapons in my car.

How should I respond? (Note, I live in Los Angeles county but not LA City, if that makes a difference).

I don't want to answer "no" because that would be a lie and I don't want to answer "yes" because that might give him probably cause to search my vehicle for illegal weapons.

So how should I answer?

My best guess is to say "I respectfully decline to answer your question without an attorney present", then ask "am I free to go?".
 
I suppose you could answer that there are no weapons in the cabin; That way, you're not lying, but I suspect a sharp cop would see through it.

It is your right to not answer any questions, but it's just going to tick off the cop who, typically, thinks he is above the law.
 
If I lived in an area where an officer of the law overreacting to the declaration of having a weapon in the vehicle was a concern I would move.

Around here, on the very rare occasion I am approached by an officer in a traffic situation, I advise him or her that I have a concealed pistol license and if I am in possession (or not) of a concealed weapon. My understanding of holding a CPL is that one must disclose to an officer if he or she is in possession of a concealed weapon. Because I know that the officer has likely already gained enough information to know that I have a CPL I figure its simplest to just tell them.

Then again I get along well with the few officers I have ever interacted with. Chances are, if they pull me over, I did something wrong. He or she just wants to go home at night and not put up with whatever nonsense I might pull. Pull over in as safe an area as possible, pull well off the road, and treat the officer as you would like to be treated without making him or her worry. Its been years since I have been pulled over. The vast majority of times I have been it has resulted in a warning. The few times that a warning was not appropriate (one time involved a Z28 Camaro and triple digits) the officer has always given me massive breaks.
 
If you answer with a lie, you are waiving your right to be silent, which gives no protection for false answers. You are always better to decline to answer than to answer falsely.

My state requires that I notify an officer if I am carrying under my concealed carry permit, but that does not apply to weapons lawfully being transported in compliance for non permit holders.

As such, my response would be "I am not transporting any weapons that are accessible to me". Any additional inquiry would be met with "I don't believe I am legally required to answer that, sir".

Even admission that you are transporting weapons is not grounds for a search, unless you say something dumb that can be construed as probable cause that you are doing so illegally, but its best say as little as possible. That small talk before the citation is meant to get you to say something that can be used against you.
 
First of all, welcome to TFL, Pep in CA!

Second, the phrase you're looking for is "probable cause," not:
Pep in CA said:
. . . . probably cause . . . .
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Finally, the question of "how should I answer," will depend on state law, and (possibly) the municipal codes in the area in which you are travelling. If you decline to answer any questions, there is some danger that the officer will further detain you in order to determine the lawfulness of your conduct. If you lie to the officer, and are caught, that might be grounds for a criminal charge. (Here, it's called Obstructing Governmental Operations.)

My two cents: Hire a lawyer licensed in your jurisdiction, versed in criminal law and firearms law, for a short consult & ask that lawyer these questions.
 
My understanding of holding a CPL is that one must disclose to an officer if he or she is in possession of a concealed weapon.
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Not necessarily; many states do not have a duty to inform when stopped. Handgunlaw.us will tell you what is required by statute in your state, or any state you might be meandering through.
 
Or, if you were going to break silence, you could say "Yeah, in the trunk; I'm on my way to/from X range."
The officer would probably know the range and that might put him/her at ease.
 
I've only ever been asked if I have any weapons on me, which seems like a reasonable question, so I answer truthfully.
 
Just don't lie to the cop,,,

Just don't lie to the cop,,,
They hate that worse than anything.

Well, maybe they don't hate it,,,
But they always retaliate in an unpleasant manner.

I've never been a cop,,,
But I was a CSO for a few years,,,
And for 14 years my ex was a dispatcher.

I hung out with the cops,,,
I went on many ride-alongs,,,
So this is an informed opinion at least.

If you are doing nothing illegal,,,
It's always best to cooperate with them.

If they violate your constitutional rights,,,
Sue the living snot out of them and their department.

Just do it after the fact.

I live in a fairly gun-friendly state,,,
But if I still lived in California,,,
I would have a dash-cam.

Heck, even in Oklahoma that's not a bad idea at all.

Aarond

.
 
Thanks for the replies, everyone. My firearms trainer advised the class to not answer the officer's question, but I've seen several YouTube videos where people did that. It ticked the officer and they argued for several minutes. I happen to appreciate the job police officers do so I don't want to tick them off.

That is why I posted this question to this forum.

When I go the the range, I lock my guns in my trunk with my handgun in a locked case, so I am in compliance with the law. I think therefore I will inform the officer of that.

Thanks for the advice.

Cheers.
 
Don't get puilled over or lie !!!

A police officer pulls me over for some reason and asks me if I have any weapons in my car.
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You have to question why he pulled you over, in the first place. You probably broke a law. That was your first mistake and after that, you may be walking on thin ice. I've been driving a long time and pulled over more than I can remember. Either out of the blue or after some preliminaries, I have never been asked this question. He must have just cause. ........ :rolleyes:

So hypothetically, lets say that it happens. He has a right to see my license and proof of insurance. I do have a right to question why he pulled me over. In any following conversations, I would not lie but would make sure I was lawful.
I'm not a very good liar and they are very good at recognizing one. ..... :eek:

Be Safe !!!
 
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So hypothetically, lets say that it happens. He has a right to see my license and proof of purchase. I do have a right to question why he pulled me over. In any following conversations, I would not lie but would make sure I was lawful.
I'm not a very good liar and they are very good at recognizing one. .....
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This points to how valuable knowledge of local police culture can be. You can ask a city PO what speed he thinks you were going and how he measured it. I did that the last time I was pulled over and handed a ticket. The PO, who never said anything to me but "Can I see your license?", snorted, took the ticket back from me and marked that he measured my speed by radar (he didn't), and that I was going just fast enough to have engaged in a ticketable offense (I wasn't). He walked back to his car and turned on his lights to hand a ticket to a woman going 10mph in a 25mph zone.

In the same city I was caught driving underage a couple of times with the PO just sending me home because he had other things to do.

The lawyer in me wants to tell everyone to zip it, take the ticket, and argue in court. Depending on the place, the human being who has known a few POs might say, "Yes, I'm going to the range and have my stuff in the trunk. Do you need to see it?"

Your local culture matters.
 
It's a traffic stop. The officer has the right to stop you for a traffic violation, and see your driving credentials, as well as question you about any weapons on your person or within reach of you or a passenger. This is where you show your CPL and say "Yes, I've got a pistol in my coat pocket", or "I'm not carrying today."

He doesn't need to know about anything in your trunk, it's not within your reach, and he doesn't get to look in the trunk without a warrant. As long as your name and description aren't identical to Carlos the Jackal, and you don't squirm around in your seat and sweat gimlets, there's no probable cause to suspect you of anything other than being Joe SixPack the Speeder.

You don't have to lie to him, just don't play the game. If you routinely carry guns in your car trunk, and have no CPL, consider getting one just to be able to answer, "No, I'm not carrying today." Even better, add "I'm heading for the Save Mart, am I going to need one?"

Not to mention, make sure your lights are in good order, you use your turn signals, and obey the speed limits during the drive to and from the range.
 
I'm going to share a story, because I apparently like to.

Many years ago my daughter was at my ex wife's house. Due to many issues I really did not like this situation and while I had custody she still had visitation. So I get a call that her and her husband are fighting and things are being thrown. Scared for her safety and all that. I'm close so I immediately call 911 and head over there. The 911 dispatcher asks "are there any weapons in the house" which I find, even at that moment, to be a ridiculous question. Its a house. I'm sure there are knives at least in there. The next question is "are there any guns in the house". The answer involves something to the effect of not yet but I am carrying a weapon. I pull into the drive and there has been no response yet. Not a big surprise as its the county and there are a limited number of officers in the area.

I explain to the dispatcher that I have on the phone that I am going to walk to the door, take my child's hand, and bring her back to my car. The dispatcher tells me that I can't do that and I question to the dispatcher if they are issuing a lawful order and if they have the authority to do so. I get a moment of silence at which point I inform the dispatcher I was simply keeping them informed of my actions. I retrieve my daughter (never entering the house) and her sister who are both at the door and want out. I see neither my ex or her husband (boyfriend?) and walk out to the car where I lock it with them in it.

Ten minutes or so go by before the first officer shows up. He walks to my car window and ask me if I'm armed. I tell him I am and he just nods. He asks if I've been in the house and how things are going and I explain to him that after I secured the kids behind me I really did not care and frankly had never entered the house. He then walks up to the door and begins a conversation with one of them. He waits for back up who has a similar conversation with me before going in the house.

I was surprised in the interaction that they never really cared that I had a firearm on me. Nor did they make any request to secure it. In hindsight my actions were probably not the most prudent from a legal or tactical sense but I believe many times we will do things for our children that have different concerns.

Moral to me: most officers would rather work with you then against. I have talked to officers in the area that grant requests to individuals they are arresting on warrants "I need to finish making dinner for my kids / I want to eat dinner / can I have a cigarette" They tell me its much simpler to work with people than it is to fight with them and end up rolling around on the ground.
 
Come to Texas

You guys live in the wrong states, move to Texas. There may be some individuals most Troopers and police here don't fear armed citizens.
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So I get people saying they want to exercise their rights and not answer the question, however I see this as "play silly games win silly awards". What I mean is perhaps the officer already had in his her mind to give a talking to you about what ever moving violation they observed, but now you start out with attitude. So how do they respond, well here is your award, a traffic ticket but wait, also remember they can take plenty of time to write that thing out. So instead of being 10 minutes late to where you were going with a little lecture on safe driving you are 45 minutes late with a fine. Good on you, and you really showed him by exercising your rights.

Just a thought.
 
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