Ben Swenson
New member
Now I know exactly how I'll answer this question.
Tonight I was puttering along in the left lane on 465, heading south when a car pulls up behind me and gets pretty close. I figure they want me to make way for them, so I pick up the pace to get around a car and pull into the middle lane.
So far, so good.
Then this joker gets in behind me again. And lights me up. 'Oh', says I, 'this chap didn't want to get by me at all. No doubt he would like to have a chat with me about my excess velocity. I had better oblidge.' (or profanity to that effect). So, I pulled over onto the shoulder and made ready for a close encounter of the cop kind (all the while beseeching LawDog to watch over me from afar).
1. Put car in park and kill turn signal.
2. Turn on dome lights.
3. Put wallet on dashboard.
4. Kill stereo.
5. Lower driver's side window.
6. Place hands on steering wheel.
The situation played out something like this:
Cop: *knocks on passenger window*
Cordex: "er ... oh" *lowers passenger window*
Cop: "I need to see your driver's license and registration"
Cordex: "Yes, sir." *starts picking through his wallet*
Cop: "Is there a gun in the car?"
Cordex: "Yes, sir. I carry legally."
Cop: "Where is it?"
Cordex: "My right hip."
Cop: "Okay, keep it there and we're all right."
Cordex: "Would you like to see my carry permit?"
Cop: *apathetically amused* "Sure, if you want to show it to me"
Cordex: *hands over the permit*
Cop: *glances it over briefly and hands it back*
Cordex: *continues to look through the wallet, but forgot that he had placed the driver's license in his coat pocket the day before*
Cop: "I tell you what, since you were nice enough to put your hands up on the wheel and all, I'll let this slide. You were going 78 in a 55. Be careful" *walks off and drives away*
Thus ends my tale. This happened about 2220 local time. He never saw anything but the little pink piece of paper that says that I'm allowed to carry a gun and wasn't really concerned with seeing it.
So here's my point: How you comport yourself is important when dealing with the police and can be the difference between a very large ticket and a polite warning. This guy was a decent cop, I think. Not because he didn't give me a ticket (though that certainly made him seem friendlier to me), but because he was very polite and professional, didn't become irrational when I told him I had a gun, and was patient with me. The fact that I prepared myself in the proper manner and was polite was enough to get me off the hook.
Not all cops empty their magazines at the first mention of the word "gun" and I just thought I'd provide an example of "one of the good guys".
---
Results may not be typical.
Tonight I was puttering along in the left lane on 465, heading south when a car pulls up behind me and gets pretty close. I figure they want me to make way for them, so I pick up the pace to get around a car and pull into the middle lane.
So far, so good.
Then this joker gets in behind me again. And lights me up. 'Oh', says I, 'this chap didn't want to get by me at all. No doubt he would like to have a chat with me about my excess velocity. I had better oblidge.' (or profanity to that effect). So, I pulled over onto the shoulder and made ready for a close encounter of the cop kind (all the while beseeching LawDog to watch over me from afar).
1. Put car in park and kill turn signal.
2. Turn on dome lights.
3. Put wallet on dashboard.
4. Kill stereo.
5. Lower driver's side window.
6. Place hands on steering wheel.
The situation played out something like this:
Cop: *knocks on passenger window*
Cordex: "er ... oh" *lowers passenger window*
Cop: "I need to see your driver's license and registration"
Cordex: "Yes, sir." *starts picking through his wallet*
Cop: "Is there a gun in the car?"
Cordex: "Yes, sir. I carry legally."
Cop: "Where is it?"
Cordex: "My right hip."
Cop: "Okay, keep it there and we're all right."
Cordex: "Would you like to see my carry permit?"
Cop: *apathetically amused* "Sure, if you want to show it to me"
Cordex: *hands over the permit*
Cop: *glances it over briefly and hands it back*
Cordex: *continues to look through the wallet, but forgot that he had placed the driver's license in his coat pocket the day before*
Cop: "I tell you what, since you were nice enough to put your hands up on the wheel and all, I'll let this slide. You were going 78 in a 55. Be careful" *walks off and drives away*
Thus ends my tale. This happened about 2220 local time. He never saw anything but the little pink piece of paper that says that I'm allowed to carry a gun and wasn't really concerned with seeing it.
So here's my point: How you comport yourself is important when dealing with the police and can be the difference between a very large ticket and a polite warning. This guy was a decent cop, I think. Not because he didn't give me a ticket (though that certainly made him seem friendlier to me), but because he was very polite and professional, didn't become irrational when I told him I had a gun, and was patient with me. The fact that I prepared myself in the proper manner and was polite was enough to get me off the hook.
Not all cops empty their magazines at the first mention of the word "gun" and I just thought I'd provide an example of "one of the good guys".
---
Results may not be typical.
