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Eight LEO encounters while ccw in Florida!
I just returned several days ago from a two week family vacation in Florida and I thought I would share some stories of eight different LEO encounters that I had while CCW there.
I have five different non-resident ccw (working on getting sixth from Nevada). One of them is Florida non-resident ccw. We arrived at Miami airport and proceeded to rent a minivan for our trip through South Florida.
We then began the three hour drive down to the Florida Keys where we were staying for part of our vacation! After arriving at rented condo the wife sent me out to grocery store for a few items.
No sooner did I pull onto the highway when I was pulled over by local Sheriff's deputy from Monroe County. Since I was carrying my Sig .380 on my right hip covered by a large polo shirt. I immedietly pulled over and removed my drivers licence and ccw to present to LEO.
He approched my car from the passenger side and I very politely said "Good afternoon Sir". He asked for my DL and I handed him my DL and ccw. He politely asked where my firearm was and I told him that it was on my right hip and that I would keep both of my hands on the steering wheel until he told me differently!
He proceeded to call in my DL and ccw from his walkie talkie while watching me intently. Both came back valid and he relaxed a bit and asked did I know that I had no license plate on my car?
I politely informed him that I was unaware of that and that the car was a rental. He then asked for the rental contract and vehicle registration. I informed him that both of these items were in the glove box and was it ok if I opened the box to retrieve them?
He said yes and I gave him the items. He then ran the plate from the registration and it came back legitimate. I asked him what to do about it and he said that under Florida law the driver of the vehicle was responsible for the proper registration of the vehicle even if it is a rental.
He said, however, that he appreciated the way I handled myself during the stop and that he would not cite me for it. I thanked him and he took a report and gave me his business card with the report number on it.
He went on to say that I should show it to any other LEO that stops me and that they will probably let me go without a citation since a report had already been taken on it.
We spent the next 30 or so minutes talking about firearms. He asked me what I liked to carry and did I like the Sig .380? He told me that he carries a dept. issued glock .40 and a snubby for backup.
The point was that after he finished his investigation and determined that I was a "good guy" the conversation was two guys talking about guns. He was a firearms enthusiast and very supportive of ccw for citizens.
He was very professional and polite and a credit to his dept. and his profession. To make a long story short I was stopped a total of eight times by various Florida LEO from different depts. around the state due to the rental car having no licence plate. I found all of them to be very professional and knowledgable about the ccw laws in their state.
None of the officers gave me a citation even though they could have and they all acted very professional and courteous. I was deeply impressed by the experience and altough it was inconvenient to be stopped so often I am glad to have had such positive experiences with LEO.
Several officers gave me the advice of being careful about carrying into places that serve only alcohol and not food (Which I already knew) but thanked them for the advice.
Moral of the story is that it is sad that California is so distrustful of it's law abiding citzens that they will deny us our 2A rights when so many states trust their people with firearms.
My vacation was not only fun but educational! Kudos to the Florida LEO who are so knowledgable and respectful of the rights of law abiding citizens!
At no time was there ever any problem about me carrying. I felt as though I could protect my family if needed (Thankfully I did not need to)!
I was warned to be careful in parts of Miami as there are Haitian gangs that car jack unsuspecting tourists in the city since most toursits do not have anyway to protect themselves. (A fact that I am sure is not lost on the criminals)!
The state trooper that warned me of that even lamented that anyone who chose to try that with me may be very unhappy with the outcome! (The wife was not particularly thrilled to hear that as it scared her)!
I am glad that I did not have to find out!
I have five different non-resident ccw (working on getting sixth from Nevada). One of them is Florida non-resident ccw. We arrived at Miami airport and proceeded to rent a minivan for our trip through South Florida.
We then began the three hour drive down to the Florida Keys where we were staying for part of our vacation! After arriving at rented condo the wife sent me out to grocery store for a few items.
No sooner did I pull onto the highway when I was pulled over by local Sheriff's deputy from Monroe County. Since I was carrying my Sig .380 on my right hip covered by a large polo shirt. I immedietly pulled over and removed my drivers licence and ccw to present to LEO.
He approched my car from the passenger side and I very politely said "Good afternoon Sir". He asked for my DL and I handed him my DL and ccw. He politely asked where my firearm was and I told him that it was on my right hip and that I would keep both of my hands on the steering wheel until he told me differently!
He proceeded to call in my DL and ccw from his walkie talkie while watching me intently. Both came back valid and he relaxed a bit and asked did I know that I had no license plate on my car?
I politely informed him that I was unaware of that and that the car was a rental. He then asked for the rental contract and vehicle registration. I informed him that both of these items were in the glove box and was it ok if I opened the box to retrieve them?
He said yes and I gave him the items. He then ran the plate from the registration and it came back legitimate. I asked him what to do about it and he said that under Florida law the driver of the vehicle was responsible for the proper registration of the vehicle even if it is a rental.
He said, however, that he appreciated the way I handled myself during the stop and that he would not cite me for it. I thanked him and he took a report and gave me his business card with the report number on it.
He went on to say that I should show it to any other LEO that stops me and that they will probably let me go without a citation since a report had already been taken on it.
We spent the next 30 or so minutes talking about firearms. He asked me what I liked to carry and did I like the Sig .380? He told me that he carries a dept. issued glock .40 and a snubby for backup.
The point was that after he finished his investigation and determined that I was a "good guy" the conversation was two guys talking about guns. He was a firearms enthusiast and very supportive of ccw for citizens.
He was very professional and polite and a credit to his dept. and his profession. To make a long story short I was stopped a total of eight times by various Florida LEO from different depts. around the state due to the rental car having no licence plate. I found all of them to be very professional and knowledgable about the ccw laws in their state.
None of the officers gave me a citation even though they could have and they all acted very professional and courteous. I was deeply impressed by the experience and altough it was inconvenient to be stopped so often I am glad to have had such positive experiences with LEO.
Several officers gave me the advice of being careful about carrying into places that serve only alcohol and not food (Which I already knew) but thanked them for the advice.
Moral of the story is that it is sad that California is so distrustful of it's law abiding citzens that they will deny us our 2A rights when so many states trust their people with firearms.
My vacation was not only fun but educational! Kudos to the Florida LEO who are so knowledgable and respectful of the rights of law abiding citizens!
At no time was there ever any problem about me carrying. I felt as though I could protect my family if needed (Thankfully I did not need to)!
I was warned to be careful in parts of Miami as there are Haitian gangs that car jack unsuspecting tourists in the city since most toursits do not have anyway to protect themselves. (A fact that I am sure is not lost on the criminals)!
The state trooper that warned me of that even lamented that anyone who chose to try that with me may be very unhappy with the outcome! (The wife was not particularly thrilled to hear that as it scared her)!
I am glad that I did not have to find out!
have been there before several years ago and really did not like it as it is too toursity! Stayed in South Florida and enjoyed the great beaches!
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