Can you answer the front door of your home bearing arms????

[Cokebottle]

I don't understand all this talk about "brandishing". How the hell can you be brandishing in your own home?? Say I'm cleaning a rifle/pistol/shotgun in my kitchen while someone knocks on the door and I decide to answer the door with said rifle/pistol/shotgun in hand, I can be charged with brandishing??

Please read the law:

PC417(a)
(1) Every person who, except in self-defense, in the presence of any other person, draws or exhibits any deadly weapon whatsoever, other than a firearm, in a rude, angry, or threatening manner, or who in any manner, unlawfully uses a deadly weapon other than a firearm in any fight or quarrel is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for not less than 30 days.
(2) Every person who, except in self-defense, in the presence of any other person, draws or exhibits any firearm, whether loaded or unloaded, in a rude, angry, or threatening manner, or who in any manner, unlawfully uses a firearm in any fight or quarrel is punishable as follows:

Nowhere in the law does it specify WHERE the violation taking place being pertinent to the charge. By the book, if you pull a gun on your wife in a "rude, angry, or threatening manner", in addition to the DV charge, you would be looking at a brandishing charge as well.
Would matter that the brandishing charge is a 10 year prohibition because the misdemeanor DV is lifetime.

There is a fine line between a brandishing charge and a successful self-defense situation that resulted in no shots fired.
And in the case of the latter, you had better be the first person to speak to the police about the incident.

Note PC417(a)(1)... the same applies to a weapon other than a firearm. Knife, bat, tire iron, etc...

[jonnyt16]

PC417(a)
(1) Every person who, except in self-defense, in the presence of any other person, draws or exhibits any deadly weapon whatsoever, other than a firearm, in a rude, angry, or threatening manner, or who in any manner, unlawfully uses a deadly weapon other than a firearm in any fight or quarrel is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for not less than 30 days.
(2) Every person who, except in self-defense, in the presence of any other person, draws or exhibits any firearm, whether loaded or unloaded, in a rude, angry, or threatening manner, or who in any manner, unlawfully uses a firearm in any fight or quarrel is punishable as follows:

Ah, okay, so only in an angry, rude, or threatening manner is brandishing. That is what I thought, its just some posters here made it seem like answering the door with a gun is brandishing as well. Thanks.

[Scarecrow Repair]

Ah, okay, so only in an angry, rude, or threatening manner is brandishing. That is what I thought, its just some posters here made it seem like answering the door with a gun is brandishing as well. Thanks.

Yes, but remember that a lot of people are scared to tremors just at the sight of a gun, and in this state, *you* will have to spend a ton of money to convince a jury that you weren't scaring the jabeezus out of the poor innocent victim, and if alcohol was present, the cops and prosecutor are going to have a field day mopping up your bank account.

[OneApart]

that's a really dumb idea, if you are going to have a shotgun, i recommend at least having the magazine full


don't brandish it at anyone that's not threatening you

^^^this^^^

[jpigeon]

That got a guy killed in Long Beach by the police. If I recall correctly...

[Baconator]

That got a guy killed in Long Beach by the police. If I recall correctly...

He didn't even have a gun...

[jpigeon]

He didn't even have a gun...

Not the water gun guy. This one happened a few years ago. In the middle of the night the cops were lookin for a bad guy in a apt complex. They knocked on a tennants door. Tennant answered door with "gun" and cops shot first and asked questions later. The guy was a postal worker with no criminal background. It happened in LB or maybe Inglewood. But u get the point.

[stitchnicklas]

if someone knocks on my door in the middle of the night,i will have my glock with me,why??
because my front door is behind a 5ft gate attached to a 6ft fence,if you are knocking then you climbed the gate illegally and are a trespasser...

[E Pluribus Unum]

Ah, okay, so only in an angry, rude, or threatening manner is brandishing. That is what I thought, its just some posters here made it seem like answering the door with a gun is brandishing as well. Thanks.

"Brandishing" is subjective. It comes down to what the arresting officer says. Without a camera, there is no way to prove exactly HOW you possessed the firearm.

[Cokebottle]

"Brandishing" is subjective. It comes down to what the arresting officer says. Without a camera, there is no way to prove exactly HOW you possessed the firearm.

Basically, if drawn "in anger", it's not brandishing if it would have been a "good shoot".
It is brandishing if it would not have been a "good shoot"

That is if there is an actual confrontation and the gun actually is displayed in a threatening manner.

No confrontation? That's where it comes down to your perception vs the person you encountered, and it is important to get a good read on the person you encountered to know if you should call the cops to report the encounter before they do.

[jonnyt16]

"Brandishing" is subjective. It comes down to what the arresting officer says. Without a camera, there is no way to prove exactly HOW you possessed the firearm.

Then if they can't prove how you possessed the firearm, how can they possibly find you guilty of "brandishing"??

This thread is making my head hurt.

[E Pluribus Unum]

Basically, if drawn "in anger", it's not brandishing if it would have been a "good shoot".
It is brandishing if it would not have been a "good shoot"

That is if there is an actual confrontation and the gun actually is displayed in a threatening manner.

No confrontation? That's where it comes down to your perception vs the person you encountered, and it is important to get a good read on the person you encountered to know if you should call the cops to report the encounter before they do.

Then if they can't prove how you possessed the firearm, how can they possibly find you guilty of "brandishing"??

This thread is making my head hurt.

Brandishing is a misdemeanor; as such, an officer would have to see you do it; a private party arrest for brandishing really isn't going to stand up without video evidence. A brandishing charge that carries weight is where an officer has seen you, and the officer considered it threatening.

Without video, it's your word vs. the officer and it will probably be 50/50 depending on the jury.

[Cokebottle]

Brandishing is a misdemeanor; as such, an officer would have to see you do it; a private party arrest for brandishing really isn't going to stand up without video evidence.

I don't believe that is the case.

There are a lot of crimes that are committed, both misdemeanor and felony, with no officers as witnesses, where successful arrests and convictions are made.

Also, brandishing is a 10 year prohibition, brandishing in the presence of an officer if a lifetime prohibition. If the officer were required to witness the act, then it would always be a lifetime prohibition and there would be no point in the single 417(a)(1) or (a)(2) charge being a 10 year prohibition.

[HondaMasterTech]

I thought "brandishing" was something cowboys did to their cows.

[N6ATF]

For an officer to take someone into custody for a misdemeanor offense, usually the victim or a witness will have to make a citizen's arrest.