Only legal in 2/3'rds of America

[vito]

Despite all of the progress made in recent years to expand concealed carry, and despite having licenses from three states (IL, Utah, Pennsylvania), I find I can only carry legally in 34 states, or 2/3rds of the country. And its not just the northeast that would consider me a criminal (NY, NJ, CT, RI, MA, ME, NH) but states as diverse as CA, FL, OR, CO, NM, HI, NV, MD and SC (and of course, DC). Its possible this listing is not still fully up to date, but the point is still that despite the 2nd Amendment, despite the "good faith" clause of the Constitution, carrying concealed while traveling around the country is like walking through a minefield. In one place you are a responsible law abiding citizen, and a few steps away you are a dangerous felon facing mandatory jail time, all because of wanting to protect yourself and your family.

Coming from IL I guess I should be pretty satisfied, since we finally, in 2014, achieved legal concealed carry. But everytime I travel to NY to see my elderly mother, and often when vacationing in some of the most scenic places in America, I have to decide whether or not I can continue to carry, whether I can stay legal by unloading and locking my gun in a case, or whether I can still be legal by carrying my gun in my car but not on my person, or whether I have to leave my gun home for the entire trip because there is literally no way to be legal with a handgun even unloaded in my vehicle in NJ and NY.

As much as I am concerned about the Federal government getting into the concealed carry issue, national concealed carry reciprocity is something that we need as much as we have such reciprocity for driver's licenses.

 

[snubbyfan]

When we go to Maryland from West Virginia, I know that I need to leave my snubby home.
I also have to pay attention to what pocket knife I carry.
What's legal here, isn't legal there.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

You can always legal open carry in NM.
Also legal - guns in vehicles, open or concealed,
Any kind of conveyance including mo-Scooters, bicycles, ATVs and horses.
They are cosidered to be an extension of your domicile.
When you get to the NM state line, lay your piece on the seat or place it in the console-glove box.
You are legal!

 

[pharmer]

Il carry license is not recognized in FL because Il does not recognize FL license. Reciprocity is the only hope of getting anything resembling "Constitutional carry" in the future. Joe

 

[sarg1c]

You can always legal open carry in NM.
Also legal - guns in vehicles, open or concealed,
Any kind of conveyance including mo-Scooters, bicycles, ATVs and horses.
They are cosidered to be an extension of your domicile.
When you get to the NM state line, lay your piece on the seat or place it in the console-glove box.
You are legal!

Open carry or carry in vehicles is legal here in Kentucky .It can be loaded or unloaded,locked or unlocked. CCDW also legal with permitt but have to watch some localities of course.. you and snubbyfan would be legal also but now we cannot carry in Virginia with their new law.

 

[shocker]

In Michigan, possession of a self opening or double edged knife is a felony, other states, legal. The word in the the 2nd Amendment is "arms", not "firearms" so aren't I being denied my rights?

 

[Whitwabit]

Il carry license is not recognized in FL because Il does not recognize FL license. Reciprocity is the only hope of getting anything resembling "Constitutional carry" in the future. Joe

My opinion !!

Agree .. but until all states have the same qualifying requirements for a CCL it will remain this way ..

Illinois has probably the toughest requirements for a CCL ..You must under go 16 total hours of training that includes firing 30 rounds at a target, 10 rounds each at 5, 7, and 10 yards ..

I think the biggest hindrance in a nation wide CCL is so many states have the legal age for one at 18 years of age .. and there is little or no train in the law or gun safety in other states ..

Until those 2 items are addressed by all states we don't have any hope of a National CCL !!

 

[Whitwabit]

You can always legal open carry in NM.
Also legal - guns in vehicles, open or concealed,
Any kind of conveyance including mo-Scooters, bicycles, ATVs and horses.
They are cosidered to be an extension of your domicile.
When you get to the NM state line, lay your piece on the seat or place it in the console-glove box.
You are legal!

Can a non-resident open carry ?

 

[cmort666]

Most places I can't carry with modest effort aren't worth going to in the first place.

I go to Chiraq at MOST once a year.

I don't go to places like New York, Maryland, Massachusetts or California AT ALL.

Most anti-gun places have made themselves profoundly uninviting for a variety of other reasons as well.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Can a non-resident open carry ?

Yes, I think so.
About the only place I have open carried is up in the woods.
I have seen folks with Texas license plates up there open carrying.
Just remember we have restricted gun places like- bars, schools, court houses, airports.
And property owners have the right to say no guns allowed , written or spoken.
Probably the trickiest gun locale we have here are Indian Reservations.
Bugler! Blow lawyers forward! Anytime you actually need lawyers, the are usually hiding behind the chow wagon!
State law does not apply on the Res. You are allowed to possess guns while drive through the Reservations on National and State Highways.
I would not have a firearm visible there. Mine is usually concealed in the SUV anyway, no difference on the Res.
Possession of a firearm while touring around the Reservation is generally prohibited.
Hopefully some of the Federal Legal pros will come forward with more info on the Reservation.

 

[pharmer]

Illinois has probably the toughest requirements for a CCL ..You must under go 16 total hours of training that includes firing 30 rounds at a target, 10 rounds each at 5, 7, and 10 yards ..

Florida in the '80's was almost exactly the same except one full day instead of 2. Sometime after, the state assumed you are proficient and now it is 3 hours with firing 2 or 3 shots with a .32 in a trailer. Really enjoyed the full day class (1988) especially when the instructor had 12 folks load one round into their cylinder and put it down. He then proceeded to walk down the line and "ball and dummy" drill a hole in the forehead of 12 targets and said "Now we know the guns don't miss." Joe

 

[Engine49guy]

Trying to remember 1987....kind of a blur but do not recall any "class" for a CCW permit when it became state law.
Just prior to that we had a period of legal open carry that twilighted with the introduction of the Florida CCW license.

 

[USAF385]

My wife and I just refuse to leave the Commonwealth.

 

[M1A]

For you folks that feel the need to travel everywhere. This is quick and easy to use, if you read the beginning first.
Available at the NRA bookstore.
"Traveler's Guide to the Firearm Laws of the Fifty States", by J. Scott Kappas.
Also the app "Legal Heat".

 

[Whitwabit]

For you folks that feel the need to travel everywhere. This is quick and easy to use, if you read the beginning first.
Available at the NRA bookstore.
"Traveler's Guide to the Firearm Laws of the Fifty States", by J. Scott Kappas.
Also the app "Legal Heat".

The bad thing about books or written information is that the states laws are changed so often by the time a book is released it may well be out dated for some states because of these continued law changes ..

Even Googling something on the web you might be reading information that is years old .. be careful and find the date such material was written and go from there ..

 

[Kframerbluvr]

When we go to Maryland from West Virginia, I know that I need to leave my snubby home.
I also have to pay attention to what pocket knife I carry.
What's legal here, isn't legal there.

I gave my college age son a pocket knife recently. He travels to Baltimore frequently to visit his girlfriend. After reading parts of the Freddy Gray case in Baltimore regarding the confusion over the Baltimore knife ordinance/Maryland state code, I did some research. The knife I gave him is illegal to carry concealed in Maryand because it is a "gravity knife" and according to State v. Savoy (1964), it is treated like a switchblade knife.
Told him to leave it at his dorm in VA before he goes there again and to get a "Maryland compliant" pocketknife...

 

[OKFC05]

As much as I am concerned about the Federal government getting into the concealed carry issue, national concealed carry reciprocity is something that we need as much as we have such reciprocity for driver's licenses.

There is no Federal Law requiring states to recognize others' drivers licenses. The states made those arrangements on their own.

STAY AFRAID OF FEDERAL HANDGUN LICENSE CONTROL, the dems from the very states that keep you out now will attach poison pills to any Federal bill. The 1986 FOPA had an amendment that stopped new Class 3 full auto registration, for example.

 

[Alk8944]

And just how many of the 48 contiguous states does the OP have a realistic expectation of ever visiting? Maybe instead of whining about the few states which might ever be an issue to him he should concentrate on getting non-resident licenses from the states that will get him the states he really may need.

 

[hurst01]

Open carry or carry in vehicles is legal here in Kentucky .It can be loaded or unloaded,locked or unlocked. CCDW also legal with permitt but have to watch some localities of course.. you and snubbyfan would be legal also but now we cannot carry in Virginia with their new law.

As I recall, you don't even need a permit in Kentucky unless it is concealed. You can open carry without a permit.

I have never tried before and I am probably wrong, but I would think it would be difficult to get a concealed carry permit as a non-resident in some states, especially those that won't recognize permits from other states.

Ed

 

[bassgunner]

And just how many of the 48 contiguous states does the OP have a realistic expectation of ever visiting? Maybe instead of whining about the few states which might ever be an issue to him he should concentrate on getting non-resident licenses from the states that will get him the states he really may need.

I'm pretty sure that the intent was not to whine but rather to point out the inconsistency across our country regarding a simple right guaranteed by the constitution. Just the act of possessing a molded piece of plastic (standard magazine) will get you felony charges in some jurisdictions. I agree that there needs to be some standardization of carry reciprocity but I am not sure the federal government is the best entity to handle that.