Navigation


What the DC Gun Ruling Means for You

July 31, 2014 | by
What the DC Gun Ruling Means for You

What the DC Gun Ruling Means for You

When I was with the Agency, I would often end up in Washington, DC for work-related matters. I always had a gun on my hip when in DC, but it was my Agency gun, which I was legally allowed to carry there.

I was grateful to have a gun on my hip since DC is a dangerous place and always has one of the highest murder rates in the nation. (The murder rate in DC doubled for the first six months of 2014.)

Since I no longer work for the Agency and can’t legally carry concealed in DC anymore, I was obviously happy to hear that a Federal judge just overturned DC’s gun ban.

In short, Washington, DC was the last place in the nation to prohibit any type of concealed carry. In states like Maryland and California it’s tough to get a carry permit but they still allow it and have laws for it on the books. Whereas DC simply said it wasn’t allowed and that was it.

Since the new ruling has come down, DC Police Chief Cathy Lanier sent out a notice to her department not to arrest people who are carrying and that as long as a person has a valid permit they should be left alone.

Of course, the attorney general for DC vowed to appeal the ruling and it will likely end up in the Supreme Court. But the good news is, if it does end up in the Supreme Court the ruling will probably stay in place, and DC will have to allow people to carry concealed. (I image they’ll enact tough requirements as California, Maryland and other states have, but at least there will no longer be a complete ban.)

Although it’s amazing that in the year 2014 we still had places that banned law-abiding citizens from carrying firearms, it’s a good win for the freedom of our country and for people’s right to protect themselves. Plus, next year, if the law stays in effect then we’ll likely see the crime rate in DC go down because criminals will realize they can no longer count on easy victims that aren’t armed.

Also, if you happen to live in Northern Virginia (where I was born and raised) you no longer have to fear accidentally taking a wrong turn and ending up in DC with your gun on you, and visitors from all across the country can now visit DC and be more protected and not have to worry about driving through some dangerous areas unarmed.

Hopefully one day more people will realize that honest people with guns are what keep us all free and safe and that it’s the best way to stop dishonest/evil people who have any type of weapon when all other attempts at stopping them have failed.

, ,

  • jimkimmons

    You need to advise your readers that there has been a stay on that order, and the DC police are again enforcing the no guns policy. Don’t take that wrong turn today, or you’re in trouble.

    • Vanns40

      And also remember that part of the GW Parkway is DC NOT VA, so don’t get caught in that trap either.

  • GC

    The stay is in effect until 22oct14.

    • jmf552

      “What the DC Gun Ruling Means to You” = Not a darn thing, until DC actually has either reciprocity with Virginia or issues non-resident permits and I have one. I am hopeful, but not holding my breath.

  • guest

    Also, isn’t there a ban on ammunition for that gun? I recently had a friend who carried three rounds through a Homeland Sec security checkpoint and spent a year and lots of $$$ sorting the situation out in court. He had no gun on him or in his car but he was arrested just the same.

    Remember Carl Rowan, the Anti-Gun lefty that shot the boy who broke into his backyard and swam in his pool (f***ing hypocrit). 😉 (since you are from northern VA)

  • cyberpi

    I thought the ruling allowing carry outside the home only affected people who have permits from DC to keep a firearm in their home – not reciprocity for people with MD or VA permits. But since it has been stayed anyway, that’s moot for now.

    • Ronin_84

      As I remember, the ruling allows for people who can “legally own” firearms to carry. In DC that may be only the people who have a firearms permit, as it’s required to own any firearm, but here in FL no one requires any permit to own a weapon, and reciprocity law only applies to concealed carry. Since DC as of now has no laws that require a concealed weapons permit, since such a thing never existed in DC, reciprocity means nothing — they can’t arrest or charge me on a law that DOESN’T EXIST!

      “But since it has been stayed anyway, that’s moot for now.”

      Wrong. It may be in a stay, but the ruling is still in effect.

  • Carl-Cathy Wisnesky

    To the writer – If the law is upheld, your 2nd paragraph from the bottom can get visitors into trouble. A visitor = non-resident of a state, or in this case D.C. cannot CC or OC in a state or city that does not recognize the permit of the non-resident. They will be arrested & convicted if they do.
    Examples: MD does not recognized the CCP from any of the other 49 states. A visitor driving in MD had better have his CC piece unloaded & locked in a box with the ammo locked in a separate box per federal transport rules, just in case the visitor got into an accident or was pulled over for a traffic violation or just pulled over, as MD LEOs like to enforce the DWOOSP (driving with out of state plates) doctrine. In NY state a non-resident can transport THROUGH the state, but will be arrested & convicted of illegal transport of a weapon even if he/she is following the federal transport rules, if the non-resident STOPS while driving through the state; meaning technically the non-resident would be breaking NY State Law if the person stopped for gas, to use the bathroom, to buy food, stop at a motel for sleep, visit a relative, and even stop because he/she was in a traffic accident.
    If upheld, we bet D.C.s law concerning CC will be at least as tough as MDs, so visitors BEWARE.

  • juiceman

    Placing like California that SAY they allow for CW permits but where almost NOBODY gets one are worse than pointless. At least DC is being honest, as wrong as they are.

  • Cobrawing

    Jason wrote: ” . . . visitors from all across the country can now visit DC and be more
    protected and not have to worry about driving through some dangerous
    areas unarmed.”

    I can’t believe you as an ex-CIA agent and “supposed” expert who appears here regularly would state such a grossly inaccurate statement! You are about to get people in a lot of trouble saying such a thing as it is absolutely NOT true! People with carry permits from ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY can absolutely NOT suddenly enter D.C. carrying concealed firearms. The Federal court ruling said no such thing and you should refrain from providing such dangerous advice to our readers. This only applied to D.C. residents with permits.

    • Ronin_84

      As I remember, Federal court ruling didn’t say anything about “only DC citizens” either, and there is no concealed carry reciprocity law that applies to this state as there is no law requiring concealed carry or concealed carry permits, so there is nothing prohibiting people from other states, especially since the DC Police Chief stated not to arrest people who can lawfully carry weapons in ANY STATE.

      • Master Yoda

        Couple of things – first D.C. is not a state as you wrote. It is a district with a rather unique status in that while it is run by a mayor it is actually governed directly by the Congress who has full authority over all laws within the district. Congress no doubt will be making adjustments to the D.C. concealed carry law based on this court decision but everyone really needs to wait and see what actually results. It is highly doubtful if Congress is going to make this some sudden free for all carry area and will most likely formulate a concealed carry policy of some kind, but how open it will be remains to be seen.

        The police chief sets zero policy on laws (only departmental protocols). She definitely gave verbal instruction to her officers not to make any concealed weapon arrests on anyone as you indicated while this whole matter is under further review by the court system. But if a concealed carry holder from another state actually has to use their firearm this could get very sticky right now.

        The bottom line is nothing is final here at all and It is way too premature for anyone to render green light advice to suddenly do anything until this matter has some final resolution. Luke here at USA Carry has also not changed any of his concealed weapon maps either, probably awaiting final clarification on all this as well. This is the prudent approach.

        • Michael

          For those two days green light advice was perfectly okay. The police chief did make it clear that no person would be arrested for concealed or openly carrying. She informed the entire police force of this. The ruling very clearly made D.C. a Constitutional carry district during that weekend before D.C. requested a stay. I took advantage of it and drove up from Richmond. I openly carried as I walked all around D.C. Many people and many police saw me and I came home that night feeling great about the win.

    • Michael

      Actually the ruling did say that D.C. could not prevent people with CCP’s from other states from carrying simply because they are from another state. The ruling made D.C. a Constitutional carry district for a couple days. I drove there from Richmond the next day and open carried everywhere, even in front of police. It was great. Unfortunately it did not last. The ruling in no way only applied to residents of D.C. and that was made perfectly clear. You may want to slow down a little before you snap at someone for telling the truth.

  • Digging under the wall

    Ummm….Maryland’s CCW’s laws and rules are so restrictive….it IS a de-facto BAN! Look them up. They are insane at best and the MD State Police have final say on whether or not you “need” the CCW. Basically, unless you are politically connected or have Court Documented proof of immediate threats against your life….you are SOL on the CCW. As for your “Agency” right to carry…you need to reword that. You were allowed to carry because you were “Law Enforcement” in your SPO position. Agency Staff Officers have no such privileges.

  • lilbear68

    don’t expect a final, fair and unbiased judgment against the fed or state from an employee of the fed or state. the last resort power of the people and the states is nullification, that’s why the founders saw to it that its there

  • LongPurple

    I would prefer “Constitutional carry” to be in effect in the entire country. But if a state wishes to require a permit process, then it should not only be a “shall issue” form, but should also not be any expense to the citizen who applies for the permit.
    I did not pay for the administrative costs to register to vote, and the Supreme Court has forbidden poll taxes as an unconstitutional interference with the voting rights of a citizen — “The power to tax is the power to destroy”.
    The same principle applies to the RKBA. If the people of a state wish a permit system, let them absorb the total expense of administering it out of general taxpayer revenue. That would include any mandatory training required by law.
    If the voters and taxpayers of the state consider such regulations as a permit system to be beneficial to “public safety”, let them pay for it.

  • Cythrawl

    Sorry, I have lived in DC for 7 years, am as white as they come, and have walked around the city on numerous occasions at 2-3 am on the weekends. I have never felt threatened, not once! DC is not a dangerous city.

Quantcast