This Cop Get’s It

Open Carry in the State of Texas

When I am at work I carry a firearm openly. No one looks twice at me as I go about my daily business. I do have a small piece of tin that rides beside my weapon but it is not that noticeable. I wear business or business casual cloths that do not by themselves identify me as a police officer. Most people that I interact with seem not to notice that I am carrying a firearm. I carry a Sig P220 which is by no means a small weapon. I really don’t think there would mass hysteria if a substantial portion of the law abiding public were to carry firearms where everyone could see them.

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From a police perspective I would rather know that someone was carrying a firearm, rather than have to guess.

We live in an increasingly violent society. Those who take responsibility for their own safety have started to apply for concealed carry permits in record numbers in our State. Our State legislature has de-criminalized certain aspects of the unlawful carry of firearms law. Wouldn’t it be a logical next step to let law abiding citizens, who can qualify for a CCW, carry their firearms openly?

I completely agree with this. When you consider how warm Texas is most of the year, carrying a weapon concealed can be a little uncomfortable. Currently, if you are caught carrying unconcealed (or your weapon is even detected) you can go to jail and lose your license. And, doing so can be ridicously easy. Yesterday, I decided to practice carrying while I was at home. I had on a t-shirt, my pistol on my side, and a short sleeve button-down over this. I was doing some errands inside and took off the overshirt. When I went to take the garbage out, my wife had to remind me to put on my over-shirt.