Concealed Carry - TSA & Traveling

[Paslode]

A keen reminder of SA, knowing concealed carry laws to where your traveling and that where TSA molestation is approved, TSA travel guidelines for weapons may not apply in the jurisdiction your are traveling through or to.

(AP)

NEW YORK - A leader of a tea party group was arrested after he took a gun to LaGuardia Airport.

Tea Party Patriots co-founder Mark Meckler was taken into custody Thursday morning after he tried to check in for a Delta flight to Detroit with a locked gun box containing a Glock pistol and 19 cartridges of ammunition, Queens prosecutors said.

Meckler, 49, declared the weapon, as required, authorities said. He's licensed to carry the gun in Grass Valley, Calif., where he lives, but that license isn't valid in New York, which has strict rules on carrying concealed weapons, they said.

"He didn't have a correct understanding of the law," said Al Della Fave, a spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which polices the area's main airports. "Though he has a permit to carry in California, that did not cover him in the state of New York."

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Meckler spent the day in jail and was arraigned in Queens late Friday afternoon on a felony weapons possession charge. He was released pending a Jan. 12 court date.

The charge could carry prison time, but travelers who are arrested in such cases and appear to be trying to comply with the law typically pay fines.

The name of Meckler's attorney wasn't available Friday, and attempts to contact him by phone and electronic message were unsuccessful.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-...on-gun-charge/


More in slanted coverage from the International Business Times:

http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/26857...eckler-gun.htm


WND seems to be the only source thus bringing up the fact that the weapon was in temporary transit and that the TSA had let it fly to NYC.

"While in temporary transit through the state of New York in possession of an unloaded, lawful firearm that was locked in a (Transportation Security Administration)-approved safe, he legally declared his possession of the firearm in his checked baggage at the ticket counter as required by law and in a manner approved by TSA and the airline, yet was arrested by port authority for said possession," Stapleton said.

Read more: Tea-party leader shocked by arrest on gun charges http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=377885#ixzz1goEia7Tu

[Buffalobob]

Its hard to cure stupid. Anyone who is a lawyer and has a carry permit from California and can't figure out that it is worthless in a lot of places should also lose his bar license as he will lose his Cal carry permit.

According to some sources he had been in New York for several days with the pistol.

[Paslode]

Originally Posted by Buffalobob

Its hard to cure stupid. Anyone who is a lawyer and has a carry permit from California and can't figure out that it is worthless in a lot of places should also lose his bar license as he will lose his Cal carry permit.

According to some sources he had been in New York for several days with the pistol.

It will be interesting to see how this story ends.

[Buffalobob]

Click on California as your state of residence and see just how far that gets you.

http://www.usacarry.com/concealed_ca...city_maps.html

[Paslode]

Originally Posted by Buffalobob

Click on California as your state of residence and see just how far that gets you.

http://www.usacarry.com/concealed_ca...city_maps.html

The map is accurate enough to know this person was pushing the limits (i.e. looking for trouble) and New York (nor does California) doesn't appear to honor any out of state permit.

[Peregrino]

Unfortunately, the only way for a citizen to challenge a bad law is to break it and fight it out in the courts. That kind of gamble requires deep pockets, serious cojones, a belief in the "rightness" of your cause, and a willingness to face the consequences if you lose. If he wins, we all win; otherwise, he stands to be made an example of. Pretty f'ed up if you ask me.

[Sigaba]

Originally Posted by Paslode

More in slanted coverage from the NY Times:

http://newyork.ibtimes.com/articles/268578/20111216/arrest-tea-party-president-mark-meckler-gun.htm[

Are the New York Times and the International Business Times run by the same company?

Compare About the IBTimes to The New York Times Company home page.

[Paslode]

Originally Posted by Sigaba

Are the New York Times and the International Business Times run by the same company?

Compare About the IBTimes to The New York Times Company home page.

Great find! Thank you for the discriminating eye.

So what do you have to say about your fellow Californians predicament Sigiba?

[BigJimCalhoun]

My understanding is that a concealed weapon is on concealed on your person, not in a locked box. You need to have it locked in a case in order to travel by law.


The same thing happened at the Democrat convention in Denver. The case was never submitted to the DA, but it was a royal pain. He was originally arrested for having a concealed weapon - in a gun case.

http://www.9news.com/rss/story.aspx?storyid=99744


Additionally, someone else was arrested in NY or NJ for a gun for a flight that was diverted there from the intended destination (Manchester, NH I think). The charges were eventually dropped.

[Paslode]

Originally Posted by Brush Okie

Federal law says you can travel in other states no matter what their law is as long as it is in a locked case and unloaded. NYC again trying to bypass the law for their own agenda.

Depending on the day or the week, venue or agenda the Fed Law could beinterpreted as infringing on States Rights...........or vice versa.

[MTN Medic]

If I am not mistaken, I believe that this refers to passing through a state, not traveling around in the state for 3 days and then leaving with the weapon.

I know that even though I have a carry permit for Colorado, the Cities of Boulder and Denver maintain that they have the right to confiscate my firearm for an indefinite amount of time.

Seems to me that you should err on the side of caution when traveling in non-gun friendly areas. This guy obviously broke the law and will pay for it. Unless he is able to get the gun laws of New York repealed (impossible/ unlikely) he will be charged with a crime and will have to pay at least a fine if not a modest jail sentence.

Responsible gun owners know the law and abide by them. He either did not know the law ( no excuse) or he chose to ignore them (again no excuse). As an avid gun owner, I hate the overreaching gun laws, but it does us a disservice to be associated with people who either don't know the laws or choose not to follow them.

[The Reaper]

I think he was complying with the law as he understood it and this will be a good test of NY's law. The NRA, GOA, and others should weigh in on his behalf. The current SCOTUS would, IMHO, based on recent precedents, rule for the individual, should it ever get there.

Hell, the ACLU should as well, except that they do not respect the Second Amendment.

If the charges stick, as a convicted felon, he will lose his Second Amendment rights.

Really ballsy move, if he did it deliberately.

TR

[Jefe]

He is OK if he checked it in a locked box in transit.

If he had ammunition in the mag or in the case, he goofed.

[BOfH]

It looks like he was in NY/NYC for a period of time, not just passing through, so he would be in violation of NY/NYC law by having an unlicensed handgun. That said, NYC and the Port Authority specifically have been known to blatantly disregard FOPA[1][2][3], so even if you are just passing through, there is a chance you will still be detained and charged.

[1]http://armsandthelaw.com/archives/2009/08/guide_to_inters_1.php
[2]http://www.aero-news.net/index.cfm?do=main.textpost&id=4e8aaa67-b70d-4952-9de4-4c79949314d0
[3]http://www.ohioverticals.com/blogs/akron_law_cafe/2011/01/revell-v-port-authority-of-new-york-and-new-jersey/