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Old July 25, 2013, 01:48 PM   #8
Brian Pfleuger
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Join Date: June 25, 2008
Location: Austin, CO
Posts: 19,578
The questions are:
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1) What to do if the manager/employee asks me to empty my pockets? My CHCL is in my pocket, and if I'm waiting on police to arrive, I'd prefer to keep that in my possession, as CCing without that is (at least considered to be) illegal.
I would politely refuse and state that I would wait for LE to arrive, if they so wish.

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2) I'm under no legal duty to inform a store manager or store security that I'm carrying, and I certainly wouldn't want it to sound like a threat if I did so inform, but . . . if they do ask me to empty my pockets and I decline, I could simply say "no, thank you." OTOH, I could simply explain that I decline to do so until LE arrives. As a 3rd option, I could explain that I do have a CHCL and I will only hand over same to a LEO. (I'm not real keen on Door #3 here.)
I would not inform the store employee of anything. I would simply do as explained in 1

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3) Assuming that the manager does somehow figure out that I'm carrying, I wouldn't be altogether too surprised if he or she asks me to surrender the gun. Now THIS causes me some heartburn. As mentioned above, if a LE asks me to hand it over, that's one thing. Having a store manager or store security (private, not off-duty LE) tell me to hand over my gun . . . not comfortable with that at all, having no earthly idea about that person's training, safety level, etc. With LEOs, I at least know they've had some training with firearms, and handle them regularly.
I would absolutely refuse and I would advise them that I was calling 911 at that point. They have the power to detain you. They have no authority to touch you or anything you own for any reason. "Detain in a reasonable manner" does not include handcuffs or any physical restrain for an otherwise cooperative person, IMHO.

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4) The question then becomes, if I decline and store security decides that they really need to disarm me (seems much more likely than a manager doing it), what then? Hand it over, or fight? The statute quoted above makes no reference to the merchant or an employee disarming me, so I do not see any way they have a right to do so. However, I really have no desire to explain to a judge how the situation got to the point that I had to shoot a store security guard who was investigating me for allegedly shoplifting.
It's hard for me to imagine it getting to this point and I really don't have an answer for that scenario. I agree that it's theoretically possible but I don't know how it would be handled in a way that was likely to have any kind of immediately positive outcome. I suppose I would comply, all the while making it clear (loudly if necessary) that they had no legal authority to touch me or anything I own and certainly not to disarm me.
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