Posted on 01/12/2010 4:15:07 AM PST by marktwain
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- A Kern County man is testing his Second Amendment right to bear arms.
Rafael Esqueda said he has been visiting different public places over the past week with his gun on his belt.
"We can openly carry in California," he said. "The firearm has to be unloaded in plain view, and the magazine, which is an integral part of the firearm, have to be exposed, also."
In an effort to promote his platform, he, and about four of his friends, all showed up at River Walk Park on Sunday afternoon with their guns exposed. Eyewitness News was there to capture reactions from parkgoers and the event that was to follow.
One family who was at the park fishing with children and grandchildren said they didn't feel comfortable with the guns out. Sandra Cantu is a grandmother and thought what Esqueda was doing was not right.
"I have a lot of grandkids, and I wouldn't want them to do that," she said. "It's showing a mixed message that they could carry them."
About 20 minutes after Esqueda arrived, Bakersfield police arrived and informed him that it was against city code to carry guns in a city park. Esqueda complied and told Eyewitness News that he "learned something new."
He went onto say, "No problems, no arrest, nobody got shot or murdered."
(Excerpt) Read more at bakersfieldnow.com ...
In America that should be OK, but Kalyfornia?
What good is it if it’s not loaded? Might as well carry a hammer.
Look, the average citizen is scared enough. I’m not arguing with anyone’s right. If you’re within the law, fine. But I think a concealed carry law would be far more effective. When perps don’t know that you can defend yourself they usually learn a lesson the hard way. All we need are muslims running around CA carrying weapons in open sight. Not going to relax anyone’s nerves there!
It’s either a constitutionally protected right, or it’s not. I didn’t know city ordinances overrode constitutional rights. I guess I learned something new, too.
As for anyone who doesn’t like guns, don’t carry ‘em if you don’t want. Of course that doesn’t mean you have the right to restrict another person’s right to carry them.
He can probably load the magazine faster than he can load a nail, but your point is a good one.
I wonder what the Local, State, and Federal Government (i.e., Holder’s Justice Department) response would be if this were 4 members of the Black Panthers stationed out in front of a polling area dressed in military fatigues and carrying unloaded pistols?
Oh ... wait ... we already know that there wouldn’t be any response. How silly of me!
>> As for anyone who doesn’t like guns, don’t carry ‘em if you don’t want. Of course that doesn’t mean you have the right to restrict another person’s right to carry them.
That’s what the libs say about abortion. “If you are against abortion, don’t have one.”
Just so long as it's not an "assault hammer"......
I am I confused, when is carrying an unloaded handgun anything but an invitation to get shot by Barney Fife. Have no problem with open carry, but the unloaded issue is a problem.
I'm sorry, but that's not “open carry”. If you applied those same restrictions to any other inanimate object, for example a cell phone, it would immediately become obvious how ridiculous and Unconstitutional those laws are.
Oh, in Kalyfornia we can openly carry our cell phones, but you have to it in plain sight, and the battery must be plainly removed so as to not cause a panic.
Right to an abortion compared to the right to bear arms? That’s about as opposite as you can get. One is the destruction of innocent life. The other is designed to protect innocent life.
What is your logic chain for this post? You equate a basic right to self defense with an effective rewrite of the Constitution, looking for the penumbra and vapor of the ‘right’ to kill your child?
I think his response, if you don’t like it, change the laws, could have been worded a little differently - rather sounds a bit like a challenge, dunno.
Not quite. Semi-auto and clip can be loaded in a couple of seconds. Admittedly, loaded carry is preferred, but "the law is the law", and this is a step in the direction of changing said law. I say "three cheers" for those who assert their rights, whether by concealed OR open carry.
While he is exercising his rights, he should do so more sensibly. That is, on the assumption that while what he is doing is right, he needs to take into account what might happen if what others are doing is wrong.
And, short of dragging a gun rights attorney around with you, this is not easy to do, as people can be very unpredictable. And this not only can result in misunderstanding, but in personal harm.
Say, for example, a police officer who understands gun rights and is respectful of them, gets a call on his radio that “there is a man with a gun at the park!!!”
He is *not* going to assume that the man with the gun at the park has it holstered, and is peacefully eating an ice cream cone, while some hysteric with a cellphone has called him in, convinced that there is about to be a shooting spree.
Instead, he is going to be as nervous as a tick on a hot plate, and will take a lot of convincing to relax. I have considerable sympathy for his point of view as well.
Ironically, the best friend of open carry is “familiarity breeds contempt”. So the best bet is to pick a place that has a lot of regular visitors, and be seen there a lot with your weapon. This stops a lot of mistaken “group think” dead in its tracks.
“Hey! Do you see that guy over there? He has a...*gun*!”
“Yeah, that’s Bob. He always carries a gun.”
“Oh, okay.”
The next best bet is to be personally known by the area’s police officers. If they don’t know you, they can’t possibly assume that you are just exercising your open carry right—it’s not their job to assume that what people are doing is right. They are to stop people from doing wrong, especially with guns.
But that mood totally changes if they recognize you by sight. Just seeing you a few times *not* doing anything wrong, and they will remember you in the good column.
I wonder how he is carrying it unloaded in plain view AND with the magazine exposed?
Nobody is saying that open carry is better than concealed for strictly self-defense purposes, but the purpose here is POLITICAL and to show the nervous Nellies that there is no reason to be scared. And if Muslim citizens want to walk around openly carrying guns, I'm fine with that.
I can load, rack, aim and get rounds on paper with my .45 in just a couple of seconds. Not as good as loaded of course, but way better than a hammer.
Agreed. Concealment is the way to go. Gives the bad guys something to think about when you consider the possibility that even Granny might be prepared to defend herself.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.