Since a large portion of our day is spent in our vehicles travelling to and from work, it’s worth mentioning a few key points for carrying concealed in vehicles. One of the first things to cover is your method of carry and whether or not it remains effective when you are in your vehicle.
For example, if you carry at the 4 o’clock position, when you get in your vehicle your seatbelt will hinder you from accessing your firearm. Your firearm will also be between you and the seat, which will again hinder access.
Some people have told me in the past that they simply remove the firearm and keep it on the seat while driving. This may seem like a simple solution. However I have a few issues with this. For starters, do you have your concealed permit? It’s not uncommon to have to hit your brakes harder than usual when someone unexpectedly enters your lane or brakes too hard in front of you. If your firearm was on the seat, it’s now on the floor board or potentially under the seat. If it’s concealed, or not visible, in any way, a Police Officer could realistically make an argument that the firearm is now concealed.
Another potential issue to consider would be the inability to access that firearm to defend your life if that same situation happened and the firearm ended up under the seat. You don’t want to have to take the time to get on your hands and knees and grab for a gun that might be just out of reach when you need it because is slid around.
Perception is also a factor that we need to keep in mind. If someone sees a firearm on my seat or I get pulled over with a firearm openly on the seat, it could potentially worsen my immediate situation. Other people who don’t know the gun laws don’t realize that you might be following the law by having your gun on the dashboard or seat. They just see a gun and freak out. Then I’ve got more to explain to any Police Officer who might pull me over.
A reasonable solution to access to a firearm while in a vehicle would be a vehicle mounted holster. These are a great idea that allows someone to have access to a firearm relatively quickly while still maintaining the safety aspect by covering the fire control group. It is easy to get rushed and inadvertently leave the firearm in the vehicle however when using one of thee holsters. Therefore we need to stay mindful if we are using this type of holster.
Unless there is access to a vehicle-mounted safe, it is not recommended to leave a firearm in a vehicle. A common misconception is that vehicles offer a fair amount of protection. That is simply not true. It takes nothing more than a pipe or a tire iron to break a window and just a few seconds to reach in and take whatever is in sight. A firearm is a pretty inviting target.
There is also something to be said for not telegraphing the fact that there could be a firearm in your vehicle, such as the “molon labe” stickers or bumper stickers portraying your love of freedom and guns. I get that people like to express themselves with their bumper stickers and personalization of the back end of their vehicle. I personally recommend the opposite however.
Take a second and think about your vehicle. Now picture someone walking through a parking lot searching for a vehicle with a high probability of having a firearm in it. Now, is your vehicle the one in that parking lot that is going to be picked out? If so, you may want to consider dialing back on the vanity stickers and expression. There’s nothing wrong with this, but with discretion comes a very distinct advantage.
Stay tuned tomorrow for the second part of this article.
