Have you ever reported someone to the police for having weapons?

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   Happyboomernurseposted 13 years ago

   Particularly since Sept. 11, 2001 all citizens have been encouraged to report suspicious actions and activities to the police and/or homeland security. Have you ever reported someone? If so, for what and do you know the outcome?

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      Ron Montgomeryposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I guess you have to define weapons a little more clearly.  I live in Arizona, so if I reported everyone I saw with a handgun the cops would be overwhelmed.  They're actually more suspicious of people who don't carry - figuring them for felons or too mentally unstable to legally carry.

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         Tammy Lposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         We've got a license to carry law here in Texas too.  And down here people ought to have to pass a background check and an IQ test to be allowed to purchase one.  That would cut WAAY down on the accidental shootings, dontcha think?

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            Ron Montgomeryposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            I'm not sure what the term license to carry means, but in Az almost any adult can carry concealed with no license - which of course means no training.  I'm for the right to bear arms, but there should be some reasonable requirements; at least some training.

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               Tammy Lposted 13 years agoin reply to this

               License to carry means a person can own a gun and carry it in his or her possession after a short training course in gun safety.  Of course, the license doesn't do much good because most businesses don't allow handguns inside their buildings.  That is understandable if it is a pharmacy, bank, etc.

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            Shadesbreathposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            Someone would argue that constitutes profiling or discrimination I'm sure.

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         Happyboomernurseposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         You're right. I guess it would probably be related to someone perhaps brandishing a gun in a threatening manner, or a kind of weapon you know is illegal in your state, or the fact that you think someone is acting  mentally unstable or seems to have an obsession about weapons and guns.

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            Ron Montgomeryposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            Brandishing a gun in a threatening manner? I believe that is illegal virtually anywhere in the country, and yes I would call 911 immediately.  In many cases I would also draw my own weapon to defend whomever the perpetrator's gun was pointed at.
            
            Obsessed with guns?  That could be a little hard to define.  I actually don't like guns, (although I have to carry one for work).  I have many friends who some would consider "obsessed" with firearms, but they are also very responsible, just a bit weird in my opinion.

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   Happyboomernurseposted 13 years ago

   Interesting that someone without a gun would be more suspicious for the reasons you stated. I never thought of that, but it's a good point.

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      Ron Montgomeryposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      It was tongue-in-cheek frontier humor.  I doubt that a cop would actually be suspicious of someone simply because they didn't carry a gun.

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         Happyboomernurseposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Went right over my head. I'm always told I'm wayyyy too gullible. (smile).
         Thanks for participating in the forum.

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            Ron Montgomeryposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            Nuance can be hard to pick up in internet chat.

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      LondonGirlposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Blimey. Here in the UK it's essentially illegal to own a gun at all, ever. Shotguns if you are a farmer are about the only exception, and even then you have to make an application to the Magistrates' Court, get a police inspection, lock it to bedrock in the house, etc. It's a major hassle.
      
      Most policemen, etc, don't have guns either. Only specialist armed officers.

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         Happyboomernurseposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         A lot of Americans fight hard for their right to own guns. Most are law abiding and would never intentionally harm anyone, they just want them for self-defense.
         Some gun owners, often not the ones whose guns a registered, use them to commit serious crimes which is one of the reasons that the law abiding citizens want guns for self-protection.

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   psycheskinnerposted 13 years ago

   I once reported someone for walking around their front yard holding a shotgun.  The police turned up and took the weapon away. I don't know if he was charged with anything.

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      Happyboomernurseposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I once had a neighbor who was terminally ill with a brain tumor (and exhibiting extreme personality changes) fight with another neighbor and during the argument the ill man told the other he was going to go home, get his rifle and "go shoot up the neighborhood."  Police were called and the ill neighbor, who was indeed holding a shotgun in his hands,  barricaded himself and his wife in the house and refused to come out. At that point he was threatening to shoot himself and possibly his poor wife. A swat team was called in and the entire neighborhood was locked down from 9PM to 4AM. As the swat team tried to close in, the neighbor shot at the swat team and a member of the team killed him. The whole thing was very tragic, especially for the poor wife (who was not physically harmed, but had emotional scars).

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   kirstenblogposted 13 years ago

   Never called the cops on anyone, did dial 911 to get emergency help for a very ill and in a bad way homeless man on my way to school once tho. I also had the FBI knock on my door once, asking if the guy in the other room (we all rented rooms in the house) was around, he was wanted for fraudulent checks. That was kinda freaky

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      Happyboomernurseposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      The FBI visit was freaky.
      Glad you got the ill homeless man some emergency help. That was the compassionate thing to do, but some people might not have made the effort to help him.

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   Aficionadaposted 13 years ago

   When my mother moved (downsized) we had to clear everything out of her attic and I found a box of ammunition, but no gun.  I called the police to ask how to dispose of it safely. 
   
   They came by and took the ammo and also took an official statement from me.  I had to sign it and everything!  Whew.  It almost felt like I was being interrogated for trying to do the right thing.  But I actually did appreciate that they were being very careful and thorough.

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      Happyboomernurseposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      You can never be too careful, especially nowadays. Glad you did the right thing.

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   Bill Manningposted 13 years ago

   Back up where I'm from in Vermont it's a common site to see a guy walking down the road with a rifle, pistol or shotgun. It's very rural and there seems to always be some sort of hunting season open.
   
   It's also very common to see rifles in the rear window of pickups up there. My friend up there helped his 13 year old daughter shoot her first deer with a rifle.
   
   So yeah, it's pretty common in some areas to see arms. I use to be one of them with a gun on me all the time. Not down here in Orlando, Florida.

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      Happyboomernurseposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      It's amazing how different things are in different areas of the country and it's not always the places with the guns that have the higher crime rates.

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   LondonGirlposted 13 years ago

   I know the difference is there. It still does surprise me, sometimes.
   
   I live in a society which is essentially gun-free, I suppose. I don't think I've ever seen a gun in the UK, apart from at the airport and outside the Houses of Parliament.
   
   I remember clearly going to Italy when I was 10, and seeing guards outside banks who were armed. Scared the living daylights out of me (-:

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      Happyboomernurseposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I could see where that would have been scary, especially since you were so young and not used to seeing any guns.
      
      I didn't realize that the UK was essentially gun free. I think that if no one carries guns that would be a good thing cause they wouldn't be needed for self defense.

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   IzzyMposted 13 years ago

   When I was a taxi driver, I reported a bunch of kids (teemagers) who were running up the street waving samurai swords of all things!
   
   Another time a kid pulled a gun on me from the kerbside! I nearly had a heart-attack on the spot! (I was driving past). Called the police on him too - it was probably a toy but I should imagine it is illegal to point it at anyone - especially a driver.
   
   In UK as LondonGirl says, it is illegal to carry guns. Doesn't stop the criminals though, that is why the police have crack squads who are armed.

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      LondonGirlposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      It does to a very large extent. Very few criminal types carry guns here, in circumstances where they do elsewhere. Partly because you end up in so much extra trouble with a gun, it's mostly not worth it.

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      Happyboomernurseposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Izzy M:
      Glad you make it a habit to report bizarre, weapon related activity.
      I would be terrified if anyone pointed a gun toward my car, and really upset, even if it turned out to be a toy.
      I saw a sad case on the news a few nights ago where a man was sitting on his own stoop with a garden nozzle that looked uncannily like a gun, especially since it wasn't attached to a hose. He was playing with it and pointing it like a gun and a neighbor called the police. When the police arrived,  he apparantly "aimed" it toward them and they shot him.
      It was a very tragic ending and his family is very traumatized.
      Though I have great compassion for the survivors, the whole thing was very bizarre and didn't make sense.

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   Aficionadaposted 13 years ago

   It's really interesting to me that my family has a lot of gun stories, and I know there are a lot of guns throughout our US society, but I can't remember when I have seen one myself, other than on a police officer's belt (if even then - I may be imagining seeing one from movies and TV).  I know they are here and there - but where??  I do remember seeing one or two some decades ago, when I was a child.  But I don't think there were as many around then as there seem to be now.  It's weird.

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      Happyboomernurseposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Sounds like your family practiced good gun safety habits and generally kept their guns locked up in safes.
      Many people have guns but don't carry them. They keep them locked up at home in case an intruder breaks in.
      Also, in many parts of the country it's illegal to carry guns, and in other parts of the country there are very stringent laws to get a permit to carry.
      Thanks for contributing to this post.

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    LondonGirlposted 13 years ago

    I read something today which seemed relevant, from the BBC's "From our Own Correspondent"
    
    "To Europeans, for example, a gun is a weapon, pure and simple.
    
    To many, but not all Americans, it is a badge of independence, and self-reliance - the tool of the engaged citizen who does not think that either the criminal, or the forces of the state, should have a monopoly on deadly force.
    
    Show us a gun, and we picture a muscular ne'er-do-well in a balaclava menacing an elderly sub-postmistress.
    
    An American is more likely to visualise a plucky homesteader crouching between an overturned sofa in a burning ranch house, preparing to defend his family to the death."
    
    http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/f … 294890.stm

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