Good LEO encounter in Tennessee

[Hgsmith]

I was driving to the grocery store from church a few Sundays ago in Collierville, TN and got pulled over by Collierville PD. The LEO, an older man, walked up to the driver's side window and informed me that my vehicle's registration had expired. I promptly informed the officer that I was a valid handgun permit holder and that I was currently armed. He thanked me for letting him know on the front end of the stop. He told me he was glad I was carrying and that he thought everyone should carry a gun these days. He asked for my driver's license (but not my carry permit) and Proof of Insurance which I informed him was in the glove compartment with my holstered Glock 26 (I had just left church and hadn't had a chance to put the gun and holster back on my belt). He said thanks for the info, took a half step back and said to go ahead. I rifled through paperwork all around my gun to find my POI and it didn't seem to bother him. He came back to the car and said due to my spotless driving record (and likely our mutual view on guns) I would only be given a verbal courtesy warning, and told me to have a good day.

Overall I think that's a huge +1 for Collierville PD!

P.S. I am fully aware that TN isn't a "duty to inform" state, however I just moved here from AR which is a "duty to inform" state and I have just gotten into the routine of informing the officer of my status as soon as he (or she) gets to my window. I've found that even if it's not required by law, the LEO appreciates it and it is way better than the officer catching a glimpse of your sidearm you didn't tell him about as you are looking for your paperwork!

 

[pataul]

I was recently stopped by a TN Trooper. I handed him my DL and my carry permit. He asked what type gun I carried and gave me a warning. The fact that I had a baseball cap with the trooper union logo on probably helped.

 

[MI .45]

The fact that I had a baseball cap with the trooper union logo on probably helped.

Definitely, didn't hurt... continue to do good.

 

[BluesStringer]

I was driving to the grocery store from church a few Sundays ago in Collierville, TN and got pulled over by Collierville PD. The LEO, an older man, walked up to the driver's side window and informed me that my vehicle's registration had expired. I promptly informed the officer that I was a valid handgun permit holder and that I was currently armed. He thanked me for letting him know on the front end of the stop. He told me he was glad I was carrying and that he thought everyone should carry a gun these days. He asked for my driver's license (but not my carry permit) and Proof of Insurance which I informed him was in the glove compartment with my holstered Glock 26 (I had just left church and hadn't had a chance to put the gun and holster back on my belt). He said thanks for the info, took a half step back and said to go ahead. I rifled through paperwork all around my gun to find my POI and it didn't seem to bother him. He came back to the car and said due to my spotless driving record (and likely our mutual view on guns) I would only be given a verbal courtesy warning, and told me to have a good day.

Overall I think that's a huge +1 for Collierville PD!

P.S. I am fully aware that TN isn't a "duty to inform" state, however I just moved here from AR which is a "duty to inform" state and I have just gotten into the routine of informing the officer of my status as soon as he (or she) gets to my window. I've found that even if it's not required by law, the LEO appreciates it and it is way better than the officer catching a glimpse of your sidearm you didn't tell him about as you are looking for your paperwork!

I drive a Jeep with a large enough center console to keep my weapon in if I have to take it off my belt for some reason. There is no way on God's green Earth that I would put the paperwork that an LEO requires if I'm stopped in the same place as my weapon. IF I were to lose my mind and forget that hard and fast rule that I have fared well under for over 30 years of carrying a weapon on a daily basis, I too would inform the LEO that there was a weapon where I had to reach in order to comply with his legal request for my DL, POI and registration. The difference is though, I would literally have to lose my mind to store my weapon and paperwork together. I think it is seriously that significant of a screw-up. Also, any cop terminally stupid enough to have stood there watching you rifle through a glove box that he knew had a loaded firearm in it would have only himself to blame if he left that stop in a body bag or ambulance. You said he didn't even ask you to see your permission slip. Just your word that you were carrying legally, that your weapon wasn't a stolen one, that you hadn't just come from robbing a liquor store, that you're just one of the nicest "good-guys" ever there was, is all it took for this blithering idiot to stand there and stroke you about how "everybody should carry" and yada yada yada while you have your hand probably touching a loaded weapon while trying to get paperwork out of the box without the weapon falling to the floorboard.

All I can say is that it's a good thing for that cop that you're as awesome as he apparently thought you were.

Blues

 

[Hgsmith]

It was honestly a fluke that my gun was in the same place as the paperwork. I was in my wife's car and didn't know where her papers were. The only reason why my gun was in the glove compartment is because that's the only compartment in her car that locks (plus her console is really small and full of stuff). In my truck I keep my papers in the console just because I lock my gun in the glove compartment. I may have slightly overstated what I meant by the "rifled through" comment. The paperwork was easy to find and I never had to touch my gun, I simply meant to emphasize that instead of taking possession of my gun, the officer simply took a slightly defensive position and allowed me to go ahead.

As far as not asking for my permit, I know in that in AR, your permit pops up when they run your license so it's more of a formality than anything. I would imagine that TN is the same way, though I can't say for certain that's the case.

I would imagine that if the officer hadn't been behind us since soon after we pulled out of church, hadn't been clean cut and dressed nicely, and he had perceived us as more of a threat, things might have gone a bit differently.

I too was a bit surprised at his apparent lack of concern for my firearm, but judging by his age, he has likely been on the force for a significant amount of time, has probably encountered the situation many times, and has shaped his response based his perception of the situation at hand.
I have seen with a lot of older officers is that many seem to be more complacent, but in reality they use their past experiences to base their "use of force" or "intensity" on the particulars of situation at hand and not escalate the situation if it's not necessary. They tend to police "smarter" rather than "stronger".