-1 SBPD (Officer Maxey)

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  • JoshuaW

    Master
    Rating - 100%
    2   0   0
    Jun 18, 2010
    2,266
    38
    South Bend, IN
    I had my first negative encounter with an officer today.

    My fiance and I were picking up some soda from Wal-Greens (corner of Edison and Ironwood), and as we just finished checking out, I hear from behind me "Are you an off duty officer?" I turn to answer, and I see it is a South Bend PD officer. I reply "No, open carry is legal in Indiana, I have my license." In turn he insists it is not. I told him I had my license, and it does not say how you must carry; I also told him he was more than welcome to run it if he would like.

    While he was running my license, he continued to insist that it was illegal to open carry, and that I must have it concealed in the State of Indiana, again I told him that Indiana allows open carry, it does not specify on the license. As he persisted I asked him to show me where in the law it says anything about concealed. He told me he did not have a book with the laws with him. We went back and forth while he waited for the license to be confirmed, where he said things like "This isnt Texas, you cant just walk around with a gun out in the open" to which I informed him that he is right, this is not Texas, Texas is a concealed only state.

    A moment before the license came back confirmed, he begins to tell me that he wants me to cover it up and go to my car. I politely refused, unless he could show me where in the state law it said I had to. To that he simply said "I dont have to show you were it says that, I am telling you. Do you understand what I am telling you?" Again, I insisted that unless he could show me otherwise, I was not required to, and I would not. It is about this time that he started to get extremely rude. He called me a smart ass, belligerent, and a whimp. He also informed that Wal-Greens and any other store could tell me to leave because they certainly would not feel safe with some guy they did not know carrying a gun in there store. I told him that I would gladly leave, if the STORE told me to. When I emphasized store, I looked over at the clerk, and he shrugged.

    My license came back confirmed, over the radio it was worded properly, but Officer Maxey seemed a bit to focused on me to even notice. They read it back as a "Lifetime personal protection license to carry handguns". No mention of the word concealed. Interesting. He insisted one more time that I cover it up before I went to my car. I took my license back from him, grabbed my soda and walked to my vehicle. I put the soda in the back, and told my fiance I would be back in just a moment.

    I walked back to Wal-Greens to request his card. At that time he was thrilled to offer it to me one back at his vehicle, and was quick to mention that he had my name, and he would track me down when he found the law. The way he said it was clearly intended to be deliberately intimidating. Really professional. On the back to his cruiser he continued his unprofessionalism, saying I couldnt even shoot that thing, and any five year old girl could come up and take it from me. He insisted that I did not need a gun, and that I was being irresponsible since criminals would come up and take it from me. I tried to inform him that nationwide, there have not really been any instances of that happening. To that he replied "Why dont you quit being a smart ass, shut up, and listen to what I have to say?". I just shook my head.

    We got to his car and he told me not to stand behind him. Fine, I can understand that one. I told him I would stand wherever he wanted me to. To that he replied "Your damn right you will!". I have already lost count how many unprofessional, snide, and rude remarks he has made. I asked him if he has a copy of the laws, and he says he only has the small version, but he would call someone at the station who could tell me. So he calls the station. He asks the person he called if they had a copy of the "full law book" handy. They apparently did not, so he asked if they knew off hand what the law was that required concealed carry. When he was told that there was none, he says frustrated "Well I know that isnt what the license says, but what is the state law?!" followed by "You mean that people can walk around and have their guns taken from them? This guy couldnt keep a five year old from taking his gun, and you mean to tell me that he can just do that? Oh, and he is standing right here, listening to everything I say, great." "Well, when did that change? We are going to have criminals with guns everywhere, just taking them from people!" I asked him if I could have one of his cards, and he says "No, the name is Maxey. That is M-A-X-E-Y. MAXEY!" "Am I free to go?" "Yeah, go get away."

    While I am not thrilled that he did not know the law, he could have been a bit more polite about the entire thing. Insisting that I cant shoot, calling me a smart ass, and saying things like a five year old girl could take my gun away from me were just uncalled for. I am going to send a letter addressed to him as a followup, and I am going to include a nice laminated copy of the law. I am also going to follow up with a letter addressed to the South Bend police chief, not that it will do any good.

    Lastly, Officer Maxey, I hope you somehow wind up reading this thread. Do you even recall how much of a power trip you were on? I am confident in my abilities, and I am confident that I can maintain a level head. You dont have to worry about law abiding citizens, and you cant make demands that arent warranted. You shouldnt have to resort to intimidation. That sort of behavior is uncalled for, and frankly makes me a bit worried about any individual who would do so while armed, even an officer like yourself.
     

    ! twitty

    Master
    Rating - 100%
    36   0   0
    May 1, 2011
    4,234
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    NE Indy
    Good job on keeping your cool... Btw, are you small framed or what? I guess I don't understand why he kept saying a five year old girl could take it from you.
     

    Scutter01

    Grandmaster
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    2   0   0
    Mar 21, 2008
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    +1 on the way you handled yourself, but I wish people would quit quoting the text on the license as law. It is not. Only the texts of the statutes are law. The license also doesn't say you can't carry in a school, but it's still illegal.
     

    jbombelli

    ITG Certified
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    10   0   0
    May 17, 2008
    13,010
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    Brownsburg, IN
    LOL.

    The newspapers are FULL of stories about 5-year-olds taking guns from people's holsters in drugstore parking lots. Don't you know anything?
     

    PriestEG

    Sharpshooter
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    10   0   0
    May 4, 2011
    719
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    Indianapolis
    you handled yourself in a manner which should be copied by any law abiding citizen who carries openly and gets the run around from the police!! i respect your method and how you handled yourself. but i have one question as i have been in your shoes before, having been with my GF when a LEO tried to saw i was breaking the law by OCing. what did your ol' lady have to say about all this? when my gf was with me when this sorta thing happened, after all was said and done she lifted her shirt to show her S&W SD9 and politely told the officer "i got one too, you gonna ***** me out like an idiot also?" hahaha keeper of a woma
     

    Dead Duck

    Grandmaster
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    53   0   0
    Apr 1, 2011
    14,062
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    .
    Did he have have powder around his mouth? He's probably on a sugar RUSH.
    Sounds like the SB cop that hassled me a few times. Short, Stocky(round) and when he got mad, his eyes would bug out and he start spitting his T's on me. I was just laughing. A 5yr old could have out run this guy.
     

    JoshuaW

    Master
    Rating - 100%
    2   0   0
    Jun 18, 2010
    2,266
    38
    South Bend, IN
    Good job on keeping your cool... Btw, are you small framed or what? I guess I don't understand why he kept saying a five year old girl could take it from you.

    I am taller and have oddly wide shoulders, which gives the appearance of no upper body muscle. While I am certainly no linebacker or anything, I am not small. Add in office dress and a nice pair of shoes, and I am probably one of the least intimidating people you will ever come across. Im sure it doesnt help that I am younger than most people :rolleyes:


    I would say it probably is. He was wearing a Street Crimes t-shirt, which is South Bend's quick response team. Someone correct me if I am wrong, but they are supposed to be responding to crimes in progress, and assisting officers in searches. Judging by the way he acted, I could see where he could tear apart a vehicle looking for non-existing drugs. He got worked up quick, and he was relentlessness.

    +1 on the way you handled yourself, but I wish people would quit quoting the text on the license as law. It is not. Only the texts of the statutes are law. The license also doesn't say you can't carry in a school, but it's still illegal.

    I agree entirely. I realized that, which is why I switched tactics and tried to get him to look up the non-existent IC. It should be noted that many states do specifically note "Concealed" on the permit or license, but I digress. The IC is the way to go about it.
     

    JoshuaW

    Master
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    2   0   0
    Jun 18, 2010
    2,266
    38
    South Bend, IN
    you handled yourself in a manner which should be copied by any law abiding citizen who carries openly and gets the run around from the police!! i respect your method and how you handled yourself. but i have one question as i have been in your shoes before, having been with my GF when a LEO tried to saw i was breaking the law by OCing. what did your ol' lady have to say about all this? when my gf was with me when this sorta thing happened, after all was said and done she lifted her shirt to show her S&W SD9 and politely told the officer "i got one too, you gonna ***** me out like an idiot also?" hahaha keeper of a woma

    She had a smirk on her face. She doesnt carry, but she certainly knows the laws. She was holding a case of soda, so I handed her my keys and told her she could go to the car. He hesitated, like he was going to make her stay, but then said he had no issue with her, so she could go.

    Did he have have powder around his mouth? He's probably on a sugar RUSH.
    Sounds like the SB cop that hassled me a few times. Short, Stocky(round) and when he got mad, his eyes would bug out and he start spitting his T's on me. I was just laughing. A 5yr old could have out run this guy.

    Maxey was taller, probably 6' 2" or 6' 3", since he was about my height. He certainly wasnt ripped, but he wasnt round.
     

    PriestEG

    Sharpshooter
    Rating - 100%
    10   0   0
    May 4, 2011
    719
    18
    Indianapolis
    I wouldn't even for a moment consider open carry unless I also had one of those tiny, cheap digital pocket recorders that I could trigger with one touch. Better yet, a camera pen that fits in the front pocket -- only costs about 35 dollars.

    Amazon.com: Video Camera Pen: Electronics



    why wouldnt you consider OCing? is it just an attempt to avoid a confrontation with LEO or is there other reasons for this
     

    iamaclone45

    Expert
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Feb 2, 2009
    1,304
    38
    Indiana
    Wow.

    I would have been furious. Sounds like you handled the situation perfectly.

    Your post is excellent. So excellent that I think a direct copy of what you wrote in your OP should be sent to his supervisor, the police chief, this officer, the mayor, and even the local paper.
     

    esrice

    Certified Regular Guy
    Rating - 100%
    20   0   0
    Jan 16, 2008
    24,096
    48
    Indy
    Sounds like you handled the situation perfectly.

    Your post is excellent. So excellent that I think a direct copy of what you wrote in your OP should be sent to his supervisor, the police chief, this officer, the mayor, and even the local paper.

    All this. :yesway:
     
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