Ohio open carry question

Open Carry is carrying a firearm unconcealed in Ohio. OC does not require a concealed handgun license, but the practice requires intimate knowledge of the law since there are places and situations where OC is prohibited but carrying concealed would be permitted. OC is also likely to attract attention. This forum is for discussion of OC, not for debating the pro's and con's or coordinating any type of protest events.

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Werz
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Re: Ohio open carry question

Post by Werz »

MacDonald wrote:How much of the gun has to be showing to be considered OC?
There is no magic answer to that question. The common sense answer is "enough to clearly establish that it is a handgun."
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Open carry is a First Amendment exercise.
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MyWifeSaidYes
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Re: Ohio open carry question

Post by MyWifeSaidYes »

Werz wrote:
MacDonald wrote:How much of the gun has to be showing to be considered OC?
There is no magic answer to that question. The common sense answer is "enough to clearly establish that it is a handgun."
And that should include a handgun openly carried but concealed in a flap holster.
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djthomas
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Re: Ohio open carry question

Post by djthomas »

MyWifeSaidYes wrote:And that should include a handgun openly carried but concealed in a flap holster.
Ah dunno... have you seen the cases for the iPhone 6 Plus yet? Twice now I've seen some unfashionable middle-aged guy with such an item on his belt and thought to myself "hmm, wonder what he's packing?" At some point later on he opens the flap and pulls out his mini tablet and starts making phone calls...
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MyWifeSaidYes
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Re: Ohio open carry question

Post by MyWifeSaidYes »

Yeah, this is ridiculous:
Image

This is what I meant:
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but these are becoming more common:
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Re: Ohio open carry question

Post by JediSkipdogg »

Also the real question shouldn't be what is considered open carry. The question should be what is considered concealed carry. One should worry more about concealed carry since that is where the law comes into play.
Carrying Concealed Handguns - Signage Answers

Ohio Concealed Carry Classes in S/W Ohio
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I am not a lawyer. My answers are based on research, knowledge, and are generally backed up with facts, the Ohio Revised Code, or the United States Code.
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MyWifeSaidYes
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Re: Ohio open carry question

Post by MyWifeSaidYes »

Unless there is newer case law:
State v. Pettit (1969), 20 Ohio App. 2d 170, 173-174 -- "We think that a recognized test is that a weapon is concealed if it is so situated as not to be discernible by ordinary observation by those near enough to see it if it were not concealed, who would come into contact with the possessor in the usual associations of life; but that absolute invisibility is not required, since ordinary observation does not extend to a search unusually careful, thorough or detailed, made because of suspicion that contraband which is not visible by ordinary observation may in actuality be present."
So, a handgun carried in an Inside the Waist Band holster, where no garment covers the grip and the grip protrudes above the beltline enough to be able to tell that it is (or MAY be) a gun, would NOT be concealed.

The same handgun, in an IWB holster that rides low enough for the grip to NOT be visible OR that there is not enough of the grip showing to tell that it is a gun, WOULD be concealed.
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Re: Ohio open carry question

Post by 3FULLMAGS+1 »

State v. Pettit (1969), 20 Ohio App. 2d 170, 173-174 -- "We think that a recognized test is that a weapon is concealed if it is so situated as not to be discernible by ordinary observation by those near enough to see it if it were not concealed, who would come into contact with the possessor in the usual associations of life; but that absolute invisibility is not required, since ordinary observation does not extend to a search unusually careful, thorough or detailed, made because of suspicion that contraband which is not visible by ordinary observation may in actuality be present." "Quote"

Discernible?....guess that depends on the one observing.

I use a Sneeky Pete for church carry only and I've had more than a few people know what I had in there, but then they were carriers too......there was also a missionary, another a military chaplain, both visiting our church and they knew what it was too, so.....

So I'd say discernible depends on the knowledge of the one observing the holster and knowing what it is, not just whether it "looks" ,(with out a doubt), like a gun. My definition of concealed is if the gun is covered up so that it is not seen, regardless of what it is "in" or "inside of" and not whether the (flap), "holster" or "fanny pack" gives it away even though it is not physically seen.
Darrel
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