Wisconsin AG: "Open carry legal." Milwaukee police chief: "Screw that!"

[Agent 007]

I'm not exactly the biggest advocate of open carry around here, but if it's legal, it's legal. Glad I don't live in Milwaukee....

AG gun memo fires up police; Milwaukee chief tells officers to ignore open carry finding : La Crosse Tribune

From the article:

“How we approach a person with a gun, I can tell you right now, isn’t going to change. As far as a law enforcement person is concerned, you just don’t walk up to a person with a gun and say "Excuse me, sir,’” Clarke said. “On the ground, give up. Get that gun under control and then we’ll figure out what we got here.”

[4sarge]

Thanks, but it looks like the liberals just don't get it

But Oregon, Wis., Police Chief Doug Pettit said the memo doesn’t provide much direction for police, who already know open carry is legal in Wisconsin and disorderly conduct is a case-by-case judgment call.

“I don’t know if the memo clarifies anything, other than it’s not an automatic disorderly conduct charge,” Pettit said. “Clearly, I think law enforcement, like anything else, will have to use their discretion.”

Dane County District Attorney Brian Blanchard said open carry cases have rarely come up, but he’d want to know why someone has chosen to carry a gun before making a charging decision.

“Police will be quick to ask you, �Why do you have a gun with you? Is somebody stalking you?’ Those are going to be fair inquiries,” he said. “We’d be particularly concerned if someone was openly possessing a gun in the context of an ongoing dispute or feud.”

Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke said the memo just muddies things. Police still aren’t clear on what might constitute disorderly conduct, he said.

“How we approach a person with a gun, I can tell you right now, isn’t going to change. As far as a law enforcement person is concerned, you just don’t walk up to a person with a gun and say �excuse me, sir,’” Clarke said. “On the ground, give up. Get that gun under control and then we’ll figure out what we got here.”

Gov. Jim Doyle, a former attorney general, believes local communities should be allowed to create their own gun ordinances, spokesman Lee Sensenbrenner said. A 1995 law bars municipalities from enacting stiffer ordinances than state statutes, but carrying a rifle during hunting season is different from walking around Milwaukee with a gun on your hip, Sensenbrenner said.

Paul Helmke, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said Van Hollen’s memo underscores the nation’s weak gun laws. The Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort, a statewide organization dedicated to ending gun violence, estimates guns kill about 450 people in the state each year.

[inxs]

I understand what difficulties can arise from open carry. It would be different if we had never gone through the dark days when guns were evil but that's not an option. It will be interesting.....

[CulpeperMM]

if i am not mistaken, open carry is the only legal carry in Wisconsin. (I stand by for corrections.)

That would mean that the police have curtailed Milwaukee citizens' RKBA, and trampled on the constitution.

[Blue Tile Spook]

From your quote:

Originally Posted by 4sarge

Dane County District Attorney Brian Blanchard said open carry cases have rarely come up, but he’d want to know why someone has chosen to carry a gun before making a charging decision.

“Police will be quick to ask you, �Why do you have a gun with you? Is somebody stalking you?’ Those are going to be fair inquiries,” he said. “We’d be particularly concerned if someone was openly possessing a gun in the context of an ongoing dispute or feud.”

The question of what a person is doing with a firearm doesn't have to be answered since it is a legal activity, right?

Yes, if the individual is acting in an unsafe manner with it then I can see where action needs to be taken. But if OC is legal and OCing is all the individual is doing while walking down the street then so what?

[AFA1CY]

Some of the comments....

[CulpeperMM]

the individuals acting in unsafe manner for the people of Milwaukee is the Police and Sheriff Dept Chiefs.

[Buckaroo]

Police Stop Man For Carrying Gun Out In Open


Police Stop Man For Carrying Gun Out In Open - Local News Story - WISN Milwaukee

MILWAUKEE COUNTY, Wis. -- As WISN 12 News was interviewing a West Allis man about his past arrest for carrying a gun in the open, police confronted him again Tuesday night -- one day after the state's attorney general ruled it's legal."Somebody called the police that somebody was walking around with a gun on their hip," a West Allis police officer said."I would fit that description," Krause said."That would be you," a West Allis police officer said.Police arrived up to investigate Krause while 12 News was interviewing him about his previous arrest for carrying a holstered gun on his hip outside his home. One officer saw Krause's gun and asked what agency he's affiliated with."I'm the same guy I was when you arrested me the last time," Krause said.The officers asked for his name and called dispatch."The reason I'm checking is because felons can't have guns in Wisconsin," West Allis police said.Krause is not a felon. He's a certified firearms instructor."Pretty much any time my pants are on, I'm armed," Krause said.That includes carrying a gun outside his home as Wisconsin's attorney general has ruled is legal."I'm totally opposed to it. I do not think we need more guns on the streets," state Rep. Leon Young said.Young, a former Milwaukee police officer who represents part of Milwaukee's north side, said he's working on fast track legislation to clear up confusion with Wisconsin's gun law."If you're walking down the street with a gun in your hand and people can see it or you've got one in your holster here and people can see it, it's going to create a disturbance," Young said. But until there's a new law, the officers explained to Krause, the attorney general's ruling is brand new to them and they'll act accordingly."How it was explained to us is that if somebody calls and makes a complaint -- in other words, they feel threatened -- they feel it's causing a disturbance or they feel that it's disorderly in some fashion. They call us and we respond and we investigate it," a West Allis police officer said."This is America. If we don't stand up for our rights, you know, what are we doing here? What have people fought and died for? Why'd we found this country?" Krause said.Krause was not arrested, and he said the officers Tuesday night acted professionally, although he disputes whether they should have confronted him.The officers said in a different situation they would likely still order someone carrying a gun to the ground until they could make sure the situation is safe. Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen said his memo was simply intended to "clarify" the law, and he does not believe more people will start openly carrying guns because of it.Gov. Jim Doyle hopes it won't change how police officers respond when they see weapons."Our advice was people are permitted to openly carry firearms -- that it wasn't in and of itself disorderly conduct. We intentionally didn't go into any factual-based scenarios because they're all different," Van Hollen said."I assume that local DAs and local police departments are gonna continue to act as they already have," Doyle said.Police Response

Milwaukee's police chief said he'll go on telling his officers to take down anyone with a firearm despite Van Hollen's finding that people can carry guns openly if they do it peacefully.Chief Ed Flynn said officers can't assume people are carrying guns legally in a city that has seen nearly 200 homicides in the past two years.He said that means officers seeing anybody carrying a gun will put them on the ground, take the gun away and then decide if the person has a right to carry it.Flynn said it's irresponsible to send a message that if someone carries a weapon openly, no one can bother them.Milwaukee-area police chiefs have a monthly meeting on Wednesday, and they're expected to discuss this issue.Shorewood Police Chief David Banaszynski is the leader of the state chief's association.He said many departments are asking questions about how to deal with people openly carrying firearms.He said it may end up being a community-by-community, case-by-case issue fraught with the potential for danger."Now, with open carry, which is legal, there may be no training. I could hand you my handgun, you could walk down the street carrying it with no training whatsoever. To me, there is a lot more danger now with people thinking, 'I have the right to carry it so I'm going to carry it, and not have the training,'" Banaszynski said.Guns are still prohibited in schools and any private property owner, including businesses, can ban firearms.

[Richard]

Remember this lesson folks, let it burn in real deep.

We are at a point in our nations history where "leftist ideology" trumps everything else, this is a law enforcement department head of a major U.S. city specifically telling their officers to "take down" law abiding citizens for no reason other than they personally do not agree with the law & the Constitutionally guaranteed freedom to keep & bear arms.

Scarey stuff.

[Blue Tile Spook]

{crosses Wisconsin off of vacation spot list}

{sigh}