Police Called On My Boy

[Mike J]

My wife called me during lunchtime today. My son has renewed his interest in his Daisy Red Ryder. He was out in the front yard sitting down cross legged holding his air rifle on his lap. A car pulled into the driveway & stopped. Our lot is only a little over an acre & a quarter. The house is about 50 yards from the road. Anyway, my boy came inside because a stranger had pulled in. My wife was watching the car trying to figure out what they were doing. A short time later the police came. The policeman said the old man driving the car thought he was sitting there with a rifle pointed at his own neck. She explained to the police that my 12 year old son had been target shooting with a B.B. gun. The policeman said the man said my boy had run into the house when he pulled in. My wife told the officer, "He is 12. A strange car pulled into the driveway, Of course he came inside."
She asked the officer if he wanted to see/talk to my son so he would know everything is okay. He said, "You're mom if you say everything is okay, everything is okay."
So the police were decent. I'm just a little mind blown someone felt the need to call the cops on a 12 year old messing around with a BB gun.

 

[gunman42782]

People are idiots. It's a different world from when I was a kid, that's for sure.

 

[XUSNORDIE]

Yep that's the tactic I would take if I thought someone had a rifle pointed at me when I'm driving by.....I will simply stop and park right next to them...... sounds like a great defensive tactic.

 

[Mike J]

Sorry if I wasn't clear. They thought the rifle was pointed at his own head. He did say about 5 minutes before they pulled in he was sitting cross legged with the rifle pointed up. Then he had moved it to his lap. I will edit original post.

 

[XUSNORDIE]

Ahhhhh. Now it makes more sense!

 

[Kevin]

People are idiots. It's a different world from when I was a kid, that's for sure.

In this scenario, I would respectfully disagree. From the distance, the driver of the car might not have been able to tell the difference between a BB gun and a larger caliber rifle. And since the 12 year old was alone from what it sounds like, well, there are just enough people in the world today, that calling the police was probably the correct response.

And @Mike J it sounds like your son did the right thing by coming inside when the strange car pulled up. There are an equally number of werido's out there wanting to kidnap little kids.

 

[Jeepnik]

Actually, there are too many people who let their own imaginations run away with them.

Shortly after we moved in, some 46 years ago, I was in the garage cleaning one of my long guns. I didn't have a dedicated space yet so I did stuff like that in the garage with the door open. Apparently some busybody either drove or walked by (the sheriff wouldn't say) and called in "a man with a gun". Before the deputies arrived I had finished up and gone back in the house.

When they arrived the deputies didn't see anything but did knock on the door. I explained what had gone on and invited them into my garage. After about ten minutes or so of discussing my reloading bench with the older deputy they left. He did suggest closing the door when doing "gun" stuff. Never did, and after a bit most of the neighbors got to know me.

Sadly, today I would probably have to fend off an entire SWAT team.

 

[Johnnu2]

I hate to admit this, but the last thing I would do would be to go anywhere near the yewt.....
Apathetic ? Yes!
p.s. I never show a sign of guns for anyone to see. I even load my guns in my car inside my garage; and remove them the same way when I get home from the range. Discretion beats valor all day long (IMHO of course

J.

 

[contender]

Sadly,, in todays world,, some people see any kind of gun,, even toy ones & can freak out. This usually happens in places where a big city person moves into a place & isn't familiar with the way things are where they move to.
Around here,, a kid with a BB gun wouldn't get much attention UNLESS the kid was doing something wrong,, like shooting at cars or whatever.
But,, around here,, we have enough "imported city folks" that occasionally make such stupid calls like that.

 

[JackBull]

My wife called me during lunchtime today. My son has renewed his interest in his Daisy Red Ryder. He was out in the front yard sitting down cross legged holding his air rifle on his lap. A car pulled into the driveway & stopped. Our lot is only a little over an acre & a quarter. The house is about 50 yards from the road. Anyway, my boy came inside because a stranger had pulled in. My wife was watching the car trying to figure out what they were doing. A short time later the police came. The policeman said the old man driving the car thought he was sitting there with a rifle pointed at his own neck. She explained to the police that my 12 year old son had been target shooting with a B.B. gun. The policeman said the man said my boy had run into the house when he pulled in. My wife told the officer, "He is 12. A strange car pulled into the driveway, Of course he came inside."
She asked the officer if he wanted to see/talk to my son so he would know everything is okay. He said, "You're mom if you say everything is okay, everything is okay."
So the police were decent. I'm just a little mind blown someone felt the need to call the cops on a 12 year old messing around with a BB gun.

Lucky you got a decent cop. In my town it all depends on who makes the call and who the cops need to speak to. If either are townies, you are screwed.

 

[JackBull]

In this scenario, I would respectfully disagree. From the distance, the driver of the car might not have been able to tell the difference between a BB gun and a larger caliber rifle. And since the 12 year old was alone from what it sounds like, well, there are just enough people in the world today, that calling the police was probably the correct response.

And @Mike J it sounds like your son did the right thing by coming inside when the strange car pulled up. There are an equally number of werido's out there wanting to kidnap little kids.

You are driving a car, 50 yards from a home, you think there is a gun pointed at you so you drive in towards the gun? I dont buy it.

 

[jav]

I was cleaning guns the other day there was a neighbor up above I felt should I wait to transport them from the garage to the house I said forget it the put them away while he was out there people could get weird about those things

 

[Kevin]

I was cleaning guns the other day there was a neighbor up above I felt should I wait to transport them from the garage to the house I said forget it the put them away while he was out there people could get weird about those things

Yup, I remember when we moved into our house back in Illinois. I only had a few guns at the time. Perhaps three rifles and one shotgun. I draped a blanket over the soft cases and carried them in all at once quickly to the garage. I just do not want the neighbors to know what I have.

But you guessed it. Quite a bit later, I was talking to the guy who lived in the third house down. So two other houses between mine and his. He asked me what kind of rifles I have, because he remembered me carrying them into the house. Some guy with nothing better to do than spy on the neighbors. People can get weird about the smallest thing.

 

[Kevin]

Sadly,, in todays world,, some people see any kind of gun,, even toy ones & can freak out. This usually happens in places where a big city person moves into a place & isn't familiar with the way things are where they move to.
Around here,, a kid with a BB gun wouldn't get much attention UNLESS the kid was doing something wrong,, like shooting at cars or whatever.
But,, around here,, we have enough "imported city folks" that occasionally make such stupid calls like that.

I believe you, but never having lived in the county, is it really THAT different? I've lived in small towns, and they seem worse than a bigger city. In cities, it seems people stick to themselves. Don't people living in the country get all nosy into other people's business? The neighbor I mentioned above? Small town, relatively so anyway. Smaller than back in Jersey or here in Dallas.

 

[Paul B]

One of the reasons I left California for good was in the last few months I was there a little old lady with dementia and nothing to do literally spied on all the neighbors. I was getting ready to go to the range and was loading my gear into my car when a several cop cars pull up and cops pour out guns in hand, back in 1968 they were still carrying revolvers chamber to .357 mag. I don't like cocked gun pointed at me. A short conversation squared things and the cops left. It got to be a habit and usually the same cops who knew darn well what was going on. The old lady would soon forget that the cops told her what I did was perfectly legal and call the cops again and we'd go through the same routine again.
I said to hell with it and moved to another state where my girl friend had move to due to harassment from an ex. I've never regretted making that move nor did I regret marrying that girl friend.
Paul B.

 

[jav]

Yup, I remember when we moved into our house back in Illinois. I only had a few guns at the time. Perhaps three rifles and one shotgun. I draped a blanket over the soft cases and carried them in all at once quickly to the garage. I just do not want the neighbors to know what I have.

But you guessed it. Quite a bit later, I was talking to the guy who lived in the third house down. So two other houses between mine and his. He asked me what kind of rifles I have, because he remembered me carrying them into the house. Some guy with nothing better to do than spy on the neighbors. People can get weird about the smallest thing.

So true

 

[vito]

I have nephews and nieces who live in or near big cities on the East coast. They are all non-gun people, who have never had exposure to, or experience with guns of any type. They think of me as the "gun nut" uncle, but with affection. One niece told me she loves me dearly but cannot understand how I could possibly be a member of the NRA. There are millions in our country like my relatives, and the sight of any gun, anywhere, panics them. I think its more likely to run into this type in cities rather than in rural areas.

 

[ArizonaTea123]

$50 says the the old man that pulled into the driveway voted for Kamala.

 

[contender]

Kevin, you have been to my place. My neighbors all have guns. And we all look out for one another. In fact,, I've had neighbors stop to check on somebody visiting my place because they want to make sure they are supposed to be there. I get calls if something "strange" is happening. They don't call the police,, we all call each other.

But all around my area,, we do have "imports" who can be nosy,, or who may call the police if they even see a gun. Luckily,, because we allow open carry as well as CCW, and more & more folks OC,, the freaked out calls to police have been dropping. Monday,, I was eating in a restaurant,, I was carrying,, and nobody gave me a second look. I saw a guy come in,, he too was Open Carrying. And again,, nobody gave it any thought. That was in the town of Black Mountain.

But if approached or questioned by someone about my handgun,, I POLITELY use it as a teaching moment. I never put my hands on my gun, in fact,, I often clasp my hands together. And then in a very calm manner I politely explain how it's perfectly legal in NC to carry a handgun.

 

[rotor]

We live in a different time.

 

[gnappi]

I grew up in a little town in upstate New York with a population of only a couple of hundred about 135 miles north of N.Y city. It was common for me and my friends to go hunting varmint and pass through town or going to the sporting goods store to get ammo with our .22's in a shoulder sling in plain view and nobody batted an eye.

Imagine that today?

 

[coachk64]

A few years ago a Liberal Arts college in Waukesha, WI went into lock-down for about 6 hours because someone reported an "armed gunman" in the area. They don't have a "campus", just some buildings along one of the main roads, and it turns out that a local had spotted an air soft gun in somebody's trash can and pulled it out and was taking it home for his kid to play with.

Just another typical over-reaction.

 

[kmoore]

Yep, far too many people have wild imaginations. Some sound like the normal nice guy until details or story lines become more than lies with impossible conclusions. While wasting police resources.

 

[Jeepnik]

I think Contender and I have a similar opinion on this. I don't hide my guns. In fact, folks hiding their guns has led to others not being familiar with them and overreacting when they see one. We should all let the world know we own and use firearms. The world has made some of us so paranoid about theft that we hide away our guns like drug addicts do their stash. Making guns seem "wrong" is just one of the tools the antis use against us.

We used to have unloaded open carry in this state. But so many folks unfamiliar with firearms were easily swayed to make that illegal. Frankly if more folks walked around carrying firearms they would shortly become common place. We need to use familiarity as a weapon in our fight as the antis have tried to use unfamiliarity in theirs.

 

[Mike J]

I think Contender and I have a similar opinion on this. I don't hide my guns. In fact, folks hiding their guns has led to others not being familiar with them and overreacting when they see one. We should all let the world know we own and use firearms. The world has made some of us so paranoid about theft that we hide away our guns like drug addicts do their stash. Making guns seem "wrong" is just one of the tools the antis use against us.

We used to have unloaded open carry in this state. But so many folks unfamiliar with firearms were easily swayed to make that illegal. Frankly if more folks walked around carrying firearms they would shortly become common place. We need to use familiarity as a weapon in our fight as the antis have tried to use unfamiliarity in theirs.

You made me think of a friend of mine. He had the opportunity to introduce 2 people to shooting at a get together of family & friends at his house. They had all come to hang out & shoot. He was ecstatic that one of them that seemed scared of everything everyone else was shooting had a great time when offered the use of a Ruger target pistol & .22LR AR-15, He also gave them some instruction.

 

[Mike J]

As for where we live, when I moved here in '98 it was more sub-rural than suburban. I grew up in a suburb a short distance from the Atlanta city limits. The demographic there changed & more of a less desirable element had moved in. So I moved 30 miles further from the city. Now many of the people I moved to get away from have followed. I don't know about now but the last time I looked I live in the 9th fastest growing county in the country. So we have a lot of different people from all over the place coming in. It is what it is. I'm pretty much biding my time. The one good thing is the house is worth a lot more than I originally paid. My plan is to shape the place up, sell & move further from the city. I don't really know which way I will wind up going. There are many options.

The person that called the police may have just been mistaken about what they saw (optical illusions do sometimes happen). Then again they might suffer from hoplophobia. I told the boy to try not to scare the sheeple.

 

[Jack Ryan]

Meh, no harm. No foul. It all could have turned out a lot worse.

MY neighbors told me a story breathlessly at the mailbox one day. They were only there about a week may be then.

We saw some one sitting up on the railroad tracks with a GUN! They were looking down at us on the county road with a RIFLE! What should WE DO?

Me: "Nothing. I taught him to do that. He isn't looking at YOU. He is looking for beavers swimming in that water below him. Just get yer mail here and don't worry about it."

 

[flyer898]

@Mike J, I am glad it turned out well. It very easily might not have.
In very many places it is against the law to shoot a bb gun. It is often lumped in with shooting a firearm, especially in a city or an unincorporated census designated place. Your wife made four mistakes that could have resulted in criminal liability for one or more members of your family.
First she answered the door. You do not have to answer the door when the police come knocking. They are probably not there for your benefit.
Second she admitted your son was out front with a bb gun. The cop can think what he wants based on what was reported, but without confirming evidence, that is all the cop can do. Your wife provided confirming evidence.
Third, she admitted your son is 12. That opens you up to child neglect and child endangerment charges and a visit from child protective services. Parents have been charged for letting a 12-year-old walk to the store alone. Your child was outside, unsupervised, with a gun.
Last, she offered to let your son talk to the cop. That is worse than her talking to the cop. Never let a juvenile talk to the police.
I am glad the cop was a good guy and it turned out okay, but that is never something you can count on.
All that said, most people would have done the same thing.

 

[GypsmJim]

As a kid I lived on a dead end street with 11 houses. Seven of the houses had WWII veterans that hunted. Seeing a guy walking down the street was common, because he was out showing the neighbors his new rifle.

In high school some of the rich kids had pickemuptrucks and always had a rifle in the rack by the rear window, because they went hunting after school.

Then, we had politicians that wanted to ban guns, and mentally challenged people that shot up schools, etc.

Today, don't tell anyome you own a gun and certainly don't let anyone seeing you putting it in your car. Even though you might be heading to your club for targeting shooting, you may be accosted.

Simply the bad society we live n today. Life was good, but now it's getting bad.

 

[Busterswoodshop]

I wasn't there , so I don't know the actual circumstances , but I have to ask.
What would , or should , any normal person do , if they were driving down a street , and saw a kid setting on a porch ( or whatever ) with a gun pointed at his neck ?