OC breakfast interaction with constables

[PennsyPlinker]

Good morning all

Today I had breakfast in my usual haunt, the Starlite Diner in Fogelsville. All the management knows me, most of the waitresses know me, blah, blah, blah. I've had close calls with groups of PSP, but no direct confrontations to date. This morning as I walked in and got seated for my regular waitress, I noticed a group of men with black shirts and some sort of PA emblem on them. I did not get a good look at them, and I did not want to give them the once over, but just sat down and acted as unconcerned as possible, realizing there was a group of authority figures sitting directly behind me. I sent Mrs. Plinker a text message stating the situation, just in case she had to come down to the hoosegow and throw my bail.

As I was getting close to the end of my meal, one of the men walked past my table. I got a good look at his shirt, and discovered that it was a group of constables behind me. They were all armed, carrying handcuffs, etc. We exchanged greetings, and then he asked me, "Are you a constable too?"

"No, I'm just a private citizen."

"Okay, I wasn't tryin' to be smart or nothin'!"

And he went on his way.

I finished eating, and went to the counter to pay my bill. All of a sudden, there were constables behind me, on both sides, and one in front. They weren't overtly threatening me, but I was already expecting them, since they had long since finished their own breakfast. The one to whom I had already spoken was in front of me, so I spoke to him first.

"I just want you to know I didn't think you were being smart or anything like that. I'm just a regular citizen who believes in the 2nd Amendment."

"Oh, that's fine, I have no problem with that!"

Then I heard behind me:

"Well, he's a Sig guy, so that's points for him there!" (reference to my Sig Sauer SP2022)

I turned, and the man who had spoken showed me his holstered Sig and pointed to another man, telling me he was also a Sig armorer.

Another man, with a big smile on his face, told me he had thought about coming up behind me and yanking my pistol out of its holster, but then saw that it was a locking one (Serpa). I smiled back and told him that I knew who was behind me, and that if I had felt a hand touch my holster, the owner would have found himself on the ground looking up at me. He replied by laughing and saying, "I don't doubt that!" He then got serious and told me he was glad to see my gun in a locking holster, because he sees people with holsters that don't have any sort of retention on them.

At no time was my right or my desire to carry called into question. They were on their way to a constable convention, which is one of the reasons they were wondering about me at first. I recognized the one man as the constable who attends our polling place, and told him so. I don't know if he remembered me or not, but I'll bet he recognizes me next election! Overall it was a very postive experience, and refreshing to see a group of LEOs who seem to be well acquainted with the law.

[andrewjs18]

great to read stories like this!

[RocketFoot]

Good encounter! The only way it would have been better is if they picked up your check for ya! LOL

[lprgcFrank]

Excellent encounter - rep sent for getting Mrs. Plinker lined up as backup.

[kx90]

Huh, what I want to know is since when does Blackhawk make a Serpa holster for the SigPro 2022? And if not, which one did you buy and how does it fit/work?

[sellahr]

Its good to hear about the good encounters.

[pacmanfan1977]

It's nice to hear positive experiences like this. I'm new to this forum, and I have yet to open carry. Most of the stories I've read on here, wind up telling a story where the person gets hassled by a LEO, or uneducated citizen. I've been CCing for over 10 years, and I think OC would be convient, but I'm not brave enough yet. Thanks for sharing your story!
-Mark

[LittleRedToyota]

Originally Posted by pacmanfan1977

It's nice to hear positive experiences like this. I'm new to this forum, and I have yet to open carry. Most of the stories I've read on here, wind up telling a story where the person gets hassled by a LEO, or uneducated citizen. I've been CCing for over 10 years, and I think OC would be convient, but I'm not brave enough yet. Thanks for sharing your story!
-Mark

actually, there used to be lots of stories about how people OCed all day (or week or month) and nothing happened.

but those stories get kinda boring...and a few people jumped on them as "trying to ram OC down everyone's throats". and, now we don't seem to have as many "i OCed and nothing happened" threads.

but, rest assured, there are still a bunch of people on ths forum (and opencarry.org and paopencarry.org) who OC everyday and have no issues.

(i do not typically OC myself...i just prefer CC.)

[xddan]

when i was a constable i was happy to see people exercising the rights and always spoke to them not down at them im glad you had a good contact with them because some guys let it go to there head. Dan

[normanvin]

Good story.....