U.S.A. –-(Ammoland.com)- A man with a rifle and a hundred rounds entered a Walmart in Springfield, Missouri less than a week after the mass shooting in El Paso, according to Lt. Mike Lucas of the city’s police department, and moved through the store, taking video and making comments to shoppers, then exited to be held at gunpoint by an off-duty firefighter until law enforcement arrived. The twenty-year-old was originally said to have been wearing body armor, though this later was identified as a “tactical vest.” The suspect is in jail, and a felony charge of a terroristic threat in the second degree has been filed against him. He claims that he was performing a “social experiment,” in part a test of Missouri’s open carry law.
No shots were fired, either by the suspect or the off-duty firefighter, so this incident will not qualify as a mass shooting or to some people as a defensive gun use—the latter being defined by gun control advocates all too often as requiring a justifiable homicide to count. And what exactly the suspect did—was his rifle on a sling or in his hands, was he sweeping the muzzle around at random or pointing it at particular people—isn’t specified in the reports. Nor was the method by which the firefighter was carrying his firearm. What I can say, based on available information, is that a good guy spotted a knucklehead who was creating havoc and brought the incident to a halt.
What happened here has the potential to divide the gun community. The claim made by the suspect puts him into the phenomenon of “Second Amendment auditing,” the practice of walking around in public with an openly carried firearm for the purpose of testing how much law enforcement officers and the general public know about local gun laws. And presuming that the firefighter had his firearm covered prior to seeing the suspect, this sets up a contrast between concealed and open carry.
As a supporter of rights generally, I understand the motivation to make people think about how the law often violates rights or accepts their exercise in unequal ways. Rosa Parks comes immediately to mind, as does the question of how safe a gay couple would be in many parts of America were they to hold hands while in public. At the same time, to take those two examples, if Parks had brought a bass drum with her and insisted on pounding on it during the bus ride, or if the hypothetical gay couple—or any couple, for that matter—were to engage in sex acts on a crowded sidewalk, the situation will have moved away from a test of rights into the imposition of personal choices on others.
In regard to the carrying of firearms, I go back to the distinctions that Jeff Cooper makes between a handgun and a long gun. A handgun is something to wear while doing other things, while a long gun is what you bring when you are going to a fight. This is akin to what separates carrying and brandishing. A weapon in a holster or hanging from a sling is a sign that the person in possession simply has the gun. If, by contrast, the firearm is in the person’s hands, the presumption of intention becomes reasonable.
The suspect in Missouri did cause the reasonable fear that lives were in danger, and given what I know at present, I will say that the firefighter acted appropriately, even if we ultimately learn that what happened was only a test with no plan to kill anyone. We can learn from this incident that good people who carry firearms have a role to play in protecting society. And we can learn that in the context of mass shootings in the news, we who support gun rights have to think about the effects of our behaviors. The appearance of a firearm is going to scare enough people who vote to say that if we do carry openly, it needs to be done in a manner that is as nonthreatening as possible.
By analogy, hold hands with your partner in public, but don’t fornicate on the lawn. Carry your weapon legally, and if you have it visible to others, keep it demonstrably available but not in use. And don’t go around harassing others. A sign in our hands can start a conversation. A firearm in the same narrows the situation down to a tiny number of possibilities.
About Greg Camp
Greg Camp has taught English composition and literature since 1998 and is the author of six books, including a western, The Willing Spirit, and Each One, Teach One, with Ranjit Singh on gun politics in America. His books can be found on Amazon. He tweets @gregcampnc.
1. Open carry is legal in Missouri.
2. The exercise of a civil right is not subject to the whims, feelings, or anxieties of others.
Unless this young man was barred by some law possessing the weapons he had on his person, he was exercising his 2nd Amendment Constitutional Right to keep and bear arms. It could also be argued he engaged in political expression, thus his First Amendment Rights were as well on display. The exercise of a Constitutional Right cannot be converted into a crime. It would seem this principle would be even more binding when multiple Rights are being exercised at the same time as here. Bad idea as family members conveyed – time will tell. Burning the American Flag many would… Read more »
A wannabe cop held a man a gun point who did nothing illegal. Breaking multiple laws.
Also I believe the manager of the Walmart was the one who caused the most panic.
Rights either exist or they don’t, and if rights stop at other people’s feelings, they pretty much don’t exist.
Interestingly enough the only crime committed was the fireman drawing down on the guy. The guy did NOT have the rifle in his hand. It was being carried openly on the sling down in front of him. He was falsely arrested. Once his intent was understood he should have been released. HE did not violate any LAW on the books in Missouri. To charge him with a pretend crime is a crime in and of itself. There were no VICTIMS. Making him a NON criminal. Now whine about it all you want, but that is the way the LAW for… Read more »
I wonder what will happen in court if the majority of witnesses answer “NO” to the following questions:
Upon seeing the suspect:
-Did you run out of the store screaming?
-Did you run and hide?
-Did you call 911 and report a sighting of a terrorist?
-Did you throw canned goods at him? (like some school systems teach children).
I hope this was not a dry run. Why was he filming himself in the store? Although in very poor taste, it is legal in MO to open carry. Had I seen a situation like this one the very least I would do would be to follow him and keep him in range of my sidearm. Maybe a discrete call to 911 would be in order. That would be about I could do until he actually un shoulders the weapon. People have got to learn not to panic. Paranoia will destroy ya. We must see and understand the situation as… Read more »
No matter what your “feelings” are on this matter, he broke no laws. “Minority Report” has no bearing over the Bill of Rights.
Ammoland, thank you for the vote up & down feature.
I suggest that Mr. Camp lay off the intoxicating substances before trying to write a cogent opinion piece. Or perhaps he is just another Fudd trying to be relevant. In any case, his offering was much less than impressive.
There was NO “good guy with a gun” — there were TWO idiots with guns! There was no “defensive gun use” — there was assault with a deadly weapon if you apply the law strictly or at least brandishing if you give the off duty fire fighter every possible benefit of the doubt. Open carrying a rifle in Walmart, especially so soon after the Walmart mass shooting elsewhere, was ridiculously stupid — but it was perfectly legal under Missouri law. The “terroristic threatening” charge is pure BS dreamed up by the prosecutor because Missouri doesn’t have a Felony Stupidity charge… Read more »
Excellent comment about rifle in hands, rather than hanging on a sling. This a clearly aggressive stance of readiness for action, and not a peaceful, “I’m just carrying this thing through here” stance. It makes no real sense if the guy is just out shopping, it shows an attitude that is suspect, as much as if some guy were walking through the store clenching his fists, looking at people in a hostile way, and muttering curses. Sure, maybe he is harmless, but he is acting in a way that should naturally put bystanders on very high alert.