Over the weekend, someone got into the victim’s unlocked car and removed his loaded Glock Model 21 .45 caliber pistol from the glove box. When he went to the shooting range on Sunday morning, he discovered the pistol missing. The victim, who holds a Nebraska concealed handgun permit, had apparently forgotten to remove his pistol from the car the previous night. He told us that his habit is to keep to car unlocked because it ordinarily contains no valuables.
It would be a habit worth reconsidering, because it’s not the first time he’s had a gun turn up missing from his car. Back on October 1, 2001 he misplaced his Schofield Model 3 in .44 Russian caliber. He had it at the shooting range, but after a stop for lunch, it was missing from the bag when he got home. It's still missing.
I am aware of a handful of law enforcement officers (including one of our own) who have lost firearms under similar circumstances over the years. Like any other piece of valuable gear, it’s a target of opportunity if not properly secured, and we are all human. You’d like to think, though, that the loss of first one would be a significant emotional experience that would cause you to double and triple check thereafter.
I wish I had so much disposable money to keep my valuables unsecured. Naw, keeping it in a car overnight is as dumb as giving your gun away to criminals. Firearms are like toddlers, you always need to know where they are and protect them from strangers.
ReplyDeleteWhile this one doesn't quite match leaving a pistol in a duffel bag under a bus stop bench (the "one of our own" that you mentioned) - it's still pretty dumb. I'm glad you reminded readers of that duty gun giveaway in your post, because if you hadn't, I (or some other commenter) would have.
ReplyDeleteI noticed that the overnight LFA was in a quiet residential area, at an owner-occupied, single-family house. He apparently doesn't get to park in the single-stall garage, maybe because he isn't the owner. One thing is for certain, since criminals are a lot like wild animals and tend to cover previously productive ground again and again, he's probably at greatly increased risk of repeated overnight (and daylight) LFA in the future, so he'd better tighten up the way he runs his ship.
He should get used to locking his doors when he is forced to leave the gun in his car because of the no guns allowed sign on the doors of a lot of businesses in Lincoln.
ReplyDeleteOn an unrelated but timely note, I'd like to say that it's unwise to use your birthdate as a safe combination - especially when your birthdate is public record as part of your criminal court history, and can be easily found online! Over a pound, that's going to hurt.
ReplyDeletehttp://dcs-inmatesearch.ne.gov/Corrections/InmateDisplayServlet?DcsId=62795&showInmateImage=true
ReplyDeletePerhaps this guy is the house invader and sexual pervert?
Why are a bunch of King names all involved with meth?
The NRA, as part of it's membership benefits, offers $1000 dollars of firearm insurance, in case of theft.
ReplyDeleteAll he needs to do is provide evidence (police incident report) that his car was locked, and...
Oops.
Chief:
ReplyDeleteI think I know your feelings and frustrations with incidents such as this. I, too, think it rather careless (to be polite) for anyone to leave a firearm in an unlocked vehicle. I also hate the idea that another gun is in the hands of a criminal. However, I'm not sure why you felt it necessary to bring up the fact that the victim had a concealed handgun permit. I know you weren't an advocate of the Concealed Handgun Act, but you did claim that you, as police chief, would act in accordance with the law. I think you may be stretching it a bit by revealing that this person was a permit holder. By law, this is confidential information. I know you didn't name the individual in your blog, but it probably wouldn't take much research to figure out who it was. I know, if I was the victim of a firearm theft (even if I failed to take reasonable precautions), I would be quite upset if someone published the fact that I held a Concealed Handgun Permit.
So now a thief has a handgun. Who will either use it himself or sell it on. This idiot (the victim...) should be charged with aiding and abetting the inevitable robbery that will follow, or aggravated assault, or homicide...
ReplyDeleteToo stupid to lock your car? Too stupid to own a gun.
Steve-
ReplyDeleteI included that detail because it both explains why he had a pistol in his glovebox, and the fact that it was legal for him to carry it there. You are correct, I did not identify the individual, and I most certainly did not violate the law.
Couldn't anyone that could legally own a handgun also legally store a handgun in their vehicle, if it was on their private property (meaning in the driveway, not parked on the street), with no CHP? For instance if one was open-carrying the handgun, got home, pulled in their residence's driveway, then took the pistol and paddle holster off, stuck the pair in the glovebox, and then walked inside inside. Just overnight though (less than 24 hours), intending to come back out the next day, putting the gun+holster back on open-carry, and then driving off the property.
ReplyDeleteUnlikely scenario, and it'd be a very poor storage practice, but it's just like the old "Point of Law" radio bit, a hypothetical deal.
6:23, under which Federal or State statute would they do that? Please be specific.
ReplyDeleteI can rather easily accept the Chief's explanation for including information about the victim's permit, and I did not mean to accuse him of breaking the law (bending it a little maybe); however, I think 6:23's comment about the victim being to blame is outrageous and ridiculous. I suppose he thinks if a young woman wears a low cut dress she deserves to be raped, too.
ReplyDelete9:38-
ReplyDeleteWell, I suppose, but if you drive your car with it in the glovebox, it would be concealed.
6:23-
I think we've all left our car unlocked or our garage door open inadvertently before. What struck me about this is that it is the victim's practice, and that he has lost two pistols in this fashion.