On The First Day Of Georgia’s New ‘Guns Everywhere’ Law, Two Guys With Guns Clash
On the very first day of the new Georgia Safe Carry Protection Act — aka: the ‘guns everywhere’ law — a misunderstanding between two armed men in a convenience store Tuesday led to a drawn firearm and a man’s arrest, according to the Valdosta Family Times.
We totally did not see this coming. We were told that we needed more guns.
Valdosta Police Chief Brian Childress said, “Essentially, it involved one customer with a gun on his hip when a second customer entered with a gun on his hip.”
I’m confused here. Which one is the good guy with a gun, and which one is the bad guy?
It was approximately 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday when police responded to a call regarding a customer dispute.
The Valdosta Family Times reports, “A man carrying a holstered firearm entered the store to make a purchase. Another customer, also with a holstered firearm, approached him and demanded to see his identification and firearms license, according to the Valdosta Police Department report.”
The customer who demanded to see the other man’s ID, pulled his firearm from its holster but never pointed it at the other customer, who said he was not obligated to show any permits or identification.
Again, he demanded the man’s ID, however, the man paid for his items, left the store, then called for police. (The police are the reportedly good guys with guns.)
62-year Ronald Williams was arrested on a charge of disorderly conduct, related to the pulling of a weapon inside of the store, according to the VPD.
Police confiscated Williams’ weapon, then transported him to the local jail.
The police chief said no one can demand a person to show their gun permit. Under the new law, he as police chief and his officers cannot demand to see a firearms permit, Childress said.
Childress said, “This is an example of my concern with the new gun law that people will take the law into their own hands which we will not tolerate.”
H/T: Two of our amazing readers, Arc99 and TiredofTea with thanks.
Eric Trommater July 2nd, 2014 at 5:20 pm
I think in these cases it comes down to the color of the man’s hat as to which guy with a gun is the “good” guy. If memory serves the lighter colored hats denote the “good” and the darker ones are “bad.”
You went with this story instead of the guy dressed like a Star Wars Stormtrooper getting hassled by the pigs in Kansas today?
tiredoftea July 2nd, 2014 at 5:24 pm
So, that would be the guy with less sweat on his John Deere cap?
Smarter than Your Average Bear July 2nd, 2014 at 5:24 pm
Unless, of course the white hat guy does not have white skin and the black hat guy does, in which case the black hat guy is always the good guy.
Eric Trommater July 2nd, 2014 at 5:34 pm
Your comment is on the money however what I was I was looking for was someone to reference to the film Throw Momma From the Train specifically “the guy in the hat shot the other guy in the hat.”
Must I do everything myself?
Rob July 2nd, 2014 at 7:18 pm
“The night was sultry.”
Jeffrey Samuels July 3rd, 2014 at 7:22 pm
can’t wait to see ‘open carry’ meets ‘stand your ground’. Especially if one of the ‘participants’ is a different race or ethnicity than the other.
Smarter than Your Average Bear July 2nd, 2014 at 5:26 pm
I’m flabbergasted I tell you, just plain flabbergasted. Who could possibly have seen this coming. It’s totally a mystery how this came about.
tiredoftea July 2nd, 2014 at 5:28 pm
Yeah, you know that all those “responsible gun owners” the NRA touts could never, possibly, do this!
Pilotshark July 2nd, 2014 at 5:42 pm
Well guess that’s what happens when you make decisions with your head stuck in your fourth point of contact!
Tommy6860 July 2nd, 2014 at 5:31 pm
*new Georgia gun law jingle* My gun’s better than your gun, my gun’s better than yours…
And with tots accidentally getting second amendment-ed on a daily basis, the adults with guns act less responsibly O.o
Pilotshark July 2nd, 2014 at 5:40 pm
Let the shootings begin, quick draws at noon for Slurpees!
Khary A July 2nd, 2014 at 5:50 pm
Wow people in the streets pulled their pistols for foolish reasons cause people now have an even MORE inflated sense of self worth…Nuh Uh?!?! Seriously though a region with such a high ” culture of honor” factor in it is only bound to have trouble arise when you have such a loose set of boundaries. Do the people who make these laws really think that people are responsible in their behavior?
tiredoftea July 2nd, 2014 at 6:20 pm
Given that they only talk among themselves, yes. And, they are only concerned with their “honor”. It doesn’t extend to the community. The reality based world calls it having a chip on one’s shoulder.
Obewon July 2nd, 2014 at 6:20 pm
Wow! Talk about busy-bodies! Voting registration requires certified birth certificates, proof of residency, signature matches, etc. Georgia also requires displaying a currently updated, valid government issued photo ID to vote!
But the police chief said no one can demand a person to show their gun permit.
Tommy6860 July 2nd, 2014 at 6:37 pm
Com’on, sersiously, you know how deadly birth certificates, voter IDs and a driver license are?; they require strict regulation :P. Good guys with guns against (sane) people with voter IDs, what a novel idea O.o
majii July 2nd, 2014 at 6:37 pm
I live in GA, and I predicted something like this would happen when the new law went into effect yesterday. It’s a damn shame that our RW majority in the state legislature and our governor wrote and signed this bill into law. This bill makes us less, not more, safe, as this incident proves. If the other armed guy hadn’t had the presence of mind to pay for his purchases, leave the store, and call the police, there was a real possibility that Ronald Williams’ temper could have flared, and he could have started firing and endangered the lives of everyone in the store. Deal and the RW majority in the state legislature, imho, have committed a crime against our citizens. I shudder to think what c/would happen if two persons with guns begin shooting and there are kids in the vicinity.
Yeah way July 2nd, 2014 at 6:51 pm
…and we shall look at that if/when it happens. Until then, this is the best story that could be trolled up from t’internets?
Lot’s of (most) states have laws that allow citizens to carry defensive firearms…where are the stories of road rage killings by the hundreds that were predicted? Where are the dozens of legal gun owners having shoot-outs in the parking lots over the last space?
Instead we got “coulda, woulda, mighta” stories from a convenience store, with no-one hurt and the full story not even told?
Not exactly “rivers running red with blood!”, is it?
Keep combing t’internets – in a nation of 320 million, you are sure to get an ‘anti-gun” story at least once a day.
Sadly for the anti-firearm cause, but happily for the rest of us, there just aren’t that many stories of law-abiding gun owners blasting away at each other, are there?
Lots of incidents about illegal gangland shootings though – where are those on here?
Tommy6860 July 2nd, 2014 at 7:02 pm
Well, using your logic, you don’t see people writing stories about perfectly healthy people having to go to the hospital for their lack of ailments either, right?
Yeah way July 2nd, 2014 at 11:13 pm
I don’t understand this reply?
perhaps you (or the two folks that “liked it, lol, could explain what you mean here?
Tommy6860 July 2nd, 2014 at 11:26 pm
You said, “Sadly for the anti-firearm cause, but happily for the rest of us, there just aren’t that many stories of law-abiding gun owners blasting away at each other, are there?”
My reply was analogous.
Yeah way July 2nd, 2014 at 11:46 pm
OK, well my “logic” stands. generally, when someone says “using your logic” they are about to point out a flaw in it. But here there is none.
And so we are in agreement then. Alan likes to comb the Interwebs for stories he feels show gun ownership in a bad light – I disagree, I think these stories show only bad behaviour in a bad light.
In a nation of 320 MILLION folks, I could find a daily story about someone choking to death on a hotdog if I so chose…
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: it ain’t the guns, it’s you, America.
Stop picking on the firearms…and attend to your social conditions and inequality that lead to such violence, especially in your inner cities…
“leave Smith and Wesson ALONE…*sob*!”
majii July 2nd, 2014 at 7:04 pm
I’m not anti-firearm as I own several weapons, bought my last one a couple months ago, but I am FOR sensible and responsible gun ownership. I’m sane enough to realize that if I have to register my guns and undergo a more extensive background check, it doesn’t mean the government is coming to confiscate my guns. Also, only a short-sighted/simple-minded individual refuses to consider the possibilities/impacts of laws. You can pooh pooh my considering possible scenarios in which this gun law might yield negative consequences on innocent citizens, but that’s what those who, imo, are incapable of thinking long-term usually do in order to avoid having to think too hard.
Yeah way July 2nd, 2014 at 11:12 pm
What would be the advantage you see in gun owners having to register each and every firearm?
How would that stop even a single crime?
Give me a scenario where a registered firearm would change the mind of the person about to commit a criminal act?
I DO agree about “sensible and responsible” gun ownership, but I fail to see where this is helped by individual firearm registration. It is enough, IMO, that a gun owner has a gun license/permit. Here in Canada it was nothing more than a regressive tax, and an expensive boondoggle. We were happy to see it repealed last year. We still maintain our gun ownership permits, but there is no need of a comprehensive list of every duck gun or deer rifle we buy or sell, now, is there? It was ridiculous. Handguns, however, ARE still registered here, as are other restricted rifles such as AR types. 14,000 formerly perfectly legal sporting rifles were only just last spring confiscated by our RCMP. Unfortunately for them, they no longer have the list, and are relying on the honour system…and they are angry that they don’t have that list.
To me, sensible gun laws involve training, BG checks, safe storage and perhaps even a form of 3rd party insurance (I have 5 million)…
But I see no examples in history of registration that HASN’T led eventually to confiscation (Aus/UK/Ireland/Canada)…can you point some out for me?
Um Cara July 2nd, 2014 at 11:03 pm
Yeah Way,
*Not exactly “rivers running red with blood!”, is it?*
————
And yet when I asked you if you would like to implement US gun policy/laws in Canada you politely declined.
You gave some reasoning, naturally, was it something about ‘American exceptionalism’ being a real thing and we are just so awesome that we can handle such freedumb? 8:p
Yeah way July 2nd, 2014 at 11:39 pm
“And yet when I asked you if you would like to implement US gun policy/laws in Canada you politely declined.”
Because you have far too much variation between states for my tastes. I prefer to see a national law for everyone.
I like the system we have here, although much reform is needed – our laws are like a 100 year old house that has been re-wired 5 times, but no-one bothers to remove the old wiring!
Down there, the laws vary so greatly from state to state, it’s sometimes hard to believe it’s the same country!
Um Cara July 2nd, 2014 at 11:16 pm
Oh, and, sorry, late happy Canada day, eh? Sorry I forgot to wish it to you on time. Sorry.
Fisherman3 July 3rd, 2014 at 6:42 pm
No mention of gang shootings! Because, shhhh (quiet), those are done with “illegal” guns! You know, those guns that any criminal can obtain, because there are no background checks. Just think, once you ban firearms from law abiding persons, the criminals will OWN the place!
Jeffrey Samuels July 3rd, 2014 at 7:18 pm
dude, lets not overlook the shootings in theaters and schools, most of the weapons were purchased legally. Having a gun for protection is fine. Walking around like a refugee from ‘high noon’ is both childish and potentially dangerous.
Rob July 2nd, 2014 at 7:25 pm
Georgia will soon be arming fetuses.
Jeffrey Samuels July 3rd, 2014 at 7:15 pm
please don’t give them any ideas. They are already proving that they have size issues.
bhil July 2nd, 2014 at 8:36 pm
Guess he wanted to see the gun’s birth certificate, no need for Kenyan guns here.
fancypants July 2nd, 2014 at 9:54 pm
Under the new law, he as police chief and his officers cannot demand to see a firearms permit, Childress said.
—————————————————————————–
LOL ok so a citizen can ask but police cant
m2old4bs July 2nd, 2014 at 11:55 pm
“Childress said, “This is an example of my concern with the new gun law that people will take the law into their own hands which we will not tolerate.” ”
Yeah well, anybody could see that coming. Good luck with that Chief. I’m staying out of Georgia.
Fisherman3 July 3rd, 2014 at 10:29 am
What I don’t seem to see in most of these posts are statistics. Good FBI stats on gun
ownership.
Now let’s have some real facts: California has the toughest gun laws and the highest murder rate of 1220 persons in 2011. Texas has some of the most lenient gun control laws and saw only 266 gun murders in 2011. In fact the top 6 states for gun violence in 2011 were: California, New Jersey, Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut & Hawaii. All have harsh gun control laws. Another fact: when gun confiscation takes place, it is the honest
American that gets disarmed, not the criminal.
Tell me honestly, when a mentally disturbed person wants to shoot up a movie theater (because background checks do not enquire about mental illness), which one of YOU would NOT be hiding behind an armed citizen?
If you don’t want a gun, for whatever reason, don’t own one. But there are people who
like to hunt, target shoot & protect their homes & family.
Yeah way July 3rd, 2014 at 6:07 pm
Agreed. For some reason, my fellow liberals KNOW that prohibition doesn’t work for booze, drugs, the sex trade, abortion, etc etc…but when it comes to firearms, something seems to snap.
“Bans” and “prohibitions” against firearms that 99.9% of the population has used safely and responsibly for hundred’s of years is no “liberal” solution – it’s an authoritarian one. And bans against things like barrel shrouds and bayonets – well, that’s just nonsensical.
If liberals really believed the hype about climate change and its upcoming interruption of the world’s food supply (I do), they would be buying MORE guns, not trying to ban them.
Even if just to get a nice possum for your family’s dinner, eh?
Jeffrey Samuels July 3rd, 2014 at 7:14 pm
There is a difference between being allowed to carry guns and taking assault rifles into stores. Unlike sex, drugs, (and rock and roll) (sorry couldn’t resist), guns have no other purpose than to harm something or someone. Even if it is legal to have a firearm, it is both threatening and in very poor taste to carry visible lethal weapons into places frequented by children. When there is a weapon present there is a potential for violence. Always. Otherwise they wouldn’t call it a weapon.
just-the-facts July 4th, 2014 at 1:54 pm
I applaud “fisherman3” for wanting to drill down to facts & statistics (even though “correlation is not causation” and statistics are a slippery slope). However, when quoting statistics, it’s helpful to cite sources, provide links and most importantly – to be accurate.
Contrary to fisherman3’s assertions, it appears from FBI data ( http://www.theguardian.com/new…
) that the 5 worst states for gun murder rates per capita were, in order: CA, TX, PA, MI, NY. Other states that fisherman3 claimed had high rates, MA, CT & HI, had some of the lowest rates and NJ was in the middle.
Sources for relative “toughness” of gun regulation are harder to come by, but there has never been “gun confiscation” legislation. So, let the debate rage on, but at least do it with accurate facts.
Warren Puckett July 3rd, 2014 at 12:11 pm
William H McCarty was 21 when he died. Don’t blame the gun, blame the culture. There were crooks posing as lawmen working in cahoots with others whose facade was righteous businessmen. Make the wrong decisions and you will end the same as Billy the Kid.
mcalleyboy July 3rd, 2014 at 10:26 pm
No one was hurt and chalk this one up to nosy people that can’t mind there own business and have way to much time on their hands, you don’t confront another citizen about his gun, be about your own business.
just-the-facts July 4th, 2014 at 1:51 pm
I applaud “fisherman3” for wanting to drill down to facts & statistics (even though correlation is not causation and statistics are a slippery slope). However, when quoting statistics, it’s helpful to cite sources, provide links and most importantly – to be accurate.
Contrary to fisherman3’s assertions it appears from FBI data ( http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2011/jan/10/gun-crime-us-state#data
) that the 5 worst states for gun murder rates per capita were, in order: CA, TX, PA, MI, NY. Other states that fisherman3 claimed had high rates, MA, CT & HI, had some of the lowest rates and NJ was in the middle.
Sources for relative “toughness” of gun regulation are harder to come by, but there has never been “gun confiscation” legislation. So, let the debate rage on, but at least do it with accurate facts.