Moving to Mississippi

[JC_Biggs]

So from what I have red so far, it seems like Mississippi laws are way more complex than they need to be, and im pretty dag on confused about what i can and cant to. LOL. im in NC now where i can do bout anything i please open carry wise. Can someone break it down for me. all the law lingo has confused me..



... and who the F decided that a holster was concealing?? Is mississippi more liberal than i thought??

 

[Eeyore]

I know what you mean...I moved to MS from Virginia.

Yes, the laws are vague and contradictory, and a recent AG opinion only made it worse. The state consitution only permits regulation of concealed carry, yet a supreme court opinion and the aforementioned AG opinion appear to define CC so broadly that it is literally impossible to OC.

The previous logic was that, under Mississippi law, OCing was just CCing badly. Therefore, if you had a CC permit you should be fine: either you're OCing and that's not technically illegal, or you're CCing using the "partially concealed" clause. The AG opinion, which is full of legal and logical fallacies, appears to negate this tactic. It doesn't hold the power of law, but it could lead a police department to arrest an OCer and a prosecutor to file charges based on its [mis]interpretation of the law.

I don't expect any improvement until somebody gets arrested and charged and takes it to court. I expect to move out of Mississippi and back into the 21st century sometime in the next year.

 

[4angrybadgers]

The infamous opinion by Chief Justice Lee we all refer to is really quite dubious in its usefulness as a "standard" of how OC would be viewed. As far as I know, it's never been used as any sort of case law, and I've never heard of it even being referenced in a court case.

A more concrete and worrisome item is the recent AG opinion. However, in my (completely amateur) opinion, it would have a hard time standing up in court if that happened, because it horribly contradicts itself.

All that said, I still OC part-time, albeit with a concealed carry license on hand (it's always in my wallet, as I do carry concealed a decent amount of the time). I haven't directly encountered any law enforcement personnel in Hattiesburg over the last 1-2 years of open carry, but a few dozen people have asked me questions about legalities, my firearm, etc. I have never had a bad experience with OC here - yet.

To get around to your question JC_Biggs, the question of whether OC is "legal" without a Mississippi Firearms Permit (aka concealed carry license) is untested. If you want to play it safe(r), get a Firearms Permit and avoid carrying in the list of places prohibited to concealed carriers by § 45-9-101 . (I have no statutory or case law basis for that suggestion, just suggesting a policy that may help avoid trouble with ignorant/power-hungry LEO.)

Title 97, Chapter 37 contains the list of weapons crimes, so familiarize yourself with that as well. Another source for the statutes is http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/mscode/.

 

[DCKilla]

Before moving out of Mississippi, I was considering carrying without my firearms permit. Reason being, it's only a small fine to pay if you don't have it at that moment. The amount is in 45-9-101. I think some of the guys here didn't like that idea, so, it never panned out.

Anyways, good luck, you're going to need it. Mississippi has not been as accepting of OC like other states have. I hope that changes for the better.