Still, while Sauschuck maintains that PPD is a "highly trained professional law enforcement agency," he uses incidents like the one involving Hamann to reinforce that training. Following the receipt of Hamann's email and video clip, Sauschuck says he directed an attorney to draft some refresher notes for the police force about open carrying, an issue he calls "seasonal in nature" (perhaps just because people with concealed-weapon permits have fewer clothes under which to hide their weapons).

These days, Hamann does have a concealed-weapon permit. Why does he still choose to carry openly? Just to antagonize, or to make a point?

No, he says. First of all, openly carrying his gun deters potential criminals, he says. It's also more comfortable and allows him to carry "a bigger gun with more firepower" than he could if he had to hide a weapon under his clothes. It's safer, he adds — there's less chance of an accidental misfire when drawing from a hip holster strapped outside your clothes, as compared with one you have to maneuver into and out of a concealed holster of some sort.

And, of course, it's his right. "My purpose isn't to get stopped by the police," he says. Nor is it to get entangled in a lawsuit. "I'm not a litigious person — I want to get the problem fixed," he says, referring to what he perceives as a lack of education among law enforcement officers. "But I'm getting to the point where I think the only way to get the problem fixed may be to sue," which would draw more attention to his cause and possibly prevent further violations of open-carriers' rights.

< prev  1  |  2  |  3  | 
  Topics: This Just In , Gun Control, guns, activism,  More more >
| More


Most Popular
ARTICLES BY DEIRDRE FULTON
Share this entry with Delicious
  •   MAINE WOMEN’S FUND AWARDEES ARE BUILDING A NEW WORLD  |  May 16, 2013
    On the surface, they have little in common: An unassuming entrepreneur in her late 50s, an accomplished 38-year-old photojournalist, and a trio of energetic teenagers. But these women do exhibit several shared traits. They are plucky and passionate, clever and unpretentious. They are Mainers. And all five will be honored next Thursday, May 23, at the Maine Women's Fund's annual Leadership Luncheon, which honors those who are making life better for women and girls in this state and beyond.  
  •   UNION BATTLES CONTINUE  |  May 16, 2013
    An update on the state employees' union's dispute with the governor, plus union organizers' plans for medical-marijuana workers.
  •   LET IT GROW  |  May 09, 2013
    In addition to its ecological value, the abundant marine resource is also worth money — millions of pounds of rockweed are harvested every year.
  •   LEGISLATURE WADES THROUGH HUNDREDS OF PROPOSALS  |  May 09, 2013
    Want to know what your elected officials are mulling over? Here is a subjective selection of bills that piqued our interest.
  •   LABORERS MAY HAVE A BRIGHT FUTURE  |  May 03, 2013
    Even as the organized-labor movement continues to falter on the national level, union leaders here in Maine are optimistic about a potential resurgence — or if not that, at least a stanching of the bleeding and an opportunity to prove that pro-union policies are best for local workers and communities.  

 See all articles by: DEIRDRE FULTON