Interesting scenario: You are doing some shopping in Walmart. Alarmed by the recent nationwide shootings, you are carrying your recently legally authorized concealed handgun. A man walks in, carrying an assault-style rifle and a handgun strapped to his side, along with several magazines of ammunition. This also is legal in Virginia. What do you do?
- Say hello to your fellow gun-carrying customer
- Ignore him
- Pull out your handgun and confront him
- Shoot him because he is obviously a threat
Here are the laws governing this situation, which you may or may not know as you are trying to decide what to do:
- It is a Class 1 misdemeanor to “hold or brandish any firearm … in such manner as to reasonably induce fear in the mind of another or hold a firearm … in a public place in such a manner as to reasonably induce fear in the mind of another of being shot or injured. “
- It is a Class 1 misdemeanor to carry a loaded semi-automatic rifle in a public place in the “Cities of Alexandria, Chesapeake, Fairfax, Falls Church, Newport News, Norfolk, Richmond, or Virginia Beach or in the Counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Henrico, Loudoun, or Prince William.”
- It is unlawful for felons or persons diagnosed with mental illness to carry firearms.
- It is a felony for someone unlawfully in possession a controlled substance to possess a firearm.
- It is a Class 6 felony for any non-citizen to carry an assault weapon and for any undocumented non-citizen to carry any firearm.
- It is a Class 1 misdemeanor for anyone under 18 to carry an assault weapon or handgun.
(The scenario presented is not altogether fanciful. A situation similar to this just occurred in Missouri.)
