Virginia Gun Owners Forum - VGOF

Dominic wrote:I'm 19 and I open carry a Glock 21 on my side almost everywhere. I am just looking for the codes to carry around in my pocket to prove to unaware officers, that it is legal for me to carry my handgun. Can i have some help on this issue?

http://vaguninfo.com/pages/opencarry.htm

§ 15.2-915. Control of firearms; applicability to authorities and local governmental agencies.

A. No locality shall adopt or enforce any ordinance, resolution or motion, as permitted by § 15.2-1425, and no agent of such locality shall take any administrative action, governing the purchase, possession, transfer, ownership, carrying, storage or transporting of firearms, ammunition, or components or combination thereof other than those expressly authorized by statute. For purposes of this section, a statute that does not refer to firearms, ammunition, or components or combination thereof, shall not be construed to provide express authorization.

Nothing in this section shall prohibit a locality from adopting workplace rules relating to terms and conditions of employment of the workforce. Nothing in this section shall prohibit a law-enforcement officer, as defined in § 9.1-101 from acting within the scope of his duties.

The provisions of this section applicable to a locality shall also apply to any authority or to a local governmental entity, including a department or agency, but not including any local or regional jail or juvenile detention facility.

B. Any local ordinance, resolution or motion adopted prior to the effective date of this act governing the purchase, possession, transfer, ownership, carrying or transporting of firearms, ammunition, or components or combination thereof, other than those expressly authorized by statute, is invalid.

(1987, c. 629, § 15.1-29.15; 1988, c. 392; 1997, cc. 550, 587; 2002, c. 484; 2003, c. 943; 2004, cc. 837, 923.)

Note that the above indirectly recognizes no law against open carry.

Also, the constitution allows for open carry:

http://www.opencarry.org/?page_id=310

That a well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people,trained to arms, is the proper, natural, and safe defense of a free state,therefore, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed; that standing armies, in time of peace, should be avoided as dangerous to liberty; and that in all cases the military should be under strict subordination to, and governed by, the civil power.

I am pretty sure, in summary, that the constitution is the authority to carry openly. It seems at least VA has decided not infringe their citizen's rights in this aspect.

There being no other law stopping open carry (save for those areas that guns are not allowed), it is legal.

You won't find a law saying that it's OK to open carry in VA. You also won't find a law that says it's OK to wear a yellow shirt on Tuesdays. In general, laws state what you can not do. Laws generally only tell you what you can do when these can dos are exceptions to something that is against the law. For example, carrying a concealed handgun in public places in VA is against VA law. However, if you have a concealed handgun permit, carrying a concealed handgun in most public places is not against the law because having a concealed handgun permit is one of the law's stated exceptions.