Even Texas Gun Owners Can Get Arrested

NBA star James Harden was arrested in Houston over a legally owned firearm — not for committing a crime, but over how he was traveling with it. Jeff breaks down why even Texas gun owners can fall into legal traps they never saw coming, and what you need to know to protect yourself in a state that's supposed to be on your side.

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Transcript

0:14

Welcome to the Live Shoot podcast. My name is Jeff Dowell, and I've been a licensed firearm dealer for the last 18 years. And this podcast talk about all things related to the Second Amendment, anything else going on in the world, sports story, or anything else that I might find int- interesting. So welcome, welcome, welcome. So, little bit longer gap between episodes, and that is v- primarily because I did a little traveling last week. I made a trip out to Florida, and I can't remember if I've mentioned it on my podcast or not, but a, a month ago, I had my first grandbaby born Wyatt, and he is awesome. But also 11 days before that, I had my first great nephew born. I- his sister is my great-niece, and she is amazing. And Christopher was born 11 days prior and in June, and we went out to meet him for the first time in Florida, and we had an amazing time. And he is awesome. His sister is awesome. We got to spend a lot of time just hanging out with them, their parents but primarily we went to see them. And again, Christopher is amazing. And if you don't have any babies in your life, I've got two now, a great gr- a grandbaby and a great nephew. They're awesome. You need to get some. Highly recommend them. And like I said, my great-niece, she's cool too, and we just love hanging out. We saw Toy Story 5. Pretty good. Might recommend it. So but, you make your own choices. So what are we talking about this week? Well, we are talking about how important it is to know what your local and even federal gun laws are. And, and what is that? What what am I talking about? Well, I want to just give you a little story, and I don't know if you followed it or heard the story of James Harden. He's a NBA basketball star. Now he plays for the Cavaliers. He was with the Clippers. But he spent a good portion of his career in Houston, and he was arrested last week in Houston. And when you hear a celebrity got arrested, you, you're gonna think drugs, DUI, something like that. But no, James Harden was arrested over a firearm. And when you hear about a celebrity or an athlete getting arrested over a firearm, you're thinking New York, LA, someplace like this. No, we're talking about in Texas, a legally owned firearm. And the issue wasn't that he had a gun, it was how he was traveling with it. So we don't know every single detail about this. It's been a little unclear, but we can kind of s- surmise what has happened, and it's where you can get in trouble if you don't know the law. So let's talk about Texas for a second. Texas is widely considered one of the most, gun-friendly states in the country. We have constitu-constitutional carry. We have o- are one of 29 states that have constitutional carry in the US, and those are states like Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, among many others that have this constitutional carry. We have strong protection for gun owners. People move here specifically because they feel like their Second Amendment rights are respected, and all that's true. But in Texas, there can be legal traps if you don't know every single rule in your bro- book. So we- Like I said, we have to carry a handgun without a permit if you're under twenty-one years old and not otherwise prohibited. And that's constitutional carry, and that was signed in law in twenty twenty-one. Now, here's an example of where the law can get you. The law in Texas says under twenty-one, but there's a federal a, a law out there right now that has enjoined it that, that allows it to be up to eighteen. So in Texas, you could potentially carry, open carry under eighteen, but if you get caught the Texas law is twenty-one, federal law is eighteen, again, could be some ramifications. But again, there are other restrictions like where you can carry, how y- the firearm needs to be stored whether you're in a vehicle, types of property, and so much... so and so on. So what's that mean for somebody like James Harden? Well, it means even in Texas, with a legally purchased firearm, the way you handle it, it can get you-- can mean something. So think about that. You bought a gun legally, you own it legally, you have a right to possess it, but you get put in the wrong spot in your car or you carry it in a way that technically violates some provision, and now you're in handcuffs. And that's the core h- issue here. This isn't about James Harden. It's about you and me and every other gun owner who assumes that because they're in a pro-gun state, they automatically in the clear. You're not, and not always. So laws exist, and I'm not saying they... there should be zero regulations on how firearms are transported, but the complexity of these laws creates a real problem. The average gun owner, and I talk to them every single day, the average gun owner does not have a detailed understanding of every statute and sub-statute related to carrying and transporting their firearm. They ask me those questions, and I try and give them good advice, but I am not a lawyer. I don't even play one on TV. So they know they have constitutional carry, they know they can have a g- a, a gun in their home, but the finer points, those specific rules those locations, those types of things, they c- they can be confusing and people should always be aware of and understand what those laws are. So- The broader point I want to make is when we talk about defending the Second Amendment, we often focus on big fights like federal legislation, ATF overreach, Supreme Court, and they matter. They matter enormously. But stories like this remind us that some of the most dangerous threats to gun owners comes from the small print, the local ordinances, those state-level technicalities, the regulations that turn a legal gun owner into a criminal over what might be a paperwork issue. So what do you do? First, know your state laws, and I mean really know them. Don't just assume. If you carry in your vehicle, understand exactly what that means. Every state has different rules, and that's-- and what's perfectly legal in Texas might be a felony in another state. And third, consider getting a license to carry. Even, even in Texas, they don't require it. Having a license to carry can provide additional legal protections, and it recognizes in, in other states, the reciprocity agreements, and it's just good insurance. So what happened to James Harden? Well, here's what we think happened. He was in his vehicle, and he had a, a firearm in there, and he would be, quote-unquote open carrying it probably because and, and he probably did not have it in a, in a what is considered a holster. He may have had it as a magnet that was attached under his dash. He may have had it in the little holder in the, in the, in your side of the door. He may have had it in the cup holder, something of that nature. But it was not holstered, and that is the key t- requirement in Texas if you're going to open carry, is it has to be in a holster. And here's the catching part too. Holster is not defined in the, in the statute. So that's another sticking point. People make an assumption of what they believe a holster is, and this may be an argument that James Harden makes when he-- if he goes to court about how he was transporting it and how he was carrying it. Now, if he just had it sitting on his seat, probably not much of an issue. But if he had it in something that was attached to the vehicle, that may or may not been what others would consider a holster, could be an open... We don't know because it's not really laid out in, in the arresting records at this point in time. But that's what we suspect happened. The difference is if you're concealed carry, you have a license to carry concealed you don't have to have a license if you're concealed carry, it has to be concealed. Doesn't have to be in a holster. But if you sh- but your point with carrying when a concealed is if you reveal it, if it's not being concealed, that's where you get in trouble. Doesn't have to be in a holster. But if your shirt rides up or something of that nature. Open carry is you don't care. It can be wide open, but it's got to be in a holster. Those are kind of two distinguishing differences. So- And know your laws. It's important. Know your laws. Understand what they mean. Understand what happens if you're in, in one state and you're moving over into another state. Is there reciprocity? Do you have a license to carry? Do they have constitutional carry? Does it apply to you? All those things are important. And there's resources out there. The US Con- Concealed Carry Association and such can give you some of those broader stints of r- rules. You can go to Grok, you can search some of those. But make sure you understand what those rules are and always err on the side of s- being conservative, because if you don't know, it's better to, to, to not carry into a place that you may be restricted from or such, versus fi- facing some felony charges. It's very important. But know your laws. Know your laws. And other point, kids. Get kids. They're worth the time. They're fun. So if you found this valuable, subscribe, share, share it with somebody, especially your friends who carry. Give it five stars. Do all that kind of stuff to, to help spread the word. It's important. I'm Jeff Dowles, Live to Shoot. And just stay informed and stay armed and know your laws, and I will talk to you next week.