H R 218 and YOU!! Understanding the LEOSA

October 10-2009

HR 218....The Law and it's provisions:


After many hours of researching various sources , here is HR 218 in plain and easy to understand terms ( I certainly hope) LOL!!
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WHAT IS HR 218???

H.R.218: The Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of 2004
(Enrolled as Agreed to or Passed by Both House and Senate)

One Hundred Eighth Congress of the United States of America

AT THE SECOND SESSION

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday, the twentieth day of January, two thousand and four

An Act

To amend title 18, United States Code, to exempt qualified current and former law enforcement officers from State laws prohibiting the carrying of concealed handguns.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of 2004'.



SEC. 2. EXEMPTION OF QUALIFIED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS FROM STATE LAWS PROHIBITING THE CARRYING OF CONCEALED FIREARMS.

(a) In General- Chapter 44 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 926A the following:

`Sec. 926B. Carrying of concealed firearms by qualified law enforcement officers

`(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of the law of any State or any political subdivision thereof, an individual who is a qualified law enforcement officer and who is carrying the identification required by subsection (d) may carry a concealed firearm that has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce, subject to subsection (b).

`(b) This section shall not be construed to supersede or limit the laws of any State that--

`(1) permit private persons or entities to prohibit or restrict the possession of concealed firearms on their property; or

`(2) prohibit or restrict the possession of firearms on any State or local government property, installation, building, base, or park.

`(c) As used in this section, the term `qualified law enforcement officer' means an employee of a governmental agency who--

`(1) is authorized by law to engage in or supervise the prevention, detection, investigation, or prosecution of, or the incarceration of any person for, any violation of law, and has statutory powers of arrest;

`(2) is authorized by the agency to carry a firearm;

`(3) is not the subject of any disciplinary action by the agency;

`(4) meets standards, if any, established by the agency which require the employee to regularly qualify in the use of a firearm;

`(5) is not under the influence of alcohol or another intoxicating or hallucinatory drug or substance; and

`(6) is not prohibited by Federal law from receiving a firearm.

`(d) The identification required by this subsection is the photographic identification issued by the governmental agency for which the individual is employed as a law enforcement officer.

`(e) As used in this section, the term `firearm' does not include--

`(1) any machinegun (as defined in section 5845 of the National Firearms Act);

`(2) any firearm silencer (as defined in section 921 of this title); and

`(3) any destructive device (as defined in section 921 of this title).'.

(b) Clerical Amendment- The table of sections for such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 926A the following:

`926B. Carrying of concealed firearms by qualified law enforcement officers.'.



SEC. 3. EXEMPTION OF QUALIFIED RETIRED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS FROM STATE LAWS PROHIBITING THE CARRYING OF CONCEALED FIREARMS.

(a) In General- Chapter 44 of title 18, United States Code, is further amended by inserting after section 926B the following:

`Sec. 926C. Carrying of concealed firearms by qualified retired law enforcement officers

`(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of the law of any State or any political subdivision thereof, an individual who is a qualified retired law enforcement officer and who is carrying the identification required by subsection (d) may carry a concealed firearm that has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce, subject to subsection (b).

`(b) This section shall not be construed to supersede or limit the laws of any State that--

`(1) permit private persons or entities to prohibit or restrict the possession of concealed firearms on their property; or

`(2) prohibit or restrict the possession of firearms on any State or local government property, installation, building, base, or park.

`(c) As used in this section, the term `qualified retired law enforcement officer' means an individual who--

`(1) retired in good standing from service with a public agency as a law enforcement officer, other than for reasons of mental instability;

`(2) before such retirement, was authorized by law to engage in or supervise the prevention, detection, investigation, or prosecution of, or the incarceration of any person for, any violation of law, and had statutory powers of arrest;

`(3)(A) before such retirement, was regularly employed as a law enforcement officer for an aggregate of 15 years or more; or

`(B) retired from service with such agency, after completing any applicable probationary period of such service, due to a service-connected disability, as determined by such agency;

`(4) has a nonforfeitable right to benefits under the retirement plan of the agency;

`(5) during the most recent 12-month period, has met, at the expense of the individual, the State's standards for training and qualification for active law enforcement officers to carry firearms;

`(6) is not under the influence of alcohol or another intoxicating or hallucinatory drug or substance; and

`(7) is not prohibited by Federal law from receiving a firearm.

`(d) The identification required by this subsection is--

`(1) a photographic identification issued by the agency from which the individual retired from service as a law enforcement officer that indicates that the individual has, not less recently than one year before the date the individual is carrying the concealed firearm, been tested or otherwise found by the agency to meet the standards established by the agency for training and qualification for active law enforcement officers to carry a firearm of the same type as the concealed firearm; or

`(2)(A) a photographic identification issued by the agency from which the individual retired from service as a law enforcement officer; and

`(B) a certification issued by the State in which the individual resides that indicates that the individual has, not less recently than one year before the date the individual is carrying the concealed firearm, been tested or otherwise found by the State to meet the standards established by the State for training and qualification for active law enforcement officers to carry a firearm of the same type as the concealed firearm.

`(e) As used in this section, the term `firearm' does not include--

`(1) any machinegun (as defined in section 5845 of the National Firearms Act);

`(2) any firearm silencer (as defined in section 921 of this title); and

`(3) a destructive device (as defined in section 921 of this title).'.

(b) Clerical Amendment- The table of sections for such chapter is further amended by inserting after the item relating to section 926B the following:

`926C. Carrying of concealed firearms by qualified retired law enforcement officers.'.



Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Vice President of the United States and President of the Senate.

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What the Law Enforcement Safety Act (HR 218) Allows:


A qualified active or retired law enforcement officer who has photographic identification issued by their employing agency may carry a concealed firearm transported across state lines.

The Fine Print:

Additional Requirement for Retired Officers

Retired officers must also bring state issued documentation that they qualified with the weapon they are carrying within the last 12 months.

Federal Land and Buildings

This law exempts officers from state and local laws concerning concealed carry but not Federal laws. HR 218 does not exempt you on:

Aircraft
Federal buildings
Federal property
National Parks
Private Property, State and Local Government Land and Buildings

The law also grants states the authority to:

Permit private property owners to restrict concealed firearms on their property
Permit state and local governments to restrict concealed firearms on state or local government property.
Check with the state to see if their laws restrict carrying concealed firearms at these locations.

This Law is an Affirmative Defense; Officers can still be Arrested

The ATF sent a letter to the Fraternal Order of Police clarifying that officers can still be arrested for carrying concealed handguns. HR 218 is only an affirmative defense that can be brought up before the judge.

Here is a link to the F.O.P. letter:

http://www.fop.net/publications/archives/letters/2008_0911.pdf

Firearms Defined

Firearms do not include:

Machine guns
Silencers
Explosive or destructive devices


Qualified Law Enforcement Officer Defined

A qualified, active law enforcement officer is an employee of a government agency who:

is authorized by law to engage in or supervise the prevention, detection, investigation, prosecution or the incarceration of any person for any violation of law;

has statutory powers of arrest;

is authorized by the agency to carry a firearm;

is not the subject of any disciplinary action by the agency;

meets the standards, if any, established by the agency which require the employee to regularly qualify in the use of a firearm;

is not under the influence of alcohol or another intoxicating or hallucinatory drug or substance;

and is not prohibited by Federal law from possessing a firearm.

Qualified Retired Law Enforcement Officer Defined:

A qualified retired law enforcement officer is defined as an individual who:

has retired in good standing from service with a government agency as a law enforcement officer for an aggregate of fifteen (15) years or more for reasons other than mental instability,

or retired from such an agency due to a service-connected disability after completing any applicable probationary period of such service;

was authorized by law to engage in or supervise the prevention, detection, investigation, prosecution or the incarceration of any person for any violation of law;

had statutory powers of arrest;

has a nonforfeitable right to benefits under the retirement plan of the agency for which he was employed;

meets, at his own expense, the same standards for qualification with a firearm as an active officer within the State in which he resides;

is not under the influence of alcohol or another intoxicating or hallucinatory drug or substance;
and
is not prohibited by Federal law from possessing a firearm.

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The F.O.P.'s most FAQ's:

It seem's like a lot of my US LEO friends are unclear regarding HR 218 in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and Puerto Rico, so here is a link to the FOP Grand Lodge's frequently asked questions regarding this topic:

http://www.grandlodgefop.org/legislative/issues/hr218/hr218faq.pdf

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If the links aren't working you may have to copy,cut, and paste into your address bar.

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And on a final note a couple of words of caution I would like to offer some warnings for all to heed.

First, when in another state you will be subject to the use of force laws of that state. Additionally, the laws of arrest, self defense, and firearms in other states will be different and will govern any actions taken.

HR 218 will not be a defense to possessing hollow point bullets, carrying a weapon on a school campus, carrying a prohibited weapons, carrying a weapon in a casino, etc. Some of these scenarios are illegal in certain states. Know HR 218, but also know the laws of that state in which you intend to carry!


Second, and this goes double for uniformed officers, you have to identify yourself. You need to identify yourself by badge and by word. Officers who work primarily in uniform are the worst at this since they are not accustomed to identifying themselves at scenes. The uniform takes care of that. When identifying yourself, use the loudest voice possible so witnesses will hear you and be able to corroborate your account of the incident later.


It's been a long read I know but I'm hoping that this will help out my friends and Brother's in the USA. Like I always stress, " It's better to go into a situation prepared"!!

Stay well, STAY ALERT AND STAY ALIVE!!!!

Tom


COP QUOTE:
" Don't worry if the 'cuffs are a bit tight Sir, they're new and they'll loosen with wear!!"