Your firearm and Drinking...

[Customgod227]

I know by the title of the thread your thinking No-No, and i completely know this. I was just wondering what the exact rules are when it comes to carrying your gun when alcohol is around. Is there is a 0 Tolerance law when it comes to you consuming alcohol or can you blow a .08 while your gun is on you. Either way if i know im going to be drinking, my gun stays at home. Please shed some light my way! Thanks guys.

 

[MontereyC6]

I know by the title of the thread your thinking No-No, and i completely know this. I was just wondering what the exact rules are when it comes to carrying your gun when alcohol is around. Is there is a 0 Tolerance law when it comes to you consuming alcohol or can you blow a .08 while your gun is on you. Either way if i know im going to be drinking, my gun stays at home. Please shed some light my way! Thanks guys.

There is no law against carrying and drinking. You can be drop dead drunk and carry your gun(home OR bar), but as you stated, it's a stupid thing to do.

 

[Scutter01]

There are no laws in Indiana regarding drinking while carrying a firearm. However, if you need to use it to defend yourself after having consumed, expect the prosecutor to make that part of his case.

 

[bigiron]

i still carry but i have always made it a point not to consume so much that i'm impared. that being said, i don't have more that two beers and no hard liquor if i'm out, i'm a lightweight and a pansy. it just doesn't make sense to get drunk and hung-over anyway.

 

[OneBadV8]

no laws, just personal preference.

I leave mine behind. I've always lived by the "Booze & Bullets don't mix" saying

 

[Cemetery-man]

It's not the gun and drinking that will get you in trouble, it's driving off in that car afterward that will get you jailed and cause you to lose your LTCH.

 

[jclark]

no laws, just personal preference.

I leave mine behind. I've always lived by the "Booze & Bullets don't mix" saying

 

[Joe Williams]

At this point in my life, it only takes about half a beer for me to start getting a pretty good buzz. On those rare occasion I allow myself the treat (drinking and diabetes don't mix well,) my gun is nowhere near me. It's about the only time I won't have one on.

 

[youngda9]

My gun becomes agressive and homicidal when it drinks.

 

[Tripp11]

The idea of legal counsel using alcohol impairment in trial against me just doesn't appeal to me much...so I just don't drink at all when carrying.

 

[CountryBoy19]

.... I would rather be tried by 12 than carried by six.

IMHO, all the people that don't carry because of the chance of a prosecutor using alcohol impairment against you in court need to re-evaluate their stance. The odds that you would need to discharge a firearm are irrelevant to your legal impairment (up to a certain extent if you're a belligerent drunk). Therefore, whether or not you would need your firearm won't be changed whether you're drinking or not, so if it ever occurs that you do need it, would you rather be under legal scrutiny or dead? I'll take the scrutiny.

The presence of alcohol does not turn a "good-shoot" situation into a "bad-shoot" situation. If you trust in your judgment abilities while consuming alcohol there is no reason not to carry. IMHO, even if you leave the firearm at home you should never be drinking to the point that your judgment is severely impaired.

What that all boils down to is this, if you have the proper mindset to carry a firearm while sober, you should also have the proper mindset while under the influence. If you can't trust yourself under the influence, then can you be trusted while sober?

 

[00BlasterResto]

i still carry but i have always made it a point not to consume so much that i'm impared. that being said, i don't have more that two beers and no hard liquor if i'm out, i'm a lightweight and a pansy. it just doesn't make sense to get drunk and hung-over anyway.

I guess this pretty much sums the both of us up ....

 

[dyerwatcher]

I always carry, I occasionally drink. I am always in control. A firearm is always a last resort. I do agree with those who drink past the legal limit - have a designated driver - preferably one that's armed.

 

[youngda9]

Common sense answer from CountryBoy19. +1

 

[Ol' Wiley]

If you can't handle your booze, you shouldn't be handling a firearm.
If you're the type that has a few drinks and wants to fight, leave it behind (and you should consider quitting the drinking, cuz you're an idiot)

I always carry and sometimes have a few beers. I don't think twice about carrying.
Know your limits and always have situational awareness.

FYI:
For those who live in Southern Indiana: Kentucky law prohibits carrying in bars and the bar sections of restaurants, so keep that in mind when crossing the bridge.
As stated earlier in this thread, Indiana does not prohibit it.

 

[XDinmyXJ]

I don't drink so this doesn't apply to me. Yes, you can carry and drink but most bars are probably gonna tell you to leave if they see it. so don't OC at a bar. My buddy had his revolver in his back pocket at Tiki Bob's. He was dressed in decent attire(not looking like a thug or anything like that) and a bouncer saw the very tip of the butt. Instead of him getting thrown out for being a drunken idiot (which has happened when he wasn't carrying and he had way too much) they kindly held the door for him and told him to have a nice evening. Most other times he's very responsible and is very capable of handling his alcohol but he lets loose from time to time. He's gotten onto me for gun safety when i forgot to put my rifle on safety. I just loaded up my marlin and he pulled the rod out of the mag tube and poured the shells out. I looked at him and said "the bolt is LOCKED back stupid" but yes, I should have remember to put it on safety.

 

[bmwdud]

when ever the beer mug comes off the shelf the guns there
because i know when i start drinking jose cuervo is not far behind and
i am a liquor pig
it is just a safe way to be

 

[bigus_D]

The idea of legal counsel using alcohol impairment in trial against me just doesn't appeal to me much...so I just don't drink at all when carrying.

The idea of getting robbed after I have a drink doesn't appeal to me much, so I always carry... I just don't drink very much.

 

[rmabrey]

.... I would rather be tried by 12 than carried by six.

IMHO, all the people that don't carry because of the chance of a prosecutor using alcohol impairment against you in court need to re-evaluate their stance. The odds that you would need to discharge a firearm are irrelevant to your legal impairment (up to a certain extent if you're a belligerent drunk). Therefore, whether or not you would need your firearm won't be changed whether you're drinking or not, so if it ever occurs that you do need it, would you rather be under legal scrutiny or dead? I'll take the scrutiny.

The presence of alcohol does not turn a "good-shoot" situation into a "bad-shoot" situation. If you trust in your judgment abilities while consuming alcohol there is no reason not to carry. IMHO, even if you leave the firearm at home you should never be drinking to the point that your judgment is severely impaired.

What that all boils down to is this, if you have the proper mindset to carry a firearm while sober, you should also have the proper mindset while under the influence. If you can't trust yourself under the influence, then can you be trusted while sober?

I don't drink so this doesn't apply to me. Yes, you can carry and drink but most bars are probably gonna tell you to leave if they see it. so don't OC at a bar. My buddy had his revolver in his back pocket at Tiki Bob's. He was dressed in decent attire(not looking like a thug or anything like that) and a bouncer saw the very tip of the butt. Instead of him getting thrown out for being a drunken idiot (which has happened when he wasn't carrying and he had way too much) they kindly held the door for him and told him to have a nice evening. Most other times he's very responsible and is very capable of handling his alcohol but he lets loose from time to time. He's gotten onto me for gun safety when i forgot to put my rifle on safety. I just loaded up my marlin and he pulled the rod out of the mag tube and poured the shells out. I looked at him and said "the bolt is LOCKED back stupid" but yes, I should have remember to put it on safety.

https://www.indianagunowners.com/fo...ense/82449-called_out_for_the_first_time.html

You probably will have trouble at bars

 

[nobody_special]

it will probabaly be used against you if you encounter a leo to get your permit yanked