Police Union President Wants Off-Duty Cops to Be Able to Carry Guns at NFL Stadiums

Because they have special rights

Reason 24/7

The police union president in Minneapolis is not okay with an NFL ban on guns at stadiums that extends to off-duty cops, who have rights. Special state-granted privileges masquerading as rights for them, Constitutional rights or what passes for them for the rest of us.

From WCCO in Minneapolis:

New NFL security rules will now ban off-duty law enforcement officers from taking their guns into stadiums. But some Minneapolis peace officers are saying they believe the policy is a violation of their rights.

The letter went out Sept. 11, 2013, telling all team owners and presidents that firearms are strictly prohibited within NFL facilities.

The crackdown on firearms concerns Minneapolis Police Federation President John Delmonico. He believes a call for off-duty officers to give up their weapons at the gate violates an officer's rights, as determined by state law.

The union president also pointed to cops being unable to react in the case of some kind of attack, something the chief of Interpol recently noted is the reason an armed citizenry is one of the few ways to deter terrorist attacks by gunmen in public places.

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Comments

[Jordan]

Don't you know who we are? We're the King's Men!

[Hugh Akston]

He believes a call for off-duty officers to give up their weapons at the gate violates an officer's rights, as determined by state law.

That's gotta be frustrating.

[Stormy Dragon]

The NFL is rightfully concerned about the safety of Chomps and Gumbo is police are allowed to came to games armed.

[Episiarch]

Any cop who ever tries to deny that gun privileges are one of the markers of their superiority over the proles is a flat out liar. There's a reason it's virtually impossible to get a concealed carry permit in places like Chicago (yes I know there were no concealed carry permits in all of Illinois until just recently) or New York or Boston or other places: because it's one of many ways that the powerful and connected and law enforcement get to prove that they're better. And they have pushed this concept to get LEOs the right to carry concealed anywhere in the US, no permit necessary; so a cop from Bumfuck, Iowa can carry concealed legally in NYC, but 99.9% of the residents in that city can't.

This is why guns are such a hot potato. They've been turned into a marker of power and position, and that causes all kinds of weird reactions from the people who like having power over others.

All those gun banners who scream about guns being an extension of the penis or some other moronic babbling? Projection. Guns are a marker of power to them (which is why they want to take them away from people), and they project that shit right onto their opponents. As always.

[Rich]

Well said.

[Almanian!]

u mad, bro?

[Paul.]

Very well said. I don't care what Hugh Akston says about you, Episiarch.

[Paul.]

Also, this is proof again (and again...and again...and again) that cops are held to lower standards, and in the rare cases where they're not, they openly demand to be held to lower standards.

[Invisible Finger]

Epi, it's worse that that.

The police are essentially hiring themselves out as "private" enterprises when they are "off duty" yet selling themselves as if they have the full privileges of "on duty" police.

So it's a multi-faceted scam: 1) You have to pay taxes for police but they won't actually do anything to help you unless, 2) you purchase additional "private" police protection from "off-duty" police who apparently will get their on-duty brethren to actually provide the services your taxes are allegedly paying for already and, 3) they're actively making it illegal for any non-police to provide protective services (with exceptions for security companies owned by retired police who hire only off-duty cops).

An extortion racket by any other name.

[Heroic Mulatto]

The police union can go fuck themselves. They are not samurai and this is not Sengoku Era Japan.

[Paul.]

If it were we'd have already rebelled.

[Seamus]

"But some Minneapolis peace officers are saying they believe the policy is a violation of their rights."

If they're off duty, then they don't have any more right to go into NFL stadiums with their guns than the rest of us. If they don't like the NFL's rules, they're free to stay home.

[The Last American Hero]

You really want these guys packing heat at a game?

http://mynorthwest.com/11/7414.....hawks-game

Dunphy's neck of the woods too. Go figure.

[Eduard van Haalen]

Just heard a couple guys say how they dont like guns and gave as an example some fights with their wives - "if she had had a gun she might have killed me!"

[Eduard van Haalen]

My comment was basically, even if she didnt have a gun, you cant stay awake forever!

[Paul.]

Sounds like their wives are awesome.

[Paul.]

http://blogs.seattletimes.com/.....awks-game/

This is what happens when cops go to football games.

[LarryA]

Not that I sympathize with off-duty cops, but Texas told the NFL to take a flying leap.
"Texas law overrides NFL; allows armed off-duty officers at games"
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/e.....s-at-games

[Paul.]

But I still can't. Why does this not make me feel any better. Thanks Texas, for confirming that cops have "Rights" that I don't have.

[Stormy Dragon]

Does that only apply to stadiums because they're technically public venues, or are they saying that as a private property owner I HAVE to let off-duty cops carry firearms on my property?

[Old Man With Candy]

Having fans carrying would certainly reduce the incidence of bad calls by the refs. Probably result in higher quality refs, too, by culling the herd.