Guns in the home (Raleigh, Cary: renting, crime, buy)

[angelkitten]

Thanks for your replies = Interesting to hear.
Meh - I thought you were female but then when I read about carrying guns I thought that perhaps you were a man and didn't know why I had presumed you were female lol

[C_Lan]

Originally Posted by CHTransplant

Thanks - I guess I just figured that consistently treating a toy gun as if it's a real gun sort of defeats the play purposes of toy guns, and if treating it so inconsistently (only for purposes of instruction) would be confusing to a young child.

I see your point. My son wants an airsoft gun to shoot cans and stuff. He's 9. The only way that he will get one in years to come is if he continues to demonstrate safe handling. Our approach is to work his way up. Nerf guns shoot things so he as to be careful with them. Cap guns don't shoot anything and he used those like toys and had fun with them. We made clear the difference.

[apexgds]

Originally Posted by angelkitten

Would gun owners be offended/irritated/upset if I asked them where they kept their guns before my kids visited?

If they do, then it's probably a pretty good sign that you probably don't want your kids playing in their home. Any responsible parent would understand why you would ask.

[shanti1]

Originally Posted by angelkitten

I have read this thread with interest and wondered if you could answer a few questions for an out of stater - well an out of USAer actually
We are all pretty scared of guns here in the UK and nobody has them and we never see them. However I have 3 boys who are VERY interested in toy guns and I presume would be attracted to real ones. I will try to educate them but they are very clueless about guns my 9 year old walked up to a policeman in Florida last year and asked him if his gun was real I would be very nervous of them visiting a house where there were guns that were not securely locked away and impossible for a child to get access to. Presumably most parents in the US think the same as me. Would gun owners be offended/irritated/upset if I asked them where they kept their guns before my kids visited? I'd rather ask you guys than make a huge error in real life Thanks in advance

It is quite troubling to think of for those of us who have lived in other countries where guns in the home was a non issue.
I was discussing it with a friend of mine that lives here (Durham) and her kids are older than my 4 yr old. She said that she asks the parents before allowing her children to play in their homes. I am trying to prepare my self and my son for when he gets a bit older and makes friends in the neighborhood and wants to go in to their houses to play. When we lived in Florida our son did play with the next door neighbors kids and the dad is a Sheriff. He discussed the gun in the house and how it was safely stored with us before inviting our son in to the home to make sure we were ok with it. He showed my husband where it was kept and told us if it wasnt for his job, he would not have a gun in the home.

[RedZin]

Originally Posted by angelkitten

Thanks for your replies = Interesting to hear.
Meh - I thought you were female but then when I read about carrying guns I thought that perhaps you were a man and didn't know why I had presumed you were female lol

Plenty of females in NC pack heat, so to speak.

I cannot stand carrying a gun. I tried it after I got my permit. It was ANNOYING. Heavy... and I had to watch my purse like a hawk.

[Ih2puo]

Originally Posted by mjd07

ETA: PS: I thought it was the law that all guns had to be in a gun safe. Is that on a state-by-state basis?

negligence but by all means Americans need another law on the books telling them what they can and can't do inside their homes to go along with the thousands of other regulations we have in the land of the free and home of the brave.

Guns are scary. Shiver.

[nckeith]

By all metrics you are moving from what is deemed the least free state in the country by order of personal freedom. You are leaving a nanny state that regulates many things you may not be accustomed to seeing in NC. So many things in fact you probably haven't even noticed your personal freedoms have been eroded. If you don't like a gun, don't own one. If you don't want your kids being around them, ask the parents up front. If your kids friends parents own them but you like the kid, have them at your house. I find this almost a trolling exercise that you found so many guns in your shopping for a home. Most responsible gun owner own safes. I would be just as leery as unsupervised guns as I would be access to prescription drugs and alcohol. Careless is careless and I wouldn't want my kid there and I own guns. Its your job to be informed Cuomo and Bloomberg aren't here to protect you or tell you what size soda you can have either.
Freedom in the 50 States 2013 | New York Overall Freedom | Mercatus Center

[ncjeff]

It's possible that when a house has been on the market for a while and the owners aren't expecting a showing that they might slip up and forget to lock things up. The habit should be that the gun is locked up when you leave. Checking out the built-ins cabinets, drawers, etc. is a legit house-hunting activity. That said, people snoop. Anyone with their house on the market that hasn't locked up their jewelry, firearms, medications, etc. is not thinking straight. As a friend learned you even need to secure your porn. Someone went through the mags he had in the nightstand.

My perception is that gun ownwership is more common in the cities of the south than where your from, but I imagine in the rural parts of NY there's plenty of gun owners. The challenge you have in NY, Chicago, etc., in addition to the crazy laws, is that there's not as many places to practice as we have here. Without the opportunity to be exposed to firearms in a positive fashion the New Yorkers tend not to get a gun. And when you don't have one, and haven't been exposed to one, it's easy to fall victim to the mentality that there's something wrong with owning a gun.

I think asking someone about their gun storage habit is highly situational. If it was a case of a parent stating that before their child can come over they want to know if I have guns in the house I wouldn't be too kind. Are they asking about how the kitchen knives are stored, or the bug spray, etc.? I have a perception of the "ask about guns" initiative as something pushed by the anti-gunners. If you know someone well enough to leave your kids at their house you should know them well enough to know whether they're responsible or not.

To answer a question regarding the law:
14-315.1. Storage of firearms to protect minors.

(a) Any person who resides in the same premises as a minor, owns or possesses a firearm, and stores or leaves the firearm (i) in a condition that the firearm can be discharged and (ii) in a manner that the person knew or should have known that an unsupervised minor would be able to gain access to the firearm, is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor if a minor gains access to the firearm without the lawful permission of the minor's parents or a person having charge of the minor and the minor:

(1) Possesses it in violation of G.S. 14-269.2(b);
(2) Exhibits it in a public place in a careless, angry, or threatening manner;
(3) Causes personal injury or death with it not in self defense; or
(4) Uses it in the commission of a crime.
(b) Nothing in this section shall prohibit a person from carrying a firearm on his or her body, or placed in such close proximity that it can be used as easily and quickly as if carried on the body.
(c) This section shall not apply if the minor obtained the firearm as a result of an unlawful entry by any person.
(d) "Minor" as used in this section means a person under 18 years of age who is not emancipated. (1993, c. 558, s. 2; 1994, Ex. Sess., c. 14, s. 11.)

[VickiR]

I know quite a few real estate agents that carry guns!

Sometimes you gotta persuade a buyer that you can't show them every house in MLS!!! Ok, just kidding.

As you can imagine, I show many many homes each week. I have seen LOCKED gun safes. I have never seen rifles or any other types of guns left lying around except ONCE. A handgun was lying on top of a dresser. I told my client NOT to touch it and we left the room. I did call the listing agent to let her know it was there. Apparently the seller had left the home in a rush that morning and didn't know about the showing.

I also open cabinets and kitchen drawers. Sometimes you have to see if they have pull out shelves and sometimes you have to see if they have a lazy susan, etc. I have never seen a gun in any of them!

I have seen lots of dead stuffed deer heads on walls. That is one of those things that I usually ask my sellers to remove. Some buyers just don't like seeing them. If buyers are uncomfortable when viewing your house, they won't stay around long enough to consider buying it.

Vicki

[RoaminRebel]

Gun culture is still an integral part of Southern culture and a sure way to rub them the wrong way is to discuss your fears about firearms. They will also be quick to point out that NYC is no safer despite their more stringent laws. On the positive side, since many in the South were raised with firearms, you can bet that they will be more generally conscious of gun safety.

My personal opinion is that your right to bear arms is like your right to council or your right to remain silent, whether you choose to exercise it is your own personal choice. Either way, the framers included this for your own personal empowerment based on their recent experiences with a certain colonial power.