Estimated reading time: 3 minutes
A viral video (see below) from Indiana DUI attorney Marc Lopez has been making the rounds online, mostly because he hits a nerve with many concealed carriers.
You’re a lawful gun owner, you get pulled over, you stay polite, you hand over your paperwork, and then the entire tone of the stop changes the moment you disclose you’re armed.
Lopez lays out a scenario where, in under 20 minutes, a routine traffic stop can spiral into handcuffs, all because an officer illegally ran your gun’s serial number.
According to Lopez, it happens more often than people realize. And he says there are three major legal “tripwires” officers cross when they do it.
SEE ALSO: Know Your Rights: If You Disclose You Are Carrying Do You Consent to be Searched?
Table of contents
Tripwire #1: The Unlawful Delay
Under Rodriguez v. United States, cops can only detain you long enough to handle the traffic violation (license, warrants check, the ticket). Running a serial number? According to Lopez, that’s not part of the mission. If the officer drags out the stop to investigate your firearm, Lopez says they’ve illegally extended the detention.
Tripwire #2: The Search Inside the Seizure
Officers can briefly secure your firearm for safety. But Lopez draws a bright line: Securing is not searching. Using the analogy from Arizona v. Hicks, he explains that picking up, turning, or manipulating an object just to read a serial number is a search and therefore requires probable cause. Owning a gun legally isn’t probable cause. Full stop.
Tripwire #3: Misusing the Plain-View Doctrine
A gun isn’t illegal just because an officer sees it. Lopez notes that unless the firearm’s illegality is immediately apparent, plain view doesn’t apply. A serial number turned upward and magically readable is one thing, anything else becomes a search, and that brings you right back to tripwire #2.
SEE ALSO: To Disclose or Not to Disclose: Here is the Answer
Lopez’s 4-Step Roadside Playbook
(Again, not my advice, I’m simply reporting on what he teaches.)
- Know your duty to inform.
If your state requires disclosure, do it. If not, Lopez says there’s no benefit to volunteering the info. - Politely decline consent.
The line he recommends:
“Officer, I do not consent to any searches.” - Ask the two magic questions:
- “Am I being detained?”
- “Am I free to go?”
- Comply physically, document verbally.
Don’t resist. Record if you can.
Lopez advises calm clarity:
“I am not resisting, but I do not consent to this search.”
Lopez’s larger point is simple: Know the rules so you don’t feel powerless when it matters most.
A Conversation Worth Having
I’m not an attorney, so I’m not gonna tell you how to behave during a traffic stop (I will, however, pray that if you do get stopped, you don’t get a shitbird cop).
But Lopez’s breakdown hits on real case law and real-world encounters gun owners talk about every day.
So let’s open it up:
Have you ever been asked to disclose your firearm to law enforcement during a stop? How did the officer handle it?
And for our readers who are current or former LEOs: What do you think of Lopez’s framework? Fair? Unrealistic? Misguided? Spot on?
Drop your thoughts below.
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is a seasoned outdoorsman, lifelong hunter, and the kind of guy who’d rather track whitetails than scroll social media. As an editor for GunsAmerica, he’s got a sharp eye for spotting both solid gear and bad gun laws. Whether he’s deep in the woods or deep in editorial deadlines, Larry brings a no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is approach to firearms, hunting, and the great American tradition of self-reliance. If there’s a hot debate on gun rights or the latest in hunting tech, you can bet Larry’s got an opinion—and it’s probably backed up with both facts and field experience.
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Served for 30 years in south Florida. Never checked a firearm that was disclosed to me. All law abiding citizens with their carry permits. This notion that you have to check the serial number to see if it’s stolen is BS. I’ve seen officers asked for the weapon and then disassembled such weapon in the name of “safety”. That is not legal. But what other options do you have? My suggestion, comply with the officer’s commands/request, then afterwards address his actions via an attorney.
I live in Illinois and have a CCL, my son is a PO in Illinois and advises me that if I get pulled over that I should notify the PO that I have a CCL and that I am carrying.
But, if the police find your stolen gun on a routine traffic stop, is it now worth it?
In Illinois the LEO will likely have a screen that indicates who are CC citizens. I have been told that advising the LEO of CC status is probably the best course of action by CC instructors.
Current LEO, 21 years. Concealed Carry instructor, 15 years. In most states, a condition of a carry license is the surrender of the weapon to a peace officer for inspection. That would justify a prolonged detention.
DUI lawyers are notoriously junior in their profession and I would caution anyone on taking this information for gospel.
Not understanding what the “problem ” is here if a Officer runs the serial number, unless there IS a problem with it ACTUALLY BEING ILLEGAL ! Then, it is on YOU for having a illegal weapon to begin with. If it is a false hit, then that will be cleared up shortly.
Returning home to FL from a trip to WI, I was stopped on I -75 in Georgia by a local cop (window tint). I gave him my DL, registration, insurance as requested plus my FL CCP. He asked if there was a gun in the car, I said “yes, under the towel on the passenger seat.”. He said thank you, went back to his car and wrote a ticket (after testing) for tint to dark plus a warning for an obscured license plate. My Navy trim ring covered the county. He was pleasant, told me he liked my car (black on black supercharged Corvette), and bid me adieu.
Lopez and Larry Z trying to start a fire where there isn’t one. Whole article is speculative BS. 26 years, never once ran a gun on a routine traffic stop. Never will. Once you show a CPL and say you’re armed, you are the LAST person I’m concerned will cause me trouble. CPL holders as a general rule aren’t out doing thug shit. To even get me to give it (the gun) a 2nd thought you’ll have to be obviously guilty of something worse. Then the gun might be least of your troubles. CPL holders just dont seem to do anything like that. Stop trying to make us out to be nazi thugs, hell bent on destroying the 2A and wrongly charging people who shouldn’t be charged. I am thankful for every good citizen who takes on the responsibility for their own safety and the safety of others. I WANT NORMAL PEOPLE CARRYING!! Nobody I know is out to “run your gun” and then dick you. But this is the “quality” of article on here anymore with this all star cast of “writers”. Oh and a lawyer….enough said on those creatures.
Licensed CPL in the state of Michigan
I have a very clean record
Had just left a restaurant where beer was consumed in he upper peninsula
Was pulled over for a traffic violation
Informed officer of a firearm in a lock box under the back seat of my truck
Was asked to perform sobriety test. (Passed)
Then was asked to show the lock box
Was never asked to open it. I think he just wanted to make it was secure since alcohol was involved
The officer was very professional
This was several years ago
Been pulled a few other times but was never asked to show my firearm are my CPL was handed to the officer
Are you required to disclose possession of a firearm during a routine traffic stop in Washington State?
I am very pro law enforcement, until they step out of line and I don’t think I need to explain that!
The rule I was always taught was, keep your mouth shut until your asked, otherwise handover your paperwork, be polite, and STFU!
Current LE Officer for the last 31 years. I agree with most of the article with the exception of notifying the officer that you are armed. To not escalate the stop, I would highly suggest that the person notifies the officer that they are legally carrying and where the firearm is located. This will prevent any potential misunderstanding if the officer sees the firearm without being notified, they will definitely escalate the incident. Most street-level LE Officers are very supportive of concealed carry and will complete the stop and you will be on your way.
My son and a good friend are road deputies in Sheboygan WI and say exactly the same thing. Steve (friend) says just tell me you have it and we’re good to go.
Larry- as a 38 year LE officer, still working the streets in a constitutional carry state, I encounter this situation commonly. I agree with the majority of the “suggestions” but you must take into consideration known status of the individual (ie: on probation, convicted felon, DV convictions) as well as their apparent state of mind (high? Just involved in a fight? Challenging the officer?). Personally, I do not typically secure a firearm during a traffic contact with a known concealed carrier, if they offer to me that there is a gun upon initial contact. But, I’m just one of thousands performing stops, and the totality of the circumstances has to guide decision making. Thanks for sharing the information.
So Rodriguez versus the United States had to do with the cop walking his dog around the car and the dog alerted to drugs. It has nothing to do with weapons. We’re talking about an officer seizing your weapon or handcuffing you for having a gun which is not what that case was about.
I can say personally that, as a law abiding citizen, I have nothing to hide. Honestly, if a cop wanted to run the serial number on my pistol, I wouldn’t care. I have nothing to hide and I own the gun purchased new. Usually idiots or people with something to hide are the ones that complain about stuff like that. If I can do my part to have an illegal weapon and a criminal removed from our streets, I’m willing to inconvenience myself for that. I’m in a hurry because I have to poop, I might feel a little different about that. That comes with age and one’s plumbing not operating as efficiently as it used to, lol. IQ, maturity and common sense go a long way… A very long way!
And by the way Marc Lopez is trying to insight an emotional response to his video… I wouldn’t trust him to get me out of a ticket for pooping in public.
I don’t drink or do drugs. I don’t have any illegal firearms. I have my CCP and have passed ATF & FBI background checks for FFA items and access to the Airport Tarmacadam. Clean record, clean citizen. My son is a Captain on for a local Police Force and I am very supportive of police. However, unlike you, I would never allow any Police Officer to perform a search without warrant or probable cause. I agree with everything the author says. It has nothing to do with my background, rounding up criminals or taking illegal guns off the streets and everything to do with the Police doing unlawful searches and detainment. If I make the officer go through all of the legal hoops there are to protect my rights, which I will pass, I am saving the next guy the trouble. My son will tell you not all Police are the same. 98% of Law Enforcement Officers are good hard working people doing their jobs to the best of their abilities. 2% were bullied in school, have an inferiority complex or some other issue that drives them to exercise their authority like they are better than everyone else for reasons I can not explain. Case in point. Wife and I drive 2.5 hours to the Mountains and spend the day picnicking in the National Park. Driving home in a red Jeep Wrangler, top down, with my red cooler, contents an almost empty jug of ice tea and ice, bucked into the back seat. Near my home and I drive this route regularly, I know the speed suddenly drops from 55 mph to 35 mph as you get close to a small town. Police regularly hide beside a store where the 35 mph sign is located. I slow to 35 mph and am looking at my speedometer as I pass the sign at 33 mph. A State Trooper pulls out behind me and lights me up. I pull over. Have my DL, Registration and CCP ready. The shortest State Trooper I have ever seen approaches the Jeep and asks, “Why are you in such a hurry?” I reply as I am handing him my DL, Registration and CCP, “Officer I have a Conceal Carry, I am not in a hurry as you can see on my DL I am almost home”. He states he has clocked me speeding. Where I normally don’t argue, I state I live here and know this speed trap is here. I was looking at my speedometer as I passed that 35 mph sign and was going 33 mph. The Trooper immediately turns the conversation over to, “What do you have in that cooler?” “Did you just come from South Mountain?” “Can I look in the cooler?” “What is in the cooler?” South Mountain is a local State Park where people in the area are know to get drunk. “No, we spent the day in picnicking in Linville Falls in the Pisgah National Forest. There is nothing in the cooler and No you may not look inside.” My wife then interjected, “There is nothing in the cooler except an almost empty pitcher of ice tea.” The Trooper took my documents and went back to his patrol car. I scolded my wife for interjecting. The Trooper did not have probable cause to search anything in my Jeep until she contradicted my statement that the cooler contained nothing. He now has probable cause to see for himself. The Trooper returned and handed me my documents. He issued me a Warning Ticket for Speeding with no speed listed. I asked the officer, “What speed did you clock me at?” The Trooper replied, “If I tell you what speed I clocked you at, I have to go back and write you a ticket.”
Just because you don’t mind allowing the Police to kick down your door in the middle of the night to search for drugs because you know you don’t have any doesn’t sound very bright to me, but you do you. I personally have paid attention to how many innocent people have been shot and killed during a midnight raid of a mistaken address. Just because we know we are legal and in the right isn’t going to protect us from an accidental escalation ending in tragedy. Because that State trooper was willing to lie in order to pull me over for a DUI check, I will never regain the time spent on his fishing expedition, nor did return home in time to see the beginning of the TV Series I was watching.
The case in question was whether the officer “extended the stop” past it limits, since the original summons transaction had already been taken care of. The person was still being detained while a K9 was brought in to ” search” the outside of the vehicle without any cause or warrant. So, in this SPECIFIC scenario, they are saying that your traffic infraction has nothing to do with the firearm, and that by “investigating” the firearm, it is “extending the traffic stop beyond its initial scope without any actual reason, other than it is a firearm and he or she feels like doing it.. The same way that the officer extended the traffic stop past the summons to get a K9 involved without any actual cause other than he wanted to do it !
Lol you are truly an idiot
Both times I have been stopped while having a CPL, I was treated with respect. The first time, I told the officer “I have a CPL but I am not carrying.” He thanked me and continued as normal. The second time, I was carrying, disclosed it, and the stop proceeded as normal. I was not asked to exit the car either time. And both ended with a verbal warning. Being polite and respectful was a factor, I’m sure.