There is an interesting video on Youtube. It shows a police officer who is attempting to demonstrate how easy it is to conceal weapons. The officer produces an amazing number of firearms. In the real world I doubt this is possible. I can understand hiding a couple of weapons but could you imagine trying to walk around carrying the weight of all of these weapons and trying to look natural. If the video was intended for shock value. I bet it worked.
I will include a funny version of this video at the bottom of the post. I call this kid mini-gangsta. I love the serious look on his face.
In a recent FBI Enforcement Bulletin the authors looked at the traits of individuals carrying firearms. This post notes some of the factors that may indicate that an individual is carrying a gun. Of course, the presence or absence of any of these factors is not determinative. For example, just because you do not see a bulge in the torso area do not assume that no gun or other weapon is present. Some weapons like the wallet gun may still be present.
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Naturally, if you think someone may be carrying a firearm, leave them alone and contact the police.
According to the FBI bulletin here are some things to consider:
1) Clothing. Consider what a person is wearing during cold or inclement versus warm weather conditions. In warm weather certain things stand out.
Why would an individual wear a jacket, sweatshirt, sweater, raincoat, or overcoat on a bright sunny day when others are dressed in short-sleeved shirts? Is the individual wearing multilayered clothing, such as two shirts or a pair of sweatpants over a pair of jeans, on a hot day?
Additional clothing being carried not necessary for the weather may also conceal a gun. In cold weather, consider why a person would have their jacket open. Are they hot or do they need to be able to quickly access something?
Slight bulges and protrusions in the waist, back and crotch areas or differences in the way a shirt or jacket hangs on an individual, smooth versus rippled or wavy may be worth noting.
Indicators that an individual is carrying an unusually heavy object item in their pocket should cause you to consider the possibility that the individual is carrying a weapon.
Normally, personal items, such as wallets, keys, pagers, and cell phones, do not weigh enough to cause a pocket to hang substantially lower than the one on the opposite side.
Some clothing enhances the concealment of firearms and other clothing is specifically designed or manufactured to carry concealed weapons. It was not noted in the FBI Bulletin but back in 2002 Beanie Siegel announced his own line of clothing, State Property Wear, which would have hidden pockets and holsters to conceal firearms. Siegal was quoted in AllHipHop.com as saying:
You know how you put your gun in your waistline and you gotta worry about it slipping? With these clothes, you don’t got to worry about that. It’s already in there. You ever been on the block and everybody was like hustling and you had your pack stashed in a phone booth or something like that and you got to go get to it? With these clothes you don’t have to worry about going to the phone booth and all that. Then you can stand there and don’t worry about having to run from the police neither, because State Property can stand the search. [The clothing] has all kinds of hidden pockets, pockets inside of pockets, pocket behind pockets.
2) Accessories which could conceal a firearm or weapon.
Consider purses, bags, or folded over newspapers that appear out of place or through which a protrusion or outline which may indicate a gun or part of a gun can be seen.
If a person is wearing a fanny pack, can a wallet be seen in a pants pocket? If so, what is in the fanny pack? Does it appear weighted with a heavy object? Most types can conceal a handgun and may include a draw string or a quick-release closure method added for rapid access.
When the FBI Bulletin referred to bags for within which a part of a weapon was visible I do not think that they had this shopping bag in mind but it is bizarre enough that I thought I would include the image.
3) Physical Characteristics and Behavioral Characteristics.
In studies commented on by members of the Law Enforcement Communication Unit, Training and Development Division of the FBI they reported that it is common that an armed individual will be:
frequently touching the weapon with a portion of their hands or arms usually to assure themselves that it remains hidden, secure, and accessible. Such actions become most observable whenever individuals change body positions, such as standing, sitting, or exiting a motor vehicle. Their unholstered handguns tend to shift, causing them to adjust or reposition the weapon to its original position. Walking with a concealed, unholstered handgun requires subjects to occasionally use a portion of their hands or arms to prevent the firearm from moving or to adjust the weapon after it moves. When they run, their actions may appear more pronounced and may involve constantly gripping the handgun to maintain control.
4) Shifting Body Positions.
Armed individuals may be more likely during a confrontation to keep their gun side away from the person they are confronting to conceal and ensure easy access to their firearm.
For some additional indicators, see the FBI Bulletin. As promised, here is the video of mini-gangsta.
