Can a police department restrict the type and caliber weapon carried by an officer travelling to another state?
The Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of 2004 (hereafter referred to as the Act) states that a firearm does not include a machine gun, firearm silencer, or any destructive device. These terms are defined in different statutes in the United States Code. Other than the exceptions listed, the Act does not restrict the type of handgun an active officer may carry or whether it needs to be a duty weapon. A law enforcement agency, however, may have a more restrictive policy regarding the type of weapons officers may carry during their off-duty time. Therefore, although it would not be illegal for the officer to carry a weapon while off duty that is not permitted by departmental policy, an officer could face departmental sanctions for violating his agency’s policy. 2a. Should a police department have a policy statement that indicates that if an officer carries a privately owned weapon then they are acting as a citizen and not a representative of the department? It will be each department’s d
