Not just if they’re pointed at you – if you know you’re in the car with one. Among the painfully long list of items in the council’s Oct 21 omnibus bill was this: “It is unlawful for a person to be voluntarily in a motor vehicle if that person knows that a firearm is in the vehicle, unless the firearm is being lawfully carried or lawfully transported.”
So if your buddy lets you know that s/he’s engaging in a little bit of civil disobedience by driving around with his pistol in the trunk you may want to reconsider carpooling. The maximum penalty if you’re convicted is five years in jail and/or a $5,000 fine. If you’ve been convicted of trafficking in firearms in the District in the past you can double that.
Another fun one in this omnibus bill is criminalizing unlawful entry of a motor vehicle. 90 days and/or $500 fine for entering the motor vehicle that you don’t have permission to get into, and entering means “to insert any part of one’s body into any part of the motor vehicle, including the passenger compartment, the trunk or cargo area, or the engine compartment.” So if someone leaves their Ferrari unlocked I’d advise you not to sit in it and make VROOM VROOM noises.
Though that would still be cheaper than renting one for a day. Hmm.
Well I used to say something in my profile about not quite being a “tinker, tailor, soldier, or spy” but Tom stole that for our about us page, so I guess I’ll have to find another way to express that I am a man of many interests.
Hmm, guess I just did.
My tastes run the gamut from sophomoric to Shakespeare and in my “professional” life I’ve sold things, served beer, written software, and carried heavy objects… sometimes at the same place. It’s that range of loves and activities that makes it so easy for me to love DC – we’ve got it all.
