Paratrooper walks into NC mall w/loaded AR-15 and gets arrested

[Subyman]

Nothing! You'd then need to open a box of ammo, load a magazine, load magazine into weapon, and then you're ready to go.

You could also do this at an airport but odds are by the time you were ready to rock-and-roll you'd be dead.

One more thing ... I have never seen a gun store INSIDE a mall, generally they're in separate buildings or in strip malls -- I've never seen one in an actual mall but then I haven't been everywhere in Texas soooo...


Brian

Oprymills in Nashville has a Bass Pro Shop attached to the mall with mall access and they sell firearms and ammo. I've never seen a boutique gun store in a mall though.

 

[MongGrel]

http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/03/us/north-carolina-mall-gun-arrest/index.html

Soldier Bryan Wolfinger was arrested without incident and charged with "going armed to the terror of the public," police say.

Wolfinger, who is assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, was carrying the rifle, a Kevlar vest and multiple ammunition magazines, and he intended to have photographs taken with the gun and the other equipment, CNN affiliate WNCN reported, citing Fayetteville police.

"These charges represent actions that are wholly inconsistent with the high standards and values we expect from our paratroopers," Malone said. Fort Bragg is fully cooperating with the police investigation, he said.


WTF dumbass!
you're active military. the army don't want bad publicity like this.

even if he didn't get arrested, all the publicity surrounding it should get him in hot water with his chain of command.

but im surprised he actually got arrested.
others have open carried an AR-15 in other states fine.

thought NC was a pro-gun Repub state?

This guy should know better than pull crap like that.

 

[MongGrel]

A good friend of mine is a Major in the 82nd. Talked to him on Facebook about this and that soldier is in some deep doodoo with the army.

I'm sure he is.

 

[mizzou]

interesting, though reading thru that, I don't see anything where it says military personnel have to be unarmed when in public.

Active military personnel are allowed to carry firearms when otherwise prohibited in most states. I think it usually has to be concealed though....Nowadays with the conceal carry laws in each state it's pretty much meaningless.

http://www.ammoland.com/2013/07/law...o-concealed-carry-in-50-states/#axzz3ewngqZWH
" In 2004 then President George W. Bush signed the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (LEOSA),"

Maybe in 2004 that was important, but it's a moot point now.

Some countries it is perfectly normal to see national military police walking around alongside state police. In USA that is not the case. People freak out if they see military paroling domestically anywhere.

Anyone geared up like that guy going to a highly populated area like a mall is just looking for shock & awe attention. To say " Because I can" is idiotic. That's like saying, "There is no law that says I can't do (something ridiculous) at (someplace where that doesn't need to happen), So I'm going to go full overboard on (something ridiculous) to get attention"


Purposefully scaring the shit out of people, even while doing something that isn't explicitly illegal, is a crime...albeit a minor one.

 

[unokitty]

Fayobserver.com

The Fort Bragg soldier who forced a lock down at Cross Creek Mall on Thursday as he walked out with an AR-15 assault-type rifle had just left a photo shoot for portraits to be submitted to a "Captain America'' movie casting call, according to his written statement to police...

Wolfinger told police he is in the military but is pursuing a career in modeling and acting. He set up a session for portraits he planned to submit for a casting call for an upcoming "Captain America'' movie.

"I wanted to do photos at my house, but I had thought of a green screen being used would be better," he said in the statement to police.

He created a professional profile on talent.com and has received several invitations for modeling gigs, according to his statement.

He called the portrait studio at the mall to inquire about a session. He asked about props and was told he could bring any props he wanted, according to his statement.

"So given that it's a casting for a battlefield setting, I decided to use things to look the part," he said. "I had an AR-15 without the firing pin and personal gear."

He kept the firing pin in his pocket, according to his statement.

When Wolfinger entered the studio, the photographer told him she had to call her boss to make sure she could continue with the session because she wasn't expecting a gun. Wolfinger said he understood and said the photographer was "kind."

Once the photographer said the session could continue, Wolfinger said he explained the firing pin and what it does to the photographer.

"We continued the photo shoot with smiles and laughter," he said. "After the photo shoot, she said that she didn't know how to feel about guns before, but this photo shoot has definitely made her more comfortable. We continued to smile and joke."

Wolfinger said he paid and left the store.

"After leaving the store, I was stopped by two armed police officers at gunpoint," he said. "I obeyed all commands given and repeated several times that the firing pin is not in the weapon."

Hope that that modeling thing works out for the young man.

Uno

 

[Mai72]

You wanna take photos of your gear with civilians? Take it to an open field.

Not the mall!

 

[Gonad the Barbarian]

Fayobserver.comHope that that modeling thing works out for the young man.

Uno

I feel bad for the guy. I have to assume he wasn't somewhere the gun was explicitly prohibited or he would have been charged with that. And a bunch of people open carry for no reason other than "because I can" (i.e. for the purpose of terrifying others) and never get arrested for it. He still used poor judgement, but I can understand why it wouldn't necessarily occur to him until the commotion started. I fully expect the charges to be dropped, but I'm sure his military career is still boned from the embarrassment it caused.

 

[JEDI]

Fayobserver.com

Uno

ugg... now I feel bad for the guy.
but still, why couldn't he carry his ar-15 in a gun case, or duffle bag?

 

[Victorian Gray]

At this point it doesn't appear that the army is all that upset. btw, it was apparently his own rifle.

"On Friday, Fort Bragg officials confirmed the rifle belonged to Wolfinger and was not military issued.

Fayetteville Police spokesman Lt. Todd Joyce confirms Bryan Scott Wolfinger had some loaded high capacity magazines in his bag while he was at the mall. The 25-year-old soldier was carrying an AR-15 rifle, a military ballistic panel carrier and wearing a Kevlar vest.

"All of our weapons are accounted for and secured through the day,"said spokesman, Tom McCollum. "The only time they're issued out is when we're going to a range or going out for training. People are not allowed to take their assigned weapon to any sort of photo shoot."

Police said Wolfinger apparently came to the mall with the intention of getting his picture taken with the military gear - something police called a "poor decision."

"It was basically a soldier who wasn't thinking," said McCollum. "If you think about it, everything worked beautifully. No one was hurt. The mall reacted quickly and the soldier fully understood as everything started to come toward him, he understood what he had accidentally."

http://abc11.com/news/man-with-assault-rifle-arrested-at-fayetteville-mall/825699/

 

[Nograts]

Could you explain what that acronym means for us non-military types?

It's a general officers repremand. If he's convicted civilian side of the house the military can't touch him (double jeopardy), but in this case the post or his commanding general will tag him with this letter of disapproval, it's a career ender.

I think he's an E5, you need at least E6 to do a lifetime career, but needs E9s approval. No way with this gomar. Hell probably do his remaining few years and just get out.

 

[Nebor]

Active military personnel are allowed to carry firearms when otherwise prohibited in most states. I think it usually has to be concealed though....Nowadays with the conceal carry laws in each state it's pretty much meaningless.

http://www.ammoland.com/2013/07/law...o-concealed-carry-in-50-states/#axzz3ewngqZWH
" In 2004 then President George W. Bush signed the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (LEOSA),"

Maybe in 2004 that was important, but it's a moot point now.

Some countries it is perfectly normal to see national military police walking around alongside state police. In USA that is not the case. People freak out if they see military paroling domestically anywhere.

Anyone geared up like that guy going to a highly populated area like a mall is just looking for shock & awe attention. To say " Because I can" is idiotic. That's like saying, "There is no law that says I can't do (something ridiculous) at (someplace where that doesn't need to happen), So I'm going to go full overboard on (something ridiculous) to get attention"


Purposefully scaring the shit out of people, even while doing something that isn't explicitly illegal, is a crime...albeit a minor one.

Wrong. The only military member that's managed to substantiate a LEOSA defense was a coast guard officer, who argued that because of the coast guards law enforcement mission, he was technically a law enforcement officer. Active military members are subject to the same laws as everyone else when off base.

 

[Nebor]

General Officer Memorandum Of Reprimand. Less severe than a court martial but generally career ending.

Fascinating. Can you explain why "of" is abbreviated to the letter "A" in the acronym "GOMAR?"

 

[Victorian Gray]

Fascinating. Can you explain why "of" is abbreviated to the letter "A" in the acronym "GOMAR?"

Or, you could simply let him know that he spelled it incorrectly.

 

[BUnit1701]

So far there have been no pro open carry idiots to chime in here but I expect that to change before long.

And, to those thinking about offering support to this guy ask yourself what you'd want to happen if this guy had been a Somali American named Amiin and he did his stunt in a crowded mall on July 4th. So, pro open carry nuts ... what would you want to happen to such a guy?


Brian

Did he shoot anyone? Then who gives a fuck? Stop wetting your pants every time something potentally dangerous appears.

To your second point, did Amiin shoot anyone? If not, who gives a fuck?

 

[BUnit1701]

Not to nit pick, but a pet peeve of mine. They called magazines not clips.



Unless modified and from the Amry armory, its single or three round burst, not full auto capability.

Not at all true, any civilian who can pass the enhanced background check can own a class 3 fully automatic weapon.

 

[BUnit1701]

You should change your name to whoosh.

I invite every gun owner to go into society brandishing a loaded weapon, and carry it every place you go, from now until the end of time.

This isn't some libruul hatin' on 'Murrica. This is me saying the same thing others have said. This guy seems like a jackass. Go, express your second amendment right to look cool with a gun while purchasing bread and milk.

Go for it. I live in Georgia. I see it every now and again.

But, again, if you go into a mall with a rifle, and you delusionally think you won't be approached by some security guard or cop, then that's on you. Why?

Because 99.99% of the population of the US does not carry a rifle to Starbucks or the mall.

And if this guy is in trouble with his employer for breaking a regulation or standard of conduct, then this isn't some "libruls are comin' to take your guns" story.

It's a story where an organization that focuses on using weapons has an issue with their employee walking around public with a weapon.

Again, this isn't a partisan issue. You can defend the dumb ass all you want. Doesn't change the fact that he's a dumb ass.

Approached, fine. Arrested, not OK.

 

[BUnit1701]

Malls private property isn't it?

yup, and in most states private property owners can ban guns from the premises.

if you're not aware of it TH is a troll.

And the perpetrator is asked to leave, not arrested on sight.

 

[BUnit1701]

^ pretty much that.

IMO, for a lot of people who support more firearms regulation it's not a hatred of firearms it's "What the fuck else can you do when idiots fuck around with them and sometimes get themselves or others killed?"


.....

Please, do enlighten us with the tales of poor civilians gunned down by unintending gun enthusiasts exercising their 2nd Amendment rights. I'll be waiting.

 

[BUnit1701]

Active military personnel are allowed to carry firearms when otherwise prohibited in most states. I think it usually has to be concealed though....Nowadays with the conceal carry laws in each state it's pretty much meaningless.

http://www.ammoland.com/2013/07/law...o-concealed-carry-in-50-states/#axzz3ewngqZWH
" In 2004 then President George W. Bush signed the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (LEOSA),"

Maybe in 2004 that was important, but it's a moot point now.

Some countries it is perfectly normal to see national military police walking around alongside state police. In USA that is not the case. People freak out if they see military paroling domestically anywhere.

Anyone geared up like that guy going to a highly populated area like a mall is just looking for shock & awe attention. To say " Because I can" is idiotic. That's like saying, "There is no law that says I can't do (something ridiculous) at (someplace where that doesn't need to happen), So I'm going to go full overboard on (something ridiculous) to get attention"


Purposefully scaring the shit out of people, even while doing something that isn't explicitly illegal, is a crime...albeit a minor one.

Its not his fault that leftys piss themselves every time they see something potentially dangerous. In fact it amazes me California highways are as congested as they are considering how dangerous an automobile is.

 

[Nebor]

Or, you could simply let him know that he spelled it incorrectly.

It's a pet peeve of mine. People pronounce it "gomar" and then wind up spelling it that way.

 

[Rakehellion]

Finally. We need more people getting arrested because of this.

 

[zinfamous]

Did he shoot anyone? Then who gives a fuck? Stop wetting your pants every time something potentally dangerous appears.

To your second point, did Amiin shoot anyone? If not, who gives a fuck?

So we should care only after some psycho kills someone? ....There's no value in preventing a murder?

think.

 

[Texashiker]

"It was basically a soldier who wasn't thinking," said McCollum. "If you think about it, everything worked beautifully. No one was hurt. The mall reacted quickly and the soldier fully understood as everything started to come toward him, he understood what he had accidentally."

So what? What does all of that matter?

What don't you understand and the right to keep and "bear" arms?

Maybe next time I hear someone talking about voting democrat I will call the police on them for being a terrorist?

 

[nickqt]

So what? What does all of that matter?

What don't you understand and the right to keep and "bear" arms?

Maybe next time I hear someone talking about voting democrat I will call the police on them for being a terrorist?

I know this is going to bounce right off of the bubble you've constructed around yourself, but no one is taking away his guns. Hence, this isn't some infringement on someone in keeping and bearing arms.

Because little details have almost no chance of ever penetrating the bubble I'll be real clear here.

A mall, as far as I understand, is usually private property. Now, I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume this guy didn't own the mall.

What this means is that a security guard or police officer on that private property is probably going to immediately walk up to and talk with someone carrying a rifle out in the open.

You have the right to own and bear your AR-15 on your property, and ostensibly in public.

You do not have the right to carry your AR-15 into my home, or any private property for that matter, unless specifically told that you can. That's the entire point behind private property, in fact.

But hey, if you want to call the police on people who vote democrat™, go for it. In fact, I encourage you to do so. Hell, I'll start up a GoFundMe page for you once you get into the news for it, just cut me in on some of it.

 

[WelshBloke]

Maybe next time I hear someone talking about voting democrat I will call the police on them for being a terrorist?

Watch out that they don't shoot you when they turn up eh?