Melee Breaks Out Over Open Carry Gun At West Side Garcia's (Albuquerque)

[jpak]

http://www.abqjournal.com/abqnews/abqnewseeker-mainmenu-39/27416-melee-breaks-out-over-gun-at-west-side-garcias.html

Albuquerque police responded to a bizarre incident Sunday afternoon in which a man claiming to be a U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency agent attacked a man carrying a gun.

Albuquerque Police Department Dep. Chief Allen Banks said 34-year-old Jose Garcia was eating with his family at Garcia's Kitchen at 6961 Taylor Ranch Road NW at about 2 p.m. on Sunday. Banks said Garcia was carrying a pistol in a hip holster in plain view. In New Mexico it is legal to carry a gun openly.

Christopher Torres, 27, was sitting near Garcia and began shouting that he was a DEA agent and had information that Garcia intended to rob the restaurant. Banks said Torres then attacked Garcia.

At some point Garcia's gun fell out of the holster and chaos ensued.

<more>

[Bold Lib]

1. Better headline. Lawless man claiming to be DEA attacks man for no lawful reason.

I wonder how many times people were attacked for being the wrong color at the lunch counter.

[jpak]

3. Better headline: open carry moran illegally in bar causes chaos - gets arrested

yup

[friendly_iconoclast]

4. Great minds think alike, eh?:

http://www.kob.com/article/stories/s1982974.shtml

...Garcia had a gun on his hip, in a holster. Torres saw this, announced to everyone that he was a DEA agent and said he had video evidence that Garcia was planning to rob the restaurant.

Torres then attacked Garcia, hitting him and trying to get the gun. The gun fell on the floor, a customer grabbed it, and then put it in the manager's office.

Other customers helped restrain Torres until police arrived.

Police say Torres suffers from mental issues. He was arrested and taken to the hospital for treatment. He will now face several felony charges.

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

26. LOL... DUzy.

[one-eyed fat man]

28. Lunatic attacks open carrier??

Surprised the OP didn't rush off to make Torres' bail. They think alike. Both are driven to into a blithering foaming spittle frenzy by legal open carry.

[Bold Lib]

12. Not bar, restaurant that sells alcohol. The state should adopt the laws

that Texas has addressing this with the big red "51" signs. It is far too easy to accidentally be in violation of the law the way it is set up in that state.

The guy that did the attacking "suffers from mental issues" and was arrested on felony charges.

[rl6214]

45. More dishonesty

Restaurant not bar. Says so in the article.

YUP

YUP

YUP

[damntexdem]

8. And corollary: idiocy of open carry illustrated by melee that ensues.

Yeah, open carry sure allowed for "self defense," right?

[Bold Lib]

14. Mental illness is a disease.

It is fortunate that the mentally ill attacker did not get shot due to his disease is it not?

[friendly_iconoclast]

21. It wasn't necessary- the other patrons sat on Torres until the cops showed up

I thought open carriers were just looking to intimidate others and/or shoot someone.

Neither happened in this case. Would you prefer Torres had been shot?

[AtheistCrusader]

39. He was able to protect himself without shooting anyone.

Would you prefer that people carrying firearms shoot at the slightest provocation?

If the victim didn't feel his life was in danger, it is entirely appropriate he didn't shoot his attacker.

[rl6214]

44. You know she lacks any intellectual honesty

when it comes to posting in the gun forums.

YUP

YUP

YUP

[Bold Lib]

48. yup

or is that

yeep

yeep

yeep

I seem to be hearing a chihuahua

[armueller2001]

2. Sounds like Torres

overreacted. Wtf?

[Bold Lib]

15. He suffers from "mental issues".

http://www.kob.com/article/stories/s1982974.shtml

[-..__...]

5. More details emerge...

Torres was also taken to the hospital for a mental evaluation.

Sounds like the guy is a prime candidate working for the Brady Campaign/gun-control movement.

http://www.koat.com/r/26938084/detail.html

[jpak]

6. More details emerge - the open carry moran was arrested for having a gun in a bar

yup

[friendly_iconoclast]

7. Maybe you should start a defense fund for Torres.

After all, he's done more to actually disarm people than 99% of the keyboard commandos here have...

[Bold Lib]

16. Not bar, restaurant that serves alcohol. They should adopt laws similar to Texas

with the big "51" sign for bars.

http://www.kob.com/article/stories/s1982974.shtml

[PavePusher]

30. You really need to cite your "evidence".

I know, it would be new and scary, but you'll grow to enjoy it.

[jpak]

33. Read the article - the chaos creating carrier was arrested for having a gun in a restaurant bar

yup

[PavePusher]

34. See here:

on page 3.

http://www.handgunlaw.us/states/newmexico.pdf

Notably, the news article was very short on fact and details... hmmmmm...

[jpak]

35. See here: Police arrested Garcia on a charge of bringing a loaded gun into a liquor establishment.

http://www.koat.com/r/26938084/detail.html

[Ken_Fish]

36. I believe that these matters are settled in court by a judge..

if convicted, he is then guilty. If the arrest is vacated with a not guilty finding or the matter is dropped he has done nothing wrong. Other than not using a retention holster or shooting the man before allowing himself to be disarmed.

[jpak]

37. The doofus will do time

yup

[Ken_Fish]

38. Which one, the guy who tried to disarm someone

or the one who carried somewhere it was (may have been) illegal? Again if they are convicted legally, so be it. That's what laws are for.

[rl6214]

46. BAR?

More dishonesty, restaurant.

YUP

YUP

YUP

[X_Digger]

9. Lol, reminds me of our dear departed DU'er who claimed that he would do something like that..

The name escapes me, however..

[TheCowsCameHome]

11. Fire_Medic_Dave.

We loved his Sunday night spam dinner.

[X_Digger]

13. No, I think it was Gman2?

Claimed that he would go up and accost any open carrier he saw.

Yep.. http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=user_profiles&u_id=125824

[TheCowsCameHome]

17. Mmmm, perhaps.

:shrug:

The local boneyard is filling quickly.

[-..__...]

22. You mean... there were others?

And gun owners are accused of preaching violence...

:wow:

"I Promise to kick the shit out of anyone I find "packing a gun"...

Stupid shits...endanger us all".

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=2817870#2818239

[GreenStormCloud]

25. That claim is made from time to time.

I have lurked for a long time and seen posters claim that they would take the gun away from anybody that they saw with one.

[AtheistCrusader]

40. Presumably that guy has never seen a police officer.

[Name removed]

23. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[DonP]

31. Ah yes, the "I'll scream in his face until he leaves" approach

I forgot about that one. "I'll yell and scream at any one carrying open and dare him to shoot me if they don't like it". So much logic some days.

I prefer the squealing and running away from any OC strategy, even when it's not a 10 year old girl.

[Katya Mullethov]

42. No way .. It was the same war journalist

that broke the Epic AK Waving Man Scandal wide open .

[Bold Lib]

18. Was that the same one that wanted foreign military forces to go house to house

confiscating guns?

[X_Digger]

24. They go by so quickly..

That was Don Caballero.. http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=user_profiles&u_id=245586

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=118&topic_id=294852#294927

[Bold Lib]

27. Wow, you do a great job keeping up with the "best of's" threads!!! n/t

[friendly_iconoclast]

41. I found another anti-open carry poster with mad ninja skillz:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=118&topic_id=365989#366033

[TheCowsCameHome]

10. Everyone came to see the OCM.

A good time was had by all.

[Bold Lib]

19. I think everyone came to the restaurant to eat. Until a person with "mental issues"

attacked a person without provocation.

[RamboLiberal]

20. One good reason I feel concealed carry is the better idea

Now I will admit this is the first incident of this ilk I have read about open carry.

Also think the OC'er was apparently unaware of the law in his state about carrying in a restaurant that serves liquor.
Since a lot of "family style" restaurants also can serve alchohol I find it a bit stupid to prohibit carry in such restaurants by the state.

Good reason if you insist on OC to have a good retention holster.

Police said Jose Garcia was eating and had a gun on his belt when another customer, Christopher Torres, saw Garcia’s gun. Torres, who was pretending to be a law-enforcement officer, went after Garcia, fearing that he would rob the place, according to police.

“I saw these guys start going at it and tackling each other, and I pulled one of the guy's off him and said ‘Hey you need to calm down,’” Culberth said.

But the situation escalated.

“The next thing I know, he was reaching for the guys gun and he pulls it out and starts waving it all over the place and everyone starts screaming and running,” Culberth said.

During the chaos, Culberth said he ran back to the back of the restaurant and when he returned to the dining area, the gun was no longer with the man.

“One of the customers got the gun away from the guy and he handed it to me and I ran back in the kitchen with the gun and put it back in the office until the cops showed up,” Culberth said. “It’s mind-blowing to think something like this could happen.”

http://www.koat.com/r/26938084/detail.html

[PavePusher]

32. Not neccesarily illegal.

http://www.handgunlaw.us/states/newmexico.pdf

See pg. 3.

Noteable, the news article is short on facts and evidence.

[lawodevolution]

29. He was charged with a felony. Good. Future brady campaign influenced gun control vigilantes

Will think twice about trying to force gun control on others.

[Kennah]

43. A Melee! You mean with broadswords and battle axes and morning stars?

Oops. Sorry. My repressed Dungeons & Dragons past just popped to the surface.

[Euromutt]

47. Hold on while I calculate some THAC0s

(If that doesn't give away how old I am, I don't know what will.)

[Bold Lib]

49. Hold on while I unsheathe my 6 foot +5 vorpal sword

Oh how old I feel now. . .