Please stop me if I'm beating a dead chicken.I was stopped tonight by the Bethlehem Police. No citation - just a conversation that could have gone much better had I not been sort of a total jerk - but something very interesting was captured on my dashcam. I'll have the run down on that later.Aside from the officer telling me it was illegal to record his voice without his consent, citing "Title 57" (likely Chapter 57), he also said something else I thought was odd. As he came back to my windows with my DL in hand, he said to another officer, "He has a permit to carry."Now, I was under the impression that,"Title 18, § 6111(g)(3.1) - Miscelaneous OffensesAny person [sic] who knowingly and intentionally obtains or furnishes information collected or maintained pursuant to section 6109 for any purpose other than compliance with this chapter or who knowingly or intentionally disseminates, publishes or otherwise makes available such information to any person other than the subject of the information commits a felony of the third degree."There's been some discussion lately about whether or not it's legal or appropriate for a DL check during a normal traffic stop to also reveal whether the driver has an LTCF, where that was not a part of the original reason for the stop. On the surface, the above would seem to make that pretty clear, but then I read further."Title 18, § 6111(i) ConfidentialityAll information provided by the applicant [sic], including, but not limited to, the potential purchaser, transferee or applicant's name or identity, furnished by a potential purchaser or transferee under this section or any applicant for a license to carry a firearm as provided by section 6109 shall be confidential and not subject to public disclosure. In addition to any other sanction or penalty imposed by this chapter, any person, licensed dealer, State or local governmental agency or department that violates this subsection shall be liable in civil damages in the amount of $1,000 per occurrence or three times the actual damages incurred as a result of the violation, whichever is greater, as well as reasonable attorney fees."The important bit here, I feel, is "Public disclosure" - the cops, seeing that you have an LTCF based on your DL check, are not publicly disclosing anything...unless they say it super loud towards a crowd of people nearby your car, I guess. Additionally -"Title 18, § 6109(l)(2) Firearms License Validation SystemNotwithstanding any other law regarding the confidentiality of information, inquiries to the Firearms License Validation System regarding the validity of any Pennsylvania license to carry a firearm may only be made by law enforcement personnel acting within the scope of their official duties."It appears as though the automated computer system by which they run your driver's license - or the dispatcher who runs it for the officer who is calling it in - automatically ties your LTCF to your DL. This was discovered a little while ago and has apparently been effective since Q1 2016, per some other threads around here. As long as it's law enforcement personnel looking it up - regardless of whether it's a 4th Amendment violation to search if you have an LTCF without the suspected presence of a firearm in the car - it does not appear that, in the course of their official duties, they would be running afoul of the PA 6109 statutes.THAT HAVING BEEN SAID - what right do they have to search whether or not you have an LTCF? Without there being a reasonable suspicion that you are carrying a firearm in the car, it would seem as though the automated searching of your LTCF information would be a pure and simple 4th Amendment violation.These are the fruits of my personal experience this evening and the resulting research into the laws. Please discuss. via /r/CCW http://ift.tt/2kJ0NHP
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