Open carried to 5/3 bank again yesterday. Ended up withdrawing all my funds and closing my accounts. Here's what happened:
Went in, stood in line with Ms. Ferret for about 10 minutes, my business was conducted, and as I was about to leave, the manager came up and the following ensued as best as I can recall:
Him: "I don't want to argue the *amendment* with you, but you will end up getting yourself in trouble for bringing that in here."
Me: "No, I wont. It's perfectly legal with a concealed pistol license."
Him: "Here's the problem right here, if customers are complaining... You have to watch what you say too. In here while you're carrying." (I had thanked Ms. Ferret for handing me water and had talked about books we're reading and politics (especially voter suppression))
Me: "Good thing I am."
Him: "'Cause if these guys over here are hitting a button then you could get in trouble for attempted robbery at that point." (What the hell?)
Me: "No, I can't because I'm not attempting to rob you, so I can't get in trouble for attempted robbery. And, if you guys want to keep hassling me every time I come in, I'll take all my funds and go to a different bank because it's starting to get on my nerves."
Him: "Really?" (sees his opportunity to never see me again, oops. at least banks are a dime a dozen.)
At this point, the customer service rep, who has been totally friendly this whole time, hands me my money, and I say "You have a nice day," and turn to leave.
The manager then says, "Why don't we do that." ("that" meaning close my accounts)
So we went to his office, and as he was getting my accounts closed and funds withdrawn, we talked a little more.
Him: "The only thing I would suggest is using the drive-through."
Me: "I'm not going to use the drive through just because you're afraid."
Him: "I'm not afraid."
Me: "Well obviously you are because you have an issue with my firearm."
Him: "I didn't want to come to office and wonder if I have to press charges against you."
Me: "You can't."
Him: "For trespassing I can."
Me: "You can, after you ask me to leave, if I don't leave." (which did not happen)
Him: "Right. And that's why, it's like, they came and asked me because other customers had called on you."
Me: "So? It seems to be a problem with the customers. They don't know the laws. You can teach them. You can say, 'Hey, it's fine for him to open carry in here. We don't have a problem with him, and you shouldn't either.' That's what you should tell your customers when they complain."
He didn't have a response to that one. He started talking about my accounts. Afterwards:
Him: "If I have customers and the police are involved, I have to savor the difference here. So I mean, it's not anything that's a fear thing. It's no different than us not being able to have dogs in the bank."
Me: "But you're allowed to have openly carrying customers with concealed pistol licenses in your bank. It's perfectly lawful. I can show you the attorney general opinion saying that it's lawful. If you had a customer come in with something as simple as a backpack, you wouldn't ask them to leave for that."
Him: "We can kick people out for wearing hats if we ask them to remove them."
Me: "Exactly, but you wouldn't because you're courteous to your customers, but you're not being courteous to me. And I've been a customer since I moved here a couple of years ago. Now you guys are saying, 'Hey, guess what. You can't come in here. You can't defend your life. You can't exercise your rights. You can't be a law-abiding citizen in our bank. We don't want you here. That's what you're saying to me."
Him: "No-"
Me: "Yes, that's exactly what you're saying to me!"
Him: "It's not what I'm saying."
Me: "So what are you saying?"
Him: "I don't want the gun in my bank. It's fine. You can come in anytime you want, but-
Me: "I'm not going to come in without being able to defend my life if armed robbers come through the door and start marching everyone to the back to execute us one by one. Do you understand me? So you do what you need to do right now. I need to go find another bank. Just so you know in the future, when law-abiding citizens come into your bank, the guns don't leave their holsters unless somebody's life is in danger. We're all taught very well how to handle our firearms. And it's just outrageous to me that you would treat me in such a way and act as if I'm a threat to your customers. It makes me sad that our country comes to that. "
Him: "It's the customers telling me."
Me: "Well, tell them that it's legal. If somebody complains, 'Hey, this guy over here smells,' are you going to tell that guy to leave or are you going to say, 'Hey, don't stand so close to him.'?"
Him: "It's different with a gun in a bank."
Me: "Well, I'm not waving it around. I'm not brandishing. I'm following the law, and you just have horrible business practices to be making your customers withdraw their funds and go elsewhere."
Him: "To be honest, when the cops showed up here I thought that you weren't gonna come back here."
Me: "They can't do anything. They came to my house, we had a brief conversation, and they left. There's nothing they can do. I'm following the law."
Him: "I didn't even know about it until they came after they filed a report to find out."
Me: "A lot of people call the cops to scare others from carrying and defending their lives, and I'm not going to stop just because a cop had a conversation with me. I'm not going to be caught defenseless one day when my life is in danger. I'm a responsible, law-abiding citizen and I'm just not going to have any of it."
Him: "Here's the thing, I probably have more guns than you do."
Me: "Probably."
Him: "But I have to watch out for what everyone else wants. That's why we can't have dogs in the bank anymore."
Me: "Why?"
Him: "'Cause someone complained. They were complaining."
Ms. Ferret: "Even seeing eye dogs?"
Him: "Seeing eye dogs can come, but they have to make everyone aware a dog is coming in. It's ridiculous."
Me: "It just makes me upset that this is a country where someone complains about somebody doing something that is perfectly lawful and action is taken against them because of a complaint from a citizen who doesn't know the law. I've studied the law day and night for three months now, and I know what my rights are. They don't. And when they come to you and complain about it, if they ever do it again, I really hope you would just say, 'You know what? That's legal,' but obviously it will be with another open carrier and not with me."
He didn't have a response here either.
After I got my money, he kept wanting to suddenly talk about his brother in law enforcement and what guns he has bought from him. I figured, he's either trying to not seem like a bad guy, or he's trying to stall me until the cops arrive. Either way, I bid him a good day and left. No LEO encounter followed.
I am pretty disgusted with the whole situation. Can anyone reccommend an OC friendly bank in the Walker/Standale area?
After this encounter, I went to carry in Meijer to get groceries. No problems, as it should have been 300 feet away in the bank.
Carry on.
P.S. I'm down for a Walker event, I think DrTodd and I can organize something.
