Welcome aboard.
Yes, you can carry with the pistol loaded (
except in the 4 "protected" areas if you don't have a license, in which case you can't carry at all*).
*(Don't confuse her about the "tavern" issue just yet!)
Yes, having it in a holster is OK. AFAIK there's never been a case where some :cuss: cop or DA tried to argue that the holster covered part of the pistol, therefore it was 'concealed'. (
The way the jury instructions are written, though, it's possible.)
Take a drive to Elkhorn this Sat. for the free class which will get you started on what you need to know to carry in WI, & you can get a cc license. Lots of opportunities available for practical training.
There are people in the West Bend area if you'd like to attend (or set up!) a meet-n-greet or just have a buddy to walk around with the first few times.
If you like fish fry & want to be around other OCers at the same time, every other Fri. there's a group that meets in Kansasville (
SSW of Milwaukee).
The first Sunday of every month there's a Starbuck's meet-n-greet in Delavan.
See the thread in the stickies at the top of the WI forum which is titled (conveniently) "
New to OC in WI? Here's what you should know". That has LOTS of information, & should take you several days to wade through, depending on what else you have to do.
Especially be sure to take time to watch the video on YouTube titled "
Don't talk to police". It's about 45 minutes & worth re-watching every few months. The first part is a law professor (former criminal defense attorney) talking at warp speed, the second part is a law student who is/was also a LEO explaining why everything the professor just said is true.
There's a "legal" tab on
www.wisconsincarry.org where you can see most of the relevant statutes.
Here's where you can look things up yourself, to be sure you're getting good information.
www.handgunlaw.us is a good resource. They have PDFs for each state, & in that document are links to the state info websites so you can check info yourself.