I ran his weapon, it was clear he had a permit and all his ducks were in a row. (No citation was issued)
Did you also do him the disservice of entering his firearm and personal data in to eTrace?
If the guy had a WV CP/RL, then it's a pretty safe assumption that he's not a felon or other type of criminal, and it's an even safer assumption that his gun is 100% legal.
So why would you run his gun?
He had a loud exhaust on his truck, forchissake...
Did you search the cabin of his truck? After all, it's well known that moonshiners and pot growers in WV often use old, beat-up trucks in disrepair in their operations. Did you search his person? Did you look under the bed of his truck--pot farmers in WV have been known to smuggle bricks of weed in the spare tire under their truck bed...
I mean REALLY... Running his gun?
Really?
What was your RAS that this gun was stolen, or otherwise involved in a crime?
If he had a CP/RL, why did you feel the need to disarm him "for officer safety"? How many WV LEOs hav been shot by people with valid CC permits since WV started issuing permits? Again, what was your RAS for seizing his firearm?
There is NO requirement under WV Statute to run a gun's numbers, or to seize a firearm during a routine traffic stop unless you have RAS to believe it has been used in a crime. In an incidental encounter like a traffic stop for a loud muffler, it is completely up to officer discretion. And it appears that although you didn't issue this rattle-trap-driving yahoo a traffic ticket, you DID succeed in doing a full-monty two-step all over his 2nd, 4th, 9th, and 14th Amendment rights...
And again, I'll ask, did you enter the info into eTrace?
Because if you did, that would just be icing on this already egregiously unconstitutional cake.
I grew up in WV. I lived there for 26 years (21 years in the Northern Panhandle, 5 years in the Eastern Panhandle). I have several family members who are (or were) LEOs (State Trooper, Sheriff's Deputy), and most of my family still lives in WV, so I travel there to visit several times a year. I LOVE my home state, and I OC and CC there whenever I visit, and have been doing so for years without issue.
But I find your story to be very off-putting. And I don't know which is worse--the fact that you admit to doing this sort of thing and STILL call yourself "supportive of OC/CC", or the cavalier attitude you appear to have toward the US and WV Constitution in the performance of your "duties". It has been my experience that LEOs in WV are MUCH more respectful of the Constitutional Rights of citizens. I hope this report of yours is NOT becoming "standard operating procedure" in the WV LE community--it certainly has not been my experience in the past.
If this sort of behavior is what you consider to be "supportive of OC/CC", I'd hate to see how OC-hostile LEOs behave in WV...
I hope I never travel through your jurisdiction. I don't have much tolerance for these sort "color of law" fishing expeditions. But I DO know how to file a formal complaint with a CO, and I DO know how to file a federal 42 Chapter 1983 civil rights violation suit, and I would suggest that the fine citizens of WV brush up on these procedures themselves.
Happy trails...