 Video and still from @reallouiehuey on Twitter. KDVR Infowars On April 26, protesters were rallying to support re-opening Colorado at the state capitol in Denver. Exactly what happened next is unclear. The lack of video from before the incident is concerning too, because we don't know what really happened to incite the incident. The protesters' version seems to be that Jafar Partowmah, who rally participants say is a concealed firearm permit holder, was arrested for open carry because his shirt blew up and exposed his two handguns. Supporters state that Partowmah was not engaged in any kind of threatening or aggressive act. However, the video from the scene does not show what happened prior to the incident. Police are reporting that Partowmah was openly carrying and was arrested for that as well as struggling with the officers. Partowmah is clearly shown resisting arrest in the video. Open carry is illegal in Denver as it is considered to have special status in the state (see the Colorado pages for more info). Open carry is otherwise legal in most places in the state, though cities can ban in it in certain public places. Concealed carry cannot be regulated as strictly, making Colorado an outlier among the Western states. However, a close watching of the video is telling. It shows Partowmah's red t-shirt tucked in to his belt, with an empty Kydex holster visible inside the waistband. Presumably he was already disarmed by police prior to an attempted handcuffing. With the position of the holster and the tucked t-shirt, it's more likely that Partowmah was deliberately openly carrying. Clearly, Partowmah struggling with the officers is bad optics and hurts his case. If his exposure of his weapons was accidental, he should be filing suit in federal court. There is a lot of relevant case law regarding the constitutionality of case law the court could rely on.
|