This past week I contacted four police officers because one of the force said that you had to have your firearm in a holster if you had it in your pocket for safety reasons. I can see the logic behind that but it did not think it was the law. I talked to two more officers who didn't think that was the case but then the fourth officer emailed me back and did some research however she admit it that she couldn't find any specific content saying that you had to have a holster if you kept a weapon in your pocket.
Thoughts? Why don't the police unanimously know this? More and more I am coming to realize that not only do lawyers often not know the law but police officers are much worse. I'm pro police but jeez

If you spend 20 minutes on a CCW website, you probably know more than the average officer. Not putting them down, but the variety and volume of law they need to know as a generalist is overwhelming.

Wait until you go to a police range and see all the holes everywhere... society expects police to be on some ivory pillar of legal knowledge, firearms expertise, and gun handling, but the reality for a number of officers is quite different.

I'm not stunned at all by that.

Dunning-Kruger is just as big of an issue with law enforcement as it is anywhere else.

Pocket holsters are a good idea since many pistols lack a safety. Trigger safety's are not sufficient protection if you are reaching for a pistol in a hurry from your pocket.

I carry this way and I am often with friends and family that are leo. The holster requirement claim isn't right.

No law that I'm aware of in Texas. If you want clarification on the law you should ask a lawyer not a police officer.

I personally do not feel comfortable carrying a pistol without the trigger covered and kept oriented in a safe direction.

96AustinAg said:

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Dunning-Kruger is just as big of an issue with law enforcement as it is anywhere else.

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And nowhere is it a bigger issue than Texags.

Review the proper sections of the penal code. Police officers don't know much, in most cases.

That said, I thought I remembered something about a holster requirement if you're carrying under 30.05.

When open carry was first passed several years ago there was a requirement for them to be carried in a belt holster or shoulder holster. Drop leg rigs or just sticking it in your belt was not allowed. They have since done away with that requirement. I have never heard that a holster was required for concealed carry.

I did have a cop in Corpus tell me that my pistol needed to be "more concealed" in my truck. I said "you had to ask me where it was because you couldn't see it when it was 18" from you the entire time we talked for 10-15 minutes. Doesn't get more concealed than that". He said "I don't write the laws, I only enforce them".

What brand pistol handle is this? Never seen this.

Asking cops for legal advice is not a good idea

FSGuide said:

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When open carry was first passed several years ago there was a requirement for them to be carried in a belt holster or shoulder holster. Drop leg rigs or just sticking it in your belt was not allowed. They have since done away with that requirement. I have never heard that a holster was required for concealed carry.

I did have a cop in Corpus tell me that my pistol needed to be "more concealed" in my truck. I said "you had to ask me where it was because you couldn't see it when it was 18" from you the entire time we talked for 10-15 minutes. Doesn't get more concealed than that". He said "I don't write the laws, I only enforce them".

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Where was this done away with? I thought it was still the requirement, and it's still in the current version of Section 46.02 of the penal code:

https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PE/htm/PE.46.htm

Is there another section that supersedes these requirements?

Ark03 said:

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FSGuide said:

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When open carry was first passed several years ago there was a requirement for them to be carried in a belt holster or shoulder holster. Drop leg rigs or just sticking it in your belt was not allowed. They have since done away with that requirement. I have never heard that a holster was required for concealed carry.

I did have a cop in Corpus tell me that my pistol needed to be "more concealed" in my truck. I said "you had to ask me where it was because you couldn't see it when it was 18" from you the entire time we talked for 10-15 minutes. Doesn't get more concealed than that". He said "I don't write the laws, I only enforce them".

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Where was this done away with? I thought it was still the requirement, and it's still in the current version of Section 46.02 of the penal code:

https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PE/htm/PE.46.htm

Is there another section that supersedes these requirements?

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Holster is still required for open carry. What changed is it doesn't have to specifically be a belt or shoulder holster. "Holster" isn't defined in the penal code so that may be open to interpretation.

txyaloo said:

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Ark03 said:

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FSGuide said:

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When open carry was first passed several years ago there was a requirement for them to be carried in a belt holster or shoulder holster. Drop leg rigs or just sticking it in your belt was not allowed. They have since done away with that requirement. I have never heard that a holster was required for concealed carry.

I did have a cop in Corpus tell me that my pistol needed to be "more concealed" in my truck. I said "you had to ask me where it was because you couldn't see it when it was 18" from you the entire time we talked for 10-15 minutes. Doesn't get more concealed than that". He said "I don't write the laws, I only enforce them".

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Where was this done away with? I thought it was still the requirement, and it's still in the current version of Section 46.02 of the penal code:

https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PE/htm/PE.46.htm

Is there another section that supersedes these requirements?

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Holster is still required for open carry. What changed is it doesn't have to specifically be a belt or shoulder holster. "Holster" isn't defined in the penal code so that may be open to interpretation.

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Okay, that's more in line with what I thought. "Just sticking it in your belt" isn't a holster by any definition, and I didn't think all that language was scrapped.

Legalities aside, handguns while being carried, should be in a holster. There is zero exception to that.

O.G. said:

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Legalities aside, handguns while being carried, should be in a holster. There is zero exception to that.

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Unless you are Special Forces in Perkistan or the -Stan of your choice carrying a Makarov or a Tokarev. Those things just carry very well stuck into a belt. Maybe it goes back to WW2 when holsters were a secondary priority when lanyards were being used.
https://www.survivalistboards.com/threads/makarov-as-a-shtf-handgun.111747/

https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/meet-makarov-gun-russia-elvis-pistols-51682

Pocket holster is a good idea anyway just to mask the outline of a pistol. I have a kydex and a leather for my G42. Both of them show a bulge print, but it looks like a wallet or phone, def not pistol.

I was a Navy Seal and trained with Barnes and we usually held our firearms with our teeth.

Paul Dirac said:

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I was a Navy Seal and trained with Barnes and we usually held our firearms with our teeth.

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OK...there is that....my bad.....I forgot about that one........i stand corrected....

For the most part I am against pocket carry, difficult to get out when sitting, holster doesn't always stay in your pocket when you are trying to draw, gets dirty from stuff like lint, etc. which is why I carry on my belt 99.9% of the time.

People in Texas must carry a handgun in a holster. The holster does not have to be a shoulder or belt holster. Before HB 1927 took effect on September 1st, 2021, people in Texas needed to have a license to carry a handgun and they needed to keep their handgun in a shoulder or belt holster.

Section 46.02 of the Texas Penal Code requires a handgun to be carried in a holster, but it does not provide a definition of the word "holster."

From this website

XpressAg09 said:

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People in Texas must carry a handgun in a holster. The holster does not have to be a shoulder or belt holster. Before HB 1927 took effect on September 1st, 2021, people in Texas needed to have a license to carry a handgun and they needed to keep their handgun in a shoulder or belt holster.

Section 46.02 of the Texas Penal Code requires a handgun to be carried in a holster, but it does not provide a definition of the word "holster."

From this website

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46.15(b)(6) states,

(b) Sections 46.02, 46.03(a)(14), and 46.04(a-1) do not apply to a person who
...
(6) is carrying:
(A) a license issued under Subchapter H, Chapter 411, Government Code, to carry a handgun; and
(B) a handgun:
(i) in a concealed manner; or
(ii) in a holster;

The "or" in (b)(6)(B)(i) seems to negate the holster requirement so long as the firearm is concealed

Right - that was the case before open carry, and the holster requirement only ever applied to open carry

Na Zdrav 87 said:

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What brand pistol handle is this? Never seen this.

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DeSantis Clip Grtp. I have one on my Model 36 Chiefs Special. It's 3$ cheaper on Midway.
https://www.desantisholster.com/clip-grip/