Q: Guns? A: NO!

[demeter]

[[Edited by moderator to post important information about weapons at Burning Man]]

Weapons are prohibited at the Burning Man event site (Black Rock City) and surrounding area according to the BLM Closure Order. This goes for participants as well as Burning Man staff and volunteers. The Closure Order is a public announcement that the Bureau of Land Management issues in collaboration with the Burning Man organization and includes temporary restrictions to protect public safety and resources on public lands and makes it possible for us to hold the event.

This year's Closure Order is in effect from August 4th - September 15th.

Please do not threaten the future of the event - do not bring weapons to the Event Site for any reason!

What qualifies as a weapon? Please review the definition in the 2014 Burning Man Closure Order.

=============================

Hello All.

I am driving in from Ohio. I'm a female. I'm 23. I've got maybe 1-2 other females in my vehicle with me.

We'll be on the road for 3 days stopping at all manner of gas stations and rest stops. I have my concealed carry and I will have my pistol on me. It's how I was raised: I worked at a gun store teaching safety classes until last winter.

I've checked my gun laws and reciprocity laws in all of the states I'll be driving through (may need to reroute around Illinois!) and I will be fine legally.... EXCEPT when I get to the Playa.

I have a safe that fits under my seat in my vehicle and once we leave Reno the weapon will be locked in that safe.

What are the laws surrounding this? YOU MAY NOT BRING WEAPONS TO BURNING MAN
Is the gate going to search a safe under my seat and take my gun or turn me away? YES
Will the NV police press charges? BLM JURISDICTION

I know none of you can offer true legal advice, but do any of you have thoughts on this? SEE ABOVE

Looking at the Federal Register page, I can't even bring a stun gun or a taser so even alternative options have been eliminated.






For those that say I don't need one on the drive, you are naive. Five months ago today I was walking on a main street (literally, Main Street) in a busy area with SEVEN people and we were jumped by ONE man simply because I didn't want to give him my phone number... he sent multiple females to the hospital and took out 3 men that stopped to help us. I did not have my gun on me and my friends and I almost died because of it. I don't want to make that mistake again.

[Sham]

Do not bring your gun to the playa. They are not allowed at the event. There are many reason for this. Please leave it home, so you don't risk being expelled and prosecuted for having the gun there.

[jneilvindy]

I'm sure someone with more knowledge will answer but I'm fairly certain if they find the safe you will be asked to open it.

Refusal will get you turned away at the gate.

If they see the gun you will be turned back at the gate.

I'm not sure if you'd be arrested or not but if I was betting I'd say they would arrest you for bringing a firearm into the closure zone on federal lands.

I suggest you get a bank deposit box in Reno and leave the gun there for the week you're on the playa. Of course you'd have to coordinate your drive to be in town during banking hours ect. Maybe a bank in Salt lake open on Saturday would work better.

Also you could leave the gun with a pawn shop which I'd imagine would be far easier to find open 24/7 in Reno. (note I've never been west of the Mississipi river so all I'm going on is cheesy Hollywood movies and cities with gambling penchant for pawn shops!)

your mileage may vary

I understand your concerns during the trip but I believe trying to get a gun onto the playa would be a very very bad idea and if I knew you were trying I'd definitely report you to the ORG if it was possible to do so.

It's a line you simply do not want anyone trying to cross for any reason.

[demeter]

Since posting this I have been informed that local police stations may also hold it for me as will local gun shops.

Finding a gun shop open on Sunday evening may prove difficult, but finding a police station will not be!



I don't want to bring it onto the Playa, it's alternatives like those above I was looking for.

[ygmir]

you've gotten good advice above.
I'm familiar with Gate and Perimeter operations, and can tell you if you are found with a gun, or other proscribed "weapon", it will be a bad scene.

I totally understand wanting to carry "on the road", and would suggest finding a place to leave it close to the playa, to be picked up on the way out.
Perhaps, google gun and or pawn shops in Winnemucca, Lovelock, Fernley, and maybe Wadsworth? they are on your way, and I'd bet you can arrange for storage at a minimal fee. If not, try Sparks and Reno, which will take you about an hour out of your way.

Just don't have it with you when you get on Gate road. If it's found, bad news.

good luck!

[Ratty]

Nope. you can't bring a stun gun. ............ Definitions:
(a) Weapon means a firearm, compressed gas or spring powered pistol or rifle, bow and arrow, cross bow, blowgun, spear gun, hand-thrown spear, sling shot, irritant gas device, electric stunning or immobilization device, explosive device, any implement designed to expel a projectile, switch-blade knife, any blade which is greater than 10 inches in length from the tip of the blade to the edge of the hilt or finger guard nearest the blade (e.g., swords, dirks, daggers, machetes), or any other weapon the possession of which is prohibited by state law. Exception: This rule does not apply in a kitchen or cooking environment or where an event worker is wearing or utilizing a construction knife for their duties at the event.
(b) Firearm means any pistol, revolver, rifle, shotgun, or other device which is designed to, or may be readily converted to expel a projectile by the ignition of a propellant.
(c) Discharge means the expelling of a projectile from a weapon.
Any person who violates the above rules and restrictions may be tried before a United States Magistrate and fined no more than $1,000, imprisoned for no more than 12 months, or both. Such violations may also be subject to the enhanced fines provided for at 18 U.S.C. 3571.

[demeter]

I have sent the following email to the Reno Police and to Circus Circus. I will post their response.



Hello Reno Police Department!

I have a very important question.

I am a resident of Cincinnati, Ohio. Here, I have my concealed carry license. I will be driving to Nevada in approximately one month for Burning Man. As a 23-year old female driving across the country with only 1-2 other females in the car, I will be carrying my pistol. I have a gun safe under for the days we are crossing states that don’t reciprocate my carry license (Colorado and Illinois) but in NV I should be fine as an Ohio CCL is valid in Nevada.

HOWEVER, BLM has banned all firearms from vehicles/persons attending Burning Man. They have even banned tasers and stun guns so I can’t bring a non-gun alternative. Even sling-shots made the list.

I really do not want to make a 3-day drive across the country without my Springfield XD-S handy because you never know what can happen. Just five months ago I was brutally beaten because I did not respond to a man that cat-called me on Main Street (he is now in prison for a year).

If I bring my pistol to a police station, can you hold it for me for the week I will be in the Black Rock Dessert?

If so, is there any specific location to which I should go?

If not, can you think of any alternatives?

[AntiM]

Since any bonded weapons storage place is likely to be a small business, you likely could make special arrangements outside normal working hours.

[Oldguy]

Several casinos have keyed lockers for luggage, and lockers in gyms or transport areas. Airport and bus stations have lockers. Some post offices have lockers. Or you could just hide it under a rock somewhere. Just pawning it at a hock shop would be the safest alternative, IMHO..

[Doctor VonBacon]

Have you checked for FFL Dealers close to your route?

I would trust a FFL Dealer over a pawn shop any day of the week.

One source for locating a dealer:

http://www.gunbroker.com/FFL/DealerNetwork.aspx

Good Luck.

[maladroit]

Regarding the Main Street brawl...do you honestly believe the situation would have turned out much better if you had your gun? It sounds like a chaotic situation with people making lots of unexpected moves, some trying to get away, some trying to enter the fray, a lot of terror and confusion and noise and instinct. Do you envision calmly stepping back and plugging this guy in the chest as he grapples with one of your girlfriends and two other guys? He doesn't sound like someone who would respond to the threat of a gun very well. You might get one shot, you're already in close-combat range, and right after being punched your marksmanship will be crappy. You'd either wing him or shoot someone else, and then he'd close on you and take the gun away, and now you have 4 or 5 dead people instead of beaten and bruised people.

You might be alive today because you didn't have your gun.

I think that self-defense training is FAR more valuable for dealing with that kind of problem. It can never be taken away from you, and it will train your instincts and awareness. You'll also need to try pretty hard to actually kill someone with it, and it's very unlikely that you'll kill someone you love due to a eyeblink mistake.

[GreyCoyote]

Either way, she is travelling with a gun. Thats the known. Regardless where we each stand on guns, pro or con, she has made the choice so its not too productive rehashing what may or may not have transpired differently.

[maladroit]

Either way, she is travelling with a gun. Thats the known. Regardless where we each stand on guns, pro or con, she has made the choice so its not too productive rehashing what may or may not have transpired differently.

I only do so because she seems willing to rehash what might have happened, as justification for not leaving her gun at home on this trip.

[Lonesomebri]

Hello All. I am driving in from Ohio. I'm a female. I'm 23. I've got maybe 1-2 other females in my vehicle with me...

Well, it sounds like you might be good with a knife also. How many bodies are there? Anyway, where do you plan to camp? Sounds like alot of drama follows you around and I'd rather avoid it.

[ygmir]

Hello All. I am driving in from Ohio. I'm a female. I'm 23. I've got maybe 1-2 other females in my vehicle with me...

Well, it sounds like you might be good with a knife also. How many bodies are there? Anyway, where do you plan to camp? Sounds like alot of drama follows you around and I'd rather avoid it.

sounds hot to me........self reliant ass kicking prepared female..........

[VultureChow]

When I was backpacking and hitchhiking in the south and through the Appalachians, I had multiple rides offer to buy me a gun. I would have been more likely to shoot myself than an attacker.

Backpacking for 10 days at a time, my stench was a more effective weapon than a gun.

[Eric]

First, thank you so much for being proactive & making plans to store your gun(s) off-playa. This isn't a Burning Man thing, it a BLM restriction tied to the permit the event operates under. Having them on-playa not only is a danger to other participants, but could potentially put that permit in danger.

[Lonesomebri]

...sounds hot to me........self reliant ass kicking prepared female..........

Just don't ask for her number....
You may need to re-read the narrative again, you missed a couple plot turns.

Anyway, leaving it at a police station, as long as you check first so you don't walk into more trouble with the law, or gun/pawn shops, which might just be open in Reno and Sparks, sound like the way to go.
Hmmmmm. I may have to stop at one on the way home...
Stay safe. Get lots of sleep on the drive, 'cause lack of that while driving is the real killer.

[jneilvindy]

I'm not sure walking into a casino with a gun just to use their lockers would be a very good idea...

Ditto with bus stations ect.

I never thought about a police station having a policy to hold onto someone's gun for a few days.

Definitely sounds like a business opportunity for someone in Gerlach. Invest in a gun safe and store weapons for people heading to the burn.

[theCryptofishist]

Yeah, but you'd have to be "bondable".

[demeter]

Please do not make assumptions about the night I was assaulted without hearing the story. You have no idea what transpired. Having my pistol would have prevented my female friends from going to the hospital and would have prevented me losing sight off and on from side effects. Im not going to go into details here, if you want them, PM me.

Before my current position I was a gun safety instructor and salesperson. I HAVE taken self defense classes.


FYI neither or the local police jurisdictions will hold it. They recommended a pawn shop. Will post more info soon...

[FlyingMonkey]

Yeah, but you'd have to be "bondable".

I hear that there are camps that specialize in that.........Oh wait, never mind, my bad.

[trilobyte]

I'm locking up this thread, as this is not a question open to interpretation or debate. I'll fill this post (and the original post) in with more information shortly.

Weapons are prohibited at the Burning Man event site (Black Rock City) and surrounding area according to the BLM Closure Order. This goes for participants as well as Burning Man staff and volunteers. The Closure Order is a public announcement that the Bureau of Land Management issues in collaboration with the Burning Man organization and includes temporary restrictions to protect public safety and resources on public lands and makes it possible for us to hold the event.

This year's Closure Order is in effect from August 4th - September 15th.

Please do not threaten the future of the event - do not bring weapons to the Event Site for any reason!

What qualifies as a weapon? Please review the definition in the 2014 Burning Man Closure Order.