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Previous court decisions generally held that when a police officer had reasonable suspicion that a person was carrying a pistol in apparent violation of MCL 750.227, Michigan’s Carrying a Concealed Weapon (CCW) statute, that police officer was able to conduct a Terry stop to confirm or dispel their suspicions that crime was afoot.
The Michigan Court of Appeals had occasion to directly address this issue in People v. Williams, along with the related questions concerning licensing exemptions and how to legally handle these circumstances.
Note: This update will refer to the investigatory stop and reasonable suspicion stop as a Terry stop, as those terms are all synonymous with one another.
In People v. Williams, the Michigan Court of Appeals affirmed that in Michigan, it is a crime of general applicability and a presumptive felony to carry a concealed weapon in public in violation of MCL 750.227.
Where the police observe a bulge in a pocket in the shape of a concealed pistol, the outline or printing through the clothing of a concealed pistol in a waistband, or other similar articulable facts that create reasonable suspicion that the individual is carrying a concealed pistol or a concealed weapon contrary to MCL 750.227, the police have reasonable suspicion of crime afoot that justifies a Terry stop.
The police do not have to assume that a person carrying the concealed weapon, in apparent contradiction to MCL 750.227, could possibly have a legal exemption to this otherwise generally applicable statutory criminal prohibition. The burden of proving an exemption to this generally applicable law is the defendant’s. MCL 776.20.
At 11:38 p.m. on June 18, 2022, three police officers observed the defendant walking near the intersection of Monroe and Beaubien Streets in Greektown. The officers noticed a bulge resembling a pistol under the defendant's T-shirt near his waistband. The officers approached the defendant and asked if he possessed a Concealed Pistol License (CPL). The defendant ignored the officers and walked away. The officers then conducted a Terry stop, promptly followed up with a Terry frisk by patting him down, and discovering a loaded pistol. The defendant did not disclose whether he had a CPL or any other lawful exemption to MCL 750.227, the police arrested the defendant, and the prosecutor charged the defendant for the CCW violation. The defendant did not have a CPL nor any other lawful exemption to the CCW statute.
At trial, the defendant moved to suppress the firearm, claiming that the police lacked a lawful justification for approaching and stopping him, and performing a warrantless search.
Under Michigan law, it is “plainly and unambiguously” a prima facie crime to carry a concealed weapon in public or a place open to the public, in violation of MCL 750.227. In the Williams case, it was a pistol that was being concealed on the defendant himself.
This court cited to prior precedent and noted that “concealment occurs when the pistol is not discernable by the ordinary observation of persons casually observing the person carrying it.” The court went on to state that absolute “invisibility of a weapon is not indispensable to concealment” and that the weapon “need not be totally concealed” to be in violation of MCL 750.227.
The court affirmed that it is generally unlawful (CCW) to carry a pistol concealed in in a belt or waistband such that the weapon cannot be readily seen.
Note: The Michigan Attorney General has opined that a holstered pistol carried openly and in plain view is not concealed. OAG No. 7101 (February 6, 2002). See MSP Legal Update No. 86 for a more detailed discussion regarding firearms laws, “open carry,” and concealed carry, as later updated by MSP Legal Update No. 163 for amendments regarding certain voting locations as prohibited premises under MCL 750.234d and amendments regarding updated language for firearms sales records under MCL 28.422 and MCL 28.422a.
Under Michigan law, it is a crime of general applicability and a presumptive felony to carry a concealed weapon in public or a place open to the public in violation of MCL 750.227. In other words, it is “plainly and unambiguously” a crime.
Under the Michigan Concealed Pistol License (CPL) law, MCL 28.425f permits a police officer to ask any person observed to be carrying a concealed pistol to produce his or her CPL, at any time and for any reason.
The Williams court held, that under Michigan law, a police officer who observes a bulge in a person’s clothing indicative of a concealed or hidden pistol has reasonable suspicion of crime afoot, such that the officer may approach that person and ask for proof of a CPL. In these circumstances, the police officer may engage in a Terry stop of the individual, as this qualifies as reasonable suspicion of crime afoot (CCW), such that the officer can detain the individual in order to quickly confirm or dispel their suspicions as to whether crime is or was occurring.
As a reminder, an individual licensed to carry a concealed pistol is required to have his or her license to carry that pistol in his or her possession at all times they are carrying a concealed pistol, and they shall show that concealed pistol license (and state-issued driver license or personal identification card) to a police officer upon request of that police officer. MCL 28.425f(1-2).
An individual licensed under the CPL statute, Act 372 of 1927, who is carrying a concealed pistol and who is stopped by a police officer shall immediately disclose to the police officer that he or she is carrying a pistol concealed upon his or her person or in his or her vehicle. MCL 28.425f(3).
Certain people may have a legal exemption to MCL 750.227(2) for carrying a concealed pistol. Some examples include individuals with a concealed pistol license (CPL) issued by the State of Michigan if they are a Michigan resident, or a CPL issued by another state in which they are a legal resident.
Other exemptions can include fully licensed police officers under Michigan law, police officers who qualify under the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (LEOSA), 18 USC Section 926B, or retired police officers who qualify under 18 USC Section 926C, or Federal Law enforcement officers, among others. See MCL 28.511, et seq.; MCL 750.231.
Officers should be aware that while the burden of proof for any violation of state law regarding the use, licensing, and possession of pistols or firearms remains with the government, the burden of establishing any exception, excuse, or exemption contained in such firearm laws rests solely with the individual alleged to have violated that law. MCL 776.20.
