Need advice, travelling to State of Washington

[K.Mooneyham]

So, I am heading off to the State of Washington (Seattle area, but not that city) on a very necessary business trip. They do NOT have reciprocity with Texas due to our issue of LTC to those under 21 (military). Also, you cannot have a loaded firearm in your vehicle without a permit/license. Open carry is legal but it has to be fully visible (inadvertent cover counts as concealed), and there is still the issue of not loaded in the vehicle. Finally, there is no state knife pre-emption law, so the cities there have extremely stringent knife laws in many cases (less than three inches, etc). I do plan on buying some "bear strength" pepper spray as that isn't banned there, strangely enough.

I am concerned because of the current political climate, and the large number of drug abusers that area is reported to have.

Any useful tips, advice, whatever from those who are familiar with Washington laws and the general conditions there will be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

[Mike S]

It's been 5 years since I was there, but if there's a "21 years old beyond this point" sign, as in the bar area of a restaurant, I believe carry is prohibited.

If you're going to be around the Tacoma area, watch yourself around the mall. One of the spouses in our unit was mugged around Christmas time, circa 2010 or so (offenders were both male & female).

I'd suggest Googling the Washington State Highway Patrol website for ​whatever the most current laws are, & the Spot Crime website (or something similar) for current high crime areas.

[RoyGBiv]

if your business visits to WA are going to be a regular thing, get yourself a UT permit.

[K.Mooneyham]

if your business visits to WA are going to be a regular thing, get yourself a UT permit.

Used to have one. Never used it and it expired in 2015. Now I feel dumb for not renewing it.

[ninjabread]

A nonresident Washington concealed pistol license is another option but takes 60 days
http://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/sheriff ... s/gun.aspx

[TexasJohnBoy]

http://www.handgunlaw.us/states/washington.pdf

[chasfm11]

If I'm reading Handgunlaw. US correctly, Washington honors non-resident licenses from the States that they honor. Utah is one of those States. While I know that it takes time to get a Utah license, there were LTC instructors in Texas that were certified the teach the 4 hour course that was required at one time. Perhaps after the changes to the Utah license that required you to have a license from your home State, all of that dried up. But it might be worth a try.

Update: Crossfire's website still shows Utah CFP on the list.

[Soccerdad1995]

It's been 5 years since I was there, but if there's a "21 years old beyond this point" sign, as in the bar area of a restaurant, I believe carry is prohibited.

If you're going to be around the Tacoma area, watch yourself around the mall. One of the spouses in our unit was mugged around Christmas time, circa 2010 or so (offenders were both male & female).

I'd suggest Googling the Washington State Highway Patrol website for ​whatever the most current laws are, & the Spot Crime website (or something similar) for current high crime areas.

about Tacoma. There are some very bad areas there. It's been 10 years since I escaped to Texas from the Seattle / Tacoma area, but anywhere in that area south of Seattle was potentially dangerous when I was there. Federal Way, Renton, etc. There are a lot of casinos including small "card rooms" that are particularly dangerous places to visit. The east side (Bellevue and Redmond) is comparatively safer than either North or South from my dated experience.

If you do venture into Seattle itself, be particularly alert anywhere south of downtown like the area near the football and baseball stadiums. There are a lot of homeless folks living in that area. Also, don't jay walk. The LEO's in Seattle will give you a ticket, and may take you into custody if you don't have ID. For some reason, they are much more stringent on enforcing that law than most anywhere else I have been in the world.