I don't know.......... and maybe our LEO members might chime in on what I'll say next.......but it seems to me that it isn't so much the gun that made the officer's eyes go wide, but the way the OP said it. This is what I would have done differently, and I have actually done this in other encounters with LEOs: Instead of announcing that "I have a gun," I would have quietly just handed both my TDL and CHL to the officer without comment, and let him ask, "are you armed?" He might have disarmed you anyway, but at least he would not be "startled" by your words. Or, he might have simply looked at the CHL, assumed you were armed, and been OK with it. But I think that by quietly informing him of your CHL status by simply handing him the CHL, it gives him the initiative and control, instead of requiring him to take the initiative and control. It just seems to me like that might slightly defuse the situation for him......at least with regard to you. Family disputes are always such unstable situations with the potential for so much violence that anything you can do to increase the officer's comfort with it seems like a good idea. At least that's my thought.Robert*PPS wrote:It sounds like prudent judgement from all parties involved. I also think it was great judgement on your part to inform the officer the way you did.
Prayers for you and your family.
BTW, I am really sorry about your divorce.