Guns + Roommates using Marijuana

[DocV]

I am not certain we are making much traction here.

Frankly, from the OP's postings on this board about this situation, I question if they are mature enough to bear the responsibility of gun ownership and having a LTC. The issues are clear. The legality of the OP's roommates alleged activities are clear. The only think lacking clarity is whether or not the OP is willing to actually face the situation and make a decision to either narc their roommates, move out, or kick the bums out. This wishy-washy "moving out is not an option" is a cop out. OP - make a mature decision and take action. If you are not strong enough to take the high road, you really need to do deep thinking about your value system. Welcome to the adult world.

[Dave2]

Moving is not an option until the end of the semester in May. I simply cannot go through that process right now and maintain focus on school.

Have some friends move your stuff, if you don't have time yourself. Get your professors to cut you some slack if you need it, and if they say no ask them (and the dean) why they're so bent keeping you in a criminal environment or something... doesn't matter, just get out of there!

[priusron]

It sounds like some of you are getting upset that he is not taking your advice. He doesn't have to take your advice just because he aske for it. What if he reported his roommates and one of them was a dealer with connections? I understand his apprehensiveness. He is smart for not introducing a firearm into the situation. He is going to move out next month. $7000 is a lot of money to a student, it is to me too. I understand his u willingness to walk away from it. He probably can't afford it.

I would spend as little time in my apartment as possible. If my door didn't have a lock, I would install one. He could replace the door knob with a better one. I would also install a hidden camera in my room and also in the common area. It may provide evidence at a much needed time.

Welcome to the forum and I hope things work out for you. I can't give you good advice because there are too many unknowns.

[LucasMcCain]

The only advice I have that I haven't seen someone else give is to check your lease carefully. I've lived in a lot of apartments, and most of them would require an extra month's rent if breaking the lease, but not the rest of the year's rent. Many apartment complexes offer the first month free, or very cheap, so there would be little cost to move in to the new place. Also, regardless of what the lease says, if you go talk to the apartment manager, they may work with you to get you out of there sooner, just make sure if the first person you talk to can't help you, you ask for the actual complex manager. They have more leeway than just the normal office people. You don't have to narc on your roommates, you can just say that you aren't getting along and you've decided to get your own place. Many times, just being super extra polite and friendly can go a long way with apartment management.

From someone who spent many years living in apartments with roommates, all of whom were less responsible than me, I can tell you that you will be happier living by yourself. As soon as you get your own apartment, you will find yourself asking why you waited so long to do so. All that said, you have my sympathy for your situation. May you get out of it cleanly, regardless of what you decide to do. Hope this helps.

[rbwhatever1]

Guns or not I wouldn't jeopardize my Liberty or my right to bear arms by staying in this situation for one second.

Good luck with your move I hope all goes well for you. We huddled masses need as many armed Americans as we can get...

[The Annoyed Man]

It sounds like some of you are getting upset that he is not taking your advice. He doesn't have to take your advice just because he aske for it. What if he reported his roommates and one of them was a dealer with connections? I understand his apprehensiveness. He is smart for not introducing a firearm into the situation. He is going to move out next month. $7000 is a lot of money to a student, it is to me too. I understand his u willingness to walk away from it. He probably can't afford it.

I would spend as little time in my apartment as possible. If my door didn't have a lock, I would install one. He could replace the door knob with a better one. I would also install a hidden camera in my room and also in the common area. It may provide evidence at a much needed time.

Welcome to the forum and I hope things work out for you. I can't give you good advice because there are too many unknowns.

Oh heck, I'm not upset at all. I don't think anyone else is either. I'll sleep just fine whether or not the OP goes to jail, whether he stays or moves, whether or not he takes any of the advice he's gotten here. I don't care if he likes it or not, or whether he takes it or not. He asked a question, I gave him my best response, as did the others. None of us has anything invested in the outcome. Whatever he does with the opinions he asked for is on him.

[TexasJohnBoy]

The only advice I have that I haven't seen someone else give is to check your lease carefully. I've lived in a lot of apartments, and most of them would require an extra month's rent if breaking the lease, but not the rest of the year's rent. Many apartment complexes offer the first month free, or very cheap, so there would be little cost to move in to the new place. Also, regardless of what the lease says, if you go talk to the apartment manager, they may work with you to get you out of there sooner, just make sure if the first person you talk to can't help you, you ask for the actual complex manager. They have more leeway than just the normal office people. You don't have to narc on your roommates, you can just say that you aren't getting along and you've decided to get your own place. Many times, just being super extra polite and friendly can go a long way with apartment management.

From someone who spent many years living in apartments with roommates, all of whom were less responsible than me, I can tell you that you will be happier living by yourself. As soon as you get your own apartment, you will find yourself asking why you waited so long to do so. All that said, you have my sympathy for your situation. May you get out of it cleanly, regardless of what you decide to do. Hope this helps.

I haven't leased in a while but when I did it was normal for them to charge you for breaking it, and then continue to charge rent until they re-lease the unit. Because you were going to pay them for 12 months and every month the unit is empty they are losing the much cash that you had agreed to lease for.

I can see it being a difficult situation for the OP, but not impossible. I do hope that you won't be scared off by the tough love/bad news that is coming from this thread. It is a difficult situation that you are in, I won't discount that one bit. But, I do believe that it's in your best interest in the long term to find a way out in the short term.

All it takes is one noise complaint on a Saturday night when they are smoking out on the balcony and you're screwed to the proverbial wall.

[tbrown]

If you want to move, here's my suggestion.

Get evidence of marijuana use. A nanny cam is ideal. Smartphone video works but more tricky to be covert.

Go to management and request a room reassignment. If pressed, say you want a non-smoking room. If they refuse reassignment to a non-smoking room, say you don't want to make trouble... will they let you out of the lease, since they can't provide a non-smoking room? You don't have to say what your roommates are smoking and probably better if you don't.

If they deny both requests, the next step is to post the video on every social media you can access with comments that the apartment management condones drug use. Because it's true. Then maybe they will negotiate.

If it's university housing, so much the better.

[ScottDLS]

What about all the college kids drinking underage in their apartments, and buying beer for minors? Do you think just because Austin PD hasn't gone on a major crackdown on this that it's not going to bite people like OP. It's a crime! Do you want to take the chance of having a LTC while living with degenerate 20 year olds who drink malt liquor?

Even if OP is 21 and doesn't drink or do drugs he could conceivably be hit with a violation for carrying while intoxicated from the contact high. The determination is 100% up to the cop to decide and you could even take the ride for a low dose aspirin.

OP should immediately report his roommates to the DEA and Texas Rangers and then apply to be a confidential informant in return for immunity from the crimes he is committing by living with stoners.

Breaking the lease is the least of his worries, when you compare to the kingpin statutes that the DEA will indict him under for having LTC and living with stoners. The death penalty applies when they tie the marajuana residue on a table with OP's fingerprints hence implicating him in Sinaloa Cartel murders.

It's all fun and games until you do 30 years in a SuperMax because the feds found a seed in your ball cap. I desperately hope that the original poster take the wise counsel of those of us with a half century or more of life under our belts. He should seriously consider a 12 step program to break the horrible addiction of walking past rope smokers...and to apologize to all the people's lives he has irreparably damaged by "allowing" his acquaintances to partake of the devil weed.

I pray his soul is not too far gone for redemption. Give the LTC back to the state and break the lease, young man. Only when you have completely redeemed yourself may you continue in the esteemed company of us who have been granted the great privilege and responsibility of carrying a handgun on or about our person in Texas.

[MAGAManofATX]

If I broke my lease I would have to pay the entire lease's worth of rent.

I'm not going to drop everything, break my lease, and move. Sorry, folks. You've given me plenty of reasonable and well supported advice.

I asked for my rights regarding the legality of having my firearm in my possession in this situation - I got some of that. Enough to support the decision I was already leaning towards - leaving my firearm at home. I mostly received a lecture about drugs. Many of you have been long enough removed from college life to understand that being around people who use drugs is a fact of life. I wish I could own my own home, have my own space, and make my own rules - at this time I cannot. It's a good thing the State has the authority to issue licenses, and not this forum.

"You're not responsible enough", "Give back the LTC" and "Just get out!" are useless and often unnecessarily antagonistic. Uprooting my entire situation would disrupt my education greatly. I can't sublease a student apartment after the semester has started. I need that money to pay tuition and graduate, which is a larger focus in my life than my LTC and firearms. I will begin carrying over the summer when I am in a clean environment.

I'm not bringing my firearm. I'm making the most responsible decisions I can, aside from actually uprooting myself. I thank you all for your advice!

[2farnorth]

If I broke my lease I would have to pay the entire lease's worth of rent.

I'm not going to drop everything, break my lease, and move. Sorry, folks. You've given me plenty of reasonable and well supported advice.

I asked for my rights regarding the legality of having my firearm in my possession in this situation - I got some of that. Enough to support the decision I was already leaning towards - leaving my firearm at home. I mostly received a lecture about drugs. Many of you have been long enough removed from college life to understand that being around people who use drugs is a fact of life. I wish I could own my own home, have my own space, and make my own rules - at this time I cannot. It's a good thing the State has the authority to issue licenses, and not this forum.

"You're not responsible enough", "Give back the LTC" and "Just get out!" are useless and often unnecessarily antagonistic. Uprooting my entire situation would disrupt my education greatly. I can't sublease a student apartment after the semester has started. I need that money to pay tuition and graduate, which is a larger focus in my life than my LTC and firearms. I will begin carrying over the summer when I am in a clean environment.

I'm not bringing my firearm. I'm making the most responsible decisions I can, aside from actually uprooting myself. I thank you all for your advice!

I agree that we have been piling on a bit much. I wish you the best and hope it all works out in your favor. You are between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Stay in touch.

[RPBrown]

If I broke my lease I would have to pay the entire lease's worth of rent.

I'm not going to drop everything, break my lease, and move. Sorry, folks. You've given me plenty of reasonable and well supported advice.

I asked for my rights regarding the legality of having my firearm in my possession in this situation - I got some of that. Enough to support the decision I was already leaning towards - leaving my firearm at home. I mostly received a lecture about drugs. Many of you have been long enough removed from college life to understand that being around people who use drugs is a fact of life. I wish I could own my own home, have my own space, and make my own rules - at this time I cannot. It's a good thing the State has the authority to issue licenses, and not this forum.

"You're not responsible enough", "Give back the LTC" and "Just get out!" are useless and often unnecessarily antagonistic. Uprooting my entire situation would disrupt my education greatly. I can't sublease a student apartment after the semester has started. I need that money to pay tuition and graduate, which is a larger focus in my life than my LTC and firearms. I will begin carrying over the summer when I am in a clean environment.

I'm not bringing my firearm. I'm making the most responsible decisions I can, aside from actually uprooting myself. I thank you all for your advice!

Just curious, what would be your room mates reaction if you asked them to voluntarily not bring the weed into the house? If you explain this to them and IF they are friends, they would understand and honor your request. If they are not friends, then you have a long road ahead of you in living in that environment.

[Pariah3j]

So I just read through most of this "discussion"... several of you were being real jerks. 'Good advice' that is not applicable to the situation at hand, is not really all that helpful or good. I noted several weren't reading the OPs responses (or at least severely misreading) or were making alot of assumptions and jumping to some outlandish conclusions.

This idea that the OP could just move, was pretty childish and or overly simplistic. I have a full time job, make pretty decent money and I'd have a hard time breaking my lease and being on the hook for 3 months rent. Now factor in the fact that most of the student housing leases don't work the same way, you either find someone to take over your part of the lease or your on the hook for the full thing. Factor that in with most student's being on a fixed income, the ability to make major financially life changing decisions like that aren't very realistic or smart.

To the OP - since this is student type housing, and the people you are rooming with wasn't your choice, you were paired with them - is it possible to change rooms/apartments with someone else who is willing ? One of my brothers did this recently due to some conflicts w/ a room-mate, maybe you could find more like minded room mates to move in with doing something like that ?

[mojo84]

So I just read through most of this "discussion"... several of you were being real jerks. 'Good advice' that is not applicable to the situation at hand, is not really all that helpful or good. I noted several weren't reading the OPs responses (or at least severely misreading) or were making alot of assumptions and jumping to some outlandish conclusions.

This idea that the OP could just move, was pretty childish and or overly simplistic. I have a full time job, make pretty decent money and I'd have a hard time breaking my lease and being on the hook for 3 months rent. Now factor in the fact that most of the student housing leases don't work the same way, you either find someone to take over your part of the lease or your on the hook for the full thing. Factor that in with most student's being on a fixed income, the ability to make major financially life changing decisions like that aren't very realistic or smart.

To the OP - since this is student type housing, and the people you are rooming with wasn't your choice, you were paired with them - is it possible to change rooms/apartments with someone else who is willing ? One of my brothers did this recently due to some conflicts w/ a room-mate, maybe you could find more like minded room mates to move in with doing something like that ?

More useless advice based on the OP's comments. He said he isn't able to handle the disruption of moving right now. By the way, doesn't finding someone to take over one's part of a lease or changing apartments with someone else involve moving? He said moving is not an option.

Thanks for chastising folks and then making the same type of recommendation you said aren't realistic. Looks like you joined the same club you accused others of being a member.

[Bitter Clinger]

So I just read through most of this "discussion"... several of you were being real [abbreviated profanity deleted.]. 'Good advice' that is not applicable to the situation at hand, is not really all that helpful or good. I noted several weren't reading the OPs responses (or at least severely misreading) or were making alot of assumptions and jumping to some outlandish conclusions.

This idea that the OP could just move, was pretty childish and or overly simplistic. I have a full time job, make pretty decent money and I'd have a hard time breaking my lease and being on the hook for 3 months rent. Now factor in the fact that most of the student housing leases don't work the same way, you either find someone to take over your part of the lease or your on the hook for the full thing. Factor that in with most student's being on a fixed income, the ability to make major financially life changing decisions like that aren't very realistic or smart.

To the OP - since this is student type housing, and the people you are rooming with wasn't your choice, you were paired with them - is it possible to change rooms/apartments with someone else who is willing ? One of my brothers did this recently due to some conflicts w/ a room-mate, maybe you could find more like minded room mates to move in with doing something like that ?

More useless advice based on the OP's comments. He said he isn't able to handle the disruption of moving right now. By the way, doesn't finding someone to take over one's part of a lease or changing apartments with someone else involve moving? He said moving is not an option.

Thanks for chastising folks and then making the same type of recommendation you said aren't realistic. Looks like you joined the same club you accused others of being a member.

mojo, you nailed it buddy!