The myriad of firearm laws facing the gun owner of the early twenty-first century 
can be especially intimidating when traveling outside one's own state. Many a horror 
story exists in which the unwary, nonresident traveler is arrested on a firearms felony 
charge for a violation that wouldn't qualify as a misdemeanor in the traveler's home state. 
A routine traffic stop suddenly degenerates into a nightmare journey through the criminal 
justice system. The unsuspecting traveler is hauled off to jail and forced to await the 
intervention of an attorney while his vehicle is searched and later impounded.

            One story which typifies the humiliation of such a situation occurred several years 
ago on the New Jersey turnpike. A businessman from North Carolina was traveling to 
Maine via New Jersey when he was stopped by a New Jersey state trooper for a speeding 
violation. During the routine questioning, the trooper asked the North Carolina man if he 
had any firearms in the vehicle. Having a concealed carry permit from North Carolina, 
the traveler assumed he was operating well within the law. He told the trooper that he 
had a Glock 19 semi-automatic pistol in his briefcase which he was licensed to carry and 
would be more than happy to allow the trooper to inspect it. Before the traveler could 
utter another word, the trooper had drawn his sidearm, pointed it at the traveler and began 
shouting at the man to exit the vehicle at once with his hands in the air. The stunned 
businessman, who had never had so much as a parking ticket, did as the officer 
demanded. He soon found himself spread eagle on the ground while the agitated trooper 
called for assistance. In the days after his arrest, the traveler was charged with a felony 
and spent three days in a Newark jail. He was eventually placed in a diversion program 
while the felony charge was pled down to a misdemeanor. But if the traveler had not 
possessed such an exemplary prior record, he may have faced the original felony and 
prison time. In traveling through New Jersey, the traveler failed to take into account the 
radical difference in legal firearms carry from his native state of North Carolina. Such a 
lapse could have cost him much more than it did.

            The following guide is designed to prevent the occurrence of such an incident by 
providing the traveler with a general statement of the legal pitfalls one may encounter 
while transporting or carrying his firearms from state to state. Beginning with Alabama 
and continuing in alphabetical order through Wyoming, each state is afforded one page of 
explanation pertaining to the firearm laws most relevant to the traveler. The District of 
Columbia, Canada, and Mexico are also comprehensively covered. A graphic illustration 
of how each state is rated for its treatment of firearms is displayed in the top margin of 
each page. This provides the reader with a quick reference for use when time is of the 
essence. Vehicle carry and transport of firearms, concealed carry and reciprocity for non-
resident licensees, and laws governing possession of various types of firearms such as 
machine guns and semi-automatic "assault weapons" are covered in a user friendly format 
designed to inform the traveler of what he can expect in each state.

            In using this guide, the reader should be aware of the definitional aspects of 
certain terms commonly employed in the text. The phrase "shall issue" is often used to 
describe the concealed carry law of various states. "Shall issue" refers to the statutory 
language evident within the actual law. States with "shall issue" status are jurisdictions 
where the issuance of a license to carry concealed is not dependent upon the discretion 
of a local law enforcement officer. If an applicant satisfies a number of objective criteria 
(ie. no felony record, no record of mental defect, etc.) and completes whatever training 
course is mandated by the law, the applicant must be issued a license regardless of what 
the issuing authority personally thinks of the individual. Most states with concealed carry 
laws operate their licensing procedure in this manner. The recent flurry of interest in 
concealed carry laws has also forced some states which formerly had discretionary 
issuance to amend their laws to make them "shall issue.".............................................

                   (Introduction is continued for several more pages in book)