It has been a while since I have addressed some if the issues with formal Emcomm, and still unresolved is simple plain old personal physical security.
A lot of the explicit “no weapons allowed, whether or not you have a Concealed Carry Permit or other Authorization” language of ten years ago has disappeared from the publicly available ARES/RACES documentation, though there hasn’t been any gains in a commitment or open plans to provide physical security for operators.
Active ARES/RACES folk continue to tell me that their leadership continue to say “no way” to operators being armed.
I reached out to Kyle Schaefer, KC9SDK, Section Emergency Coordinator (Wisconsin) as I’ve known Kyle & his family for years and as the SEC I’d be certain to get the straight information.
Alas I’ve never heard back from Kyle KC9SDK WI SEC. Thinking a week would be enough to either answer or acknowledge the information request?
So time to role up one’s sleeves and do research.
Seems the ARRL ARES/RACES world moved through a cycle where perhaps 15 years ago personal weapons were a personal responsibility, then including some fairly in-your-face language it went to a No Weapons Allowed policy, and after years of push back appears to have relented to allowing what is legal.
This appears to mean that the individual complies with the situational rules, rather than an across the board prohibition. As an ARES/RACES operator is not made into a Law Enforcement Officer (LEO) by ARES/RACES they wouldn’t gain any LEO rights, such as firearm carry authorizations where civilian carry is prohibited.
Nor does the ARRL ARES/RACES specifically appear to Authorize the individual operator to exercise their legal firearms/weapons rights. They seem to have largely pulled their hands off of the “third rail” of broad brush firearm prohibitions.
Your Mileage May Vary (YMMV) and my post isn’t the legal advice you need to make your own decisions.
But it does seem that the strongly worded across the board prohibition has softened.
73
Steve
K9ZW