Open Carry Advocate Arrested On Suspicion Of Gun Threat

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A Wisconsin man who recently wrote a column in defense of his right to carry a pistol on his hip has been arrested on gun-related charges, according to The Wausau Daily Herald.

Dereck Simonsmeier, of Schofield, Wis., was in jail Thursday, after being arrested along with three other people following an incident the day before in which a man was allegedly threatened at gunpoint. The group got involved in a dispute between roommates in a private home. Simonsmeier and the other two men arrested were all allegedly armed, and charged with endangering safety.

Police recovered a .40-caliber Glock handgun, a 1300 Winchester 12-gauge shotgun, and a Remington 1911 handgun.

In a Feb. 10 column, Simonsmeier wrote about being asked to leave a Pick ‘N Save grocery store while carrying a Remington 1911 “in plain view on my belt.”

“I do not carry it to be tough or to start a fight,” he wrote in the column. “I carry it because it is my right and to protect the ones I love. Yet even with the welfare of others in mind, I am scrutinized and mocked for exercising my Second Amendment right.”

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