E.D.Va.: In an open carry state, more than presence of a gun is required for RS, and here the officers had it

In an open carry state, more is required for reasonable suspicion, and here it was present. “The Court finds that, by the time Officer Gohn saw the firearm in plain view on the floorboard of the Chevy Cobalt and verbally confronted the Defendant about it, he had reasonable, articulable suspicion to justify a Terry stop of Defendant. To be sure, in states like Virginia where individuals are permitted to openly carry firearms, ‘the exercise of this right, without more, cannot justify an investigatory detention.’ United States v. Black, 707 F.3d 531, 540 (4th Cir. 2013). But here, there were several articulable facts – beyond the mere presence of the unconcealed firearm – that were within Officer Gohn’s knowledge that justifiably aroused his suspicion that criminal activity was afoot.” United States v. Brown, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 125141 (E.D. Va. July 26, 2019).