Jan. 15, 2014
Photo courtesy concealedwisconsin.com
On the surface, John Filippidis seems to be just the kind of responsible gun owner who should carry a concealed firearm. He’s a family man, small business owner and taxpayer who takes the responsibility of gun ownership seriously.
However, he’s now considering canceling his concealed carry permit after what happened to him while driving through Maryland with his wife and three kids a few weeks ago.
According to Filippidis and his wife, Kally, they noticed an unmarked patrol car tailing them while traveling for Christmas and a family wedding in Woodridge, N.J. He claims the police car stayed with them for ten minutes.
“We weren’t speeding. In fact, lots of other cars were whizzing past,” Filippidis told the Tampa Tribune.
Eventually, the car’s emergency lights came on and he pulled the car over. The officer was reportedly with the Transportation Authority Police, “Maryland’s version of the New York-New Jersey Port Authority,” according to the report.
It should be noted that what happened next is the account of Filippidis and his wife. The Maryland Transportation Authority Police declined to comment, pending an investigation. However, Filippidis says he has received apologies from the officer’s captain and the MTAP internal affairs captain.
The officer reportedly asked Filippidis for his license and registration before returning to his patrol car. When he returned, the officer ordered the father out of his vehicle and told him to hook his thumbs behind his back and spread his feet.
Filippidis says he keeps a “palm-sized Kel-Tec .38 semiautomatic” pistol in only two places: in the right-hand pocket of his jeans or at home locked in a safe. On this particular day, it was in the safe.
“You own a gun,” the officer reportedly said. “Where is it?”