Gunners762
02-28-2007, 12:01 AM
CITY OF MANASSAS, Va. -- A group in Virginia had a run-in with police when they went to a pizza parlor in the City of Manassas with guns on their sides.
The incident happened Jan. 18 at Tony's New York Pizza. Seven members of a group called opencarry.org met at the restaurant for dinner and to talk about their support for gun rights. Each man was armed, and although they had permits to carry a concealed weapon, they displayed their guns openly on their hips.
http://opencarry.mywowbb.com/forum54/1571-1.html
Virginia law requires them to do that in a place that serves alcohol.
Co-owner Joe D'Agostino, who was working that night told NBC4 some officers walked in and said some customers had complained.
"The officers came in and they told us they had received a call saying there were these armed men," D'Agostino said. "I'm not exactly sure from whom. They told us at that point we were the business owners and it was our choice whether we wanted the men to stay or if we wanted them to leave."
More than 100 gun-rights supporters packed the Manassas City Council chambers Monday night. They complained that the Manassas City police harassed the seven Tony's Pizza diners.
Philip Van Cleave of the Virginia Citizens Defense League said, "And the problem we have here is, we have police who went up to a restaurant owner, knowing they had nothing on the people sitting there and coerced them into getting them to leave."
D'Agostino said he supports everyone's rights until it interferes with his right to run a business.
"Do you need a gun to come here to Tony's, I don't think so," he said.
An internal police investigation is under way, NBC4 reported. It includes text message type e-mails that the officers allegedly sent between themselves that night, referring to the gun owners in some very derogatory terms.
The incident happened Jan. 18 at Tony's New York Pizza. Seven members of a group called opencarry.org met at the restaurant for dinner and to talk about their support for gun rights. Each man was armed, and although they had permits to carry a concealed weapon, they displayed their guns openly on their hips.
http://opencarry.mywowbb.com/forum54/1571-1.html
Virginia law requires them to do that in a place that serves alcohol.
Co-owner Joe D'Agostino, who was working that night told NBC4 some officers walked in and said some customers had complained.
"The officers came in and they told us they had received a call saying there were these armed men," D'Agostino said. "I'm not exactly sure from whom. They told us at that point we were the business owners and it was our choice whether we wanted the men to stay or if we wanted them to leave."
More than 100 gun-rights supporters packed the Manassas City Council chambers Monday night. They complained that the Manassas City police harassed the seven Tony's Pizza diners.
Philip Van Cleave of the Virginia Citizens Defense League said, "And the problem we have here is, we have police who went up to a restaurant owner, knowing they had nothing on the people sitting there and coerced them into getting them to leave."
D'Agostino said he supports everyone's rights until it interferes with his right to run a business.
"Do you need a gun to come here to Tony's, I don't think so," he said.
An internal police investigation is under way, NBC4 reported. It includes text message type e-mails that the officers allegedly sent between themselves that night, referring to the gun owners in some very derogatory terms.