STATE OF MICHIGAN

JENNIFER M. GRANHOLM, ATTORNEY GENERAL

A reserve police officer, by carrying a handgun in a holster that is in plain view, does not violate section 234e of the Michigan Penal Code, which prohibits brandishing a firearm in public.

Opinion No. 7101

February 6, 2002

Honorable Bill Bullard, Jr.
State Senator
The Capitol
Lansing, MI

You have asked if a reserve police officer, by carrying a handgun in a holster that is in plain view, violates section 234e of the Michigan Penal Code, which prohibits brandishing a firearm in public.

The Michigan Penal Code, MCL 750.1 et seq, revises, consolidates, and codifies the state's criminal statutes. Section 234e(1) of the Code criminalizes¹ the brandishing of a firearm in public as follows:

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2), a person shall not knowingly brandish a firearm in public.

Subsection (2) of the same section states that "[s]ubsection (1) does not apply to . . . [a] peace officer lawfully performing his or her duties as a peace officer."

The term "peace officer" refers to members of governmental police forces who have been given broad, general authority by law to enforce and preserve the public peace. People v Bissonette, 327 Mich 349, 356; 42 NW2d 113 (1950). Most governmental police officers, i.e., officers who are employed by the state or its political subdivisions, possess such authority and are, therefore, "peace officers." 1 OAG, 1955, No 1891, p 72 (February 24, 1955); 2 OAG, 1958, No 3212, p 60 (February 21, 1958). Conversely, police officers such as motor carrier enforcement officers who possess only restricted or special enforcement authority do not meet this standard and therefore do not qualify as "peace officers." People v Bissonette, supra; OAG, 1987-1988, No 6530, p 362 (August 5, 1988). Thus, a reserve police officer with limited law enforcement authority would not qualify as a "peace officer" under subsection 2 of section 234e of the Michigan Penal Code. A reserve police officer with general law enforcement authority who is regularly employed would qualify as a "peace officer" under subsection (2) of section 234e. See OAG, 1973-1974, No 4792, p 78 (August 27, 1973), and OAG, 1979-1980, No 5806, p 1055 (October 28, 1980).

Section 234e of the Michigan Penal Code does not define the crime of brandishing a firearm in public. The Michigan Criminal Jury Instructions, published by the Committee on Standard Criminal Jury Instructions, does not include a recommended jury instruction on brandishing a firearm. Research discloses that while the term "brandishing" appears in reported Michigan cases,²  none of the cases define the term.

In the absence of any reported Michigan appellate court decisions defining "brandishing," it is appropriate to rely upon dictionary definitions. People v Denio, 454 Mich 691, 699; 564 NW2d 13 (1997). According to The American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition (1982), at p 204, the term brandishing is defined as: "1. To wave or flourish menacingly, as a weapon. 2. To display ostentatiously. �n. A menacing or defiant wave or flourish." This definition comports with the meaning ascribed to this term by courts of other jurisdictions. For example, in United States v Moerman, 233 F3d 379, 380 (CA 6, 2000), the court recognized that in federal sentencing guidelines, "brandishing" a weapon is defined to mean "that the weapon was pointed or waved about, or displayed in a threatening manner."

Applying these definitions to your question, it is clear that a reserve police officer, regardless whether he or she qualifies as a "peace officer," when carrying a handgun in a holster in plain view, is not waving or displaying the firearm in a threatening manner. Thus, such conduct does not constitute brandishing a firearm in violation of section 234e of the Michigan Penal Code.

It is my opinion, therefore, that a reserve police officer, by carrying a handgun in a holster that is in plain view, does not violate section 234e of the Michigan Penal Code, which prohibits brandishing a firearm in public.

JENNIFER M. GRANHOLM
Attorney General

¹Violation of this section is a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for up to 90 days, or a fine of not more than $100, or both.

² See, for example: People v Jones, 443 Mich 88, 90; 504 NW2d 158 (1993), People v Kreger, 214 Mich App 549, 552; 543 NW2d 55 (1995), and People v Stubbs, 15 Mich App 453, 455; 166 NW2d 477 (1968).