Proponents Say Practice Cuts Crime; Police Raise Concern
Jack Nicas and Ashby Jones
The Wall Street Journal
7/4/2013
A growing number of Americans are getting permission to carry firearms in public—and under their clothes—a development that has sparked concern among some law-enforcement authorities.
Applications for “concealed-carry” permits are soaring in many states, some of which recently eased permit requirements. The numbers are driven in part by concern that renewed gun-control efforts soon could constrain access to weapons, along with heightened interest in self-defense in the wake of mass killings in Newtown, Conn., and Aurora, Colo…
…Ten states require applicants to show “good cause” to get a permit. But 39 states—10 more than in 2002—grant permits to anyone who meets a few basic requirements, such as a clean criminal record and proof of residency.
Residents of Alaska, Arizona, Wyoming and Vermont don’t need permits to carry a concealed weapon. In 2002, that was the case only in Vermont…
…While Connecticut, Colorado, California, New York, Delaware and Maryland have tightened gun restrictions this year, at least 20 states have loosened laws on concealed-carry, according to the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, which tracks and advocates for gun-control laws. States have streamlined the permit process, made concealed-carry records confidential or lifted bans on carrying concealed firearms in many public places.
Texas stopped requiring concealed-carry permit holders to undergo training to renew their licenses, West Virginia stopped requiring background checks for permit renewals, and Louisiana introduced lifetime permits.
Andrew Arulanandam, a spokesman for the National Rifle Association, said: “Crime can happen anywhere, and it’s reasonable for people to have an effective means of defending themselves and their loved ones.”
The complete article is at The Wall Street Journal.
Related: Seventy-two killed resisting gun confiscation in Boston An historical account worth reading.
Update: Colorado Democrats fail to stave off gun control-based recall efforts
Two Colorado Democratic lawmakers facing recall elections for their support of the state’s strict new gun control laws failed in separate attempts to block or slow their recall elections Wednesday.
The secretary of state’s office ruled against Senate President John Morse of Colorado Springs, who wanted his recall effort invalidated because of a technical error by his opponents.
Deputy secretary of state Suzanne Staiert also rejected a request by Democratic Sen. Angela Giron of Pueblo to have her recall challenge shifted to a new venue because she said Republican Secretary of State Scott Gessler wouldn’t fairly decide her case.
The twin decisions mean appeals and more legal wrangling over what could be the first state legislative recall elections in Colorado history…
