Our Quiet Rise in Handguns (conceal carry)

Three years ago, a heated debate was raging about Michigan's plan to make it easier to get concealed weapons permits.

One side said more guns would make society safer from violent crime while the other said making concealed weapons permits easier to obtain was surely a recipe for disaster.

Law enforcement officers and local officials say Michigan's streets are no safer - or more dangerous - than they were three years ago when the law went into effect. But there have been no major incidents involving people with the permits. No accidental discharges. No murders. No anarchy.

"It's basically been a big ho-hum," said Joe Oberlee, who teaches a firearms class required of those seeking the permits. "The state has sure collected a lot of extra money, though."

In fact, if the cost of the application permit, $105, is multiplied with the number of licenses issued in 2003, 3,491, Oakland County alone has collected about $366,000. Oakland County, with a population of about 1.2 million, issues more permits than any other county, local officials say.

Compare that with the rest of the state, with 53,000 permits issued in 2002 - the latest figures available - and Michigan has collected more than $5 million a year since the law went into effect.

And while that may seem like a lot of money, the numbers do not take into account the work involved in granting a license - with extensive background checks and fingerprinting required.

With so many applicants, the reasons for wanting a permit are varied. Some applicants want to carry a concealed weapon on the job. Others want the security a weapon brings. Others just want to earn the permit, because they can, and have no intention of carrying it.

Ingrid Brown, 34, said she decided to get a permit after watching her husband get his certification. Her father is a retired police officer and a former U.S. Marine, so Brown said she grew up with a healthy respect for guns.

"I was raised around guns," she said. "I won't carry a weapon all the time, but I do want to protect my family. I have three children and they are my most valuable assets."

Before quitting to be a stay-at-home mom, Brown managed a drugstore and had to drop off large amounts of cash alone. She said she felt unsafe at times and wishes she had a permit then.

"I feel really confident in my skills and I know I won't use a weapon irresponsibly," she said.

Oberlee, who works out of the Oakland County Sportsman Club in Independence Township, said he thinks only law-abiding citizens are applying for permits.

"Most of my students don't even carry every day," he said. "The vast majority of people with (permits) respect guns and aren't into the whole vigilante thing."

While widespread instances of people abusing a concealed weapons permit haven't occurred, there has been at least one incident of someone with a permit using a gun illegally in Oakland County. In January, a Grosse Pointe man fired at another car on Interstate 75 near Madison Heights in an apparent case of road rage. The man had a permit to carry a concealed weapon. No one was injured.

There also are success stories. Earlier this year, a Farmington Hills woman - legally armed with a concealed handgun - potentially warded off an attack. Police tracked down the couple who tried to rob the woman, finding a loaded 9 mm handgun in their car. An acquaintance of the woman was arrested for helping to stage the attempted robbery.

Four years ago, the woman was robbed at gunpoint, prompting her to get a permit.

Farmington Hills Police Chief William Dwyer had been an outspoken critic of the law prior to the incident, but is rethinking his stance.

"I was really opposed to the law, originally," he said. "After this incident, I started rethinking my position. I guess I'd say I'm not opposed to it, although I still have reservations.

Thousands of Oakland County residents have permits to carry concealed weapons. Before the law took effect, just 1,300 permits a year were granted by the county's gun board.

According to Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard, 4,510 permits were issued in 2001; 4,634 in 2002; 3,491 in 2003; and 2,116 have been issued so far this year.

And, according to Oakland County Prosecutor David Gorcyca, in 2000 - the year before the law took effect - there were 235 violations recorded for those with permits to carry concealed weapons. In 2001, that number rose slightly to 243; in 2002, it spiked to 431; and in 2003, there were 257 violations recorded in the county. So far this year, 114 violations have been recorded.

Gorcyca said most of those violations are minor, for infractions such as being intoxicated while carrying a weapon or carrying a weapon without a license.

"We haven't seen a huge increase in offenses," he said. "It's already been three years. I don't think we'll ever see any increases."

Still, Gorcyca said that while there hasn't been a bump in gun crimes related to concealed weapons permits, he hasn't seen any data showing that the permits have made society any safer.

"Generally speaking, I'm not an advocate for more guns being out on the streets," he said. "But the statistics have shown there hasn't been any more violence.

Because there have been no major incidents, many local officials are calling the law a success. Lou Feurino, administrative manager for the Waterford Police Department, said he considers the law a good thing.

"It just hasn't been a problem," Feurino said. "When it first came out, people said everyone and their Aunt Sally would get one. But it wasn't that way. It's a very restrictive law and it is certainly not easy to get a permit.

Feurino, a retired cop who does not have a permit, said he thinks people who apply are generally good citizens.

"I don't think these people are the type to abuse the law," he said. "Actually, I think it makes people more responsible."

One key to the law's success is its restrictive nature: It's not easy to get a permit. And it is also no easy task to keep one. If someone with a permit gets caught driving drunk, the privilege is revoked.

"Criminals don't obey the law anyway and would never apply for a permit," Feurino said.

Bouchard said he is not surprised there weren't any incidents of people using concealed weapons to commit crimes.

"(The law) bore out what many people thought would happen," Bouchard said. "The majority of people have followed the rules. That has been a positive thing."

Prior to the concealed weapons law taking effect on July 1, 2001, Michigan's county gun boards pretty much made the final decision on who got a permit. The gun boards used discretion, mainly based on the needs of the applicant, to make the call. Gorcyca and several others resigned from their local gun boards, saying the new law denied them that discretion.

The new law spells out that anyone who meats a series of criteria can carry a concealed weapon, causing a large increase in applicants.

To get a permit, applicants must be 21, have lived in Michigan for six months, be a citizen or legal resident of the United States, successfully complete a gun safety course, not have a felony record or certain misdemeanors, not have a history of mental illness or not have been dishonorably discharged from the U.S. military.

With a permit, people can carry firearms almost anywhere. There are certain "gun-free zones," such as schools, churches, casinos and bars.

And while the license term was originally three years, meaning many of the permits issued in 2001 are now up for renewal, in 2003 the term was extended to five years. The fee to apply is $105.

In a recent certification class at the Oakland County Sportsman's Club, Oberlee was testing 14 men and women in their knowledge of firearms. Many members of the class were either friends or relatives - including a husband and wife and father and daughter. Most said they wanted to carry a concealed weapon for personal security reasons, although the majority said they would only carry on a limited basis.

"If I feel a situation or place is unsafe, I'll carry a firearm," said Jim Pubre, 44, of Clarkston. "I've been around guns all my life and I'm comfortable with them. I think I'm prepared to carry a weapon."

Permits and violations
Thousands of Oakland County residents have permits to carry concealed weapons. Before a new concealed weapons law took effect, just 1,300 permits a year were granted by the county's gun board. But since the law was passed, 4,510 permits were issued in 2001; 4,634 in 2002; 3,491 in 2003; and 2,116 have been issued so far this year.

In 2000 - the year before the law took effect - there were 235 violations recorded for those with permits to carry concealed weapons. In 2001, that number rose slightly to 243; in 2002, it spiked to 431; and in 2003, there were 257 violations recorded in the county. This year, 114 violations have been recorded.

there have been no major incidents involving people with the permits.

Not surprising. Criminal types aren't the types to go get permits.

The grabbers were afraid that otherwise good people who were allowed to carry wouldn't be able to restrain themselves from shooting others during heated exchanges that would normally result in a fistfight (at most). They were dead wrong, of course. Perhaps those grabbers are guilty of a little 'projection'. .....they don't trust themselves, and they project that fear onto others.

"And, according to Oakland County Prosecutor David Gorcyca, in 2000 - the year before the law took effect - there were 235 violations recorded for those with permits to carry concealed weapons. In 2001, that number rose slightly to 243; in 2002, it spiked to 431; and in 2003, there were 257 violations recorded in the county. So far this year, 114 violations have been recorded.

Gorcyca said most of those violations are minor, for infractions such as being intoxicated while carrying a weapon or carrying a weapon without a license."

This reporter is trying to slant the story. He is trying to make it look like gun violations went up after the concealed carry law went into effect. You don't see till the next paragraph that many of the violations were for no liscense.

I would like to know how many violations were actually issued to people that were liscenses. I would bet you could count them on one hand.

There is no way to actually measure the true number of crimes that don't happen due to concealed carry. You only hear about the ones that occur with weapons discharges.

Just flourishing a weapon and handling it knowledgeably is enough to deter most criminals, they leave and pick an easier target. I can personally attest to this. I didn't report it either.

Oakland County Prosecutor David Gorcyca...said..."People are, fortunately, acting responsibly."

Don't you just love it when government officials regard the average citizen's being responsible as a matter of luck?

There is no way to actually measure the true number of crimes that don't happen due to concealed carry. You only hear about the ones that occur with weapons discharges.

Lott's evidence shows a strong corrleation between CCW and a reduction in crime. And the data that each state keeps shows that CCW holders are significantly more law-abiding than the general population.

But even if that wasn't the case, a Free people still have the Right to Bear Arms, and the Right to self-defense.

There is no way to actually measure the true number of crimes that don't happen due to concealed carry

No, the "true" number cannot be measured. But it is possible to look at crime rates, and see if they've gone up or down, and compare them to nearby states with similar demographics but different laws. And largely, concealed carry has not done a great deal to change the crime rate. Regardless, it should be legal, because as American citizens self-defense is our birthright... but that is a political rather than pragmatic argument.

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