Free Republic

Starting on 5 February, 2014, the Scott County, Iowa  Sheriff's Department has instituted an innovative and convenient way for Iowa residents to obtain their firearms carry permit or pistol purchase permit.   Under Iowa law, a person must have a permit to carry a firearm before they can carry one, either openly or concealed.   They are also required to obtain a permit to purchase a pistol before purchasing one, either from a dealer or privately.  While these requirements are a little unusual (most states do not require a permit to carry firearms openly, and only a few require a permit...

A small but significant reform has made it out of committee in Colorado.  In many states, in order to pass  "shall issue" concealed carry permit laws, irrational restrictions were included in the law to obtain the votes necessary.   Colorado was one of these states.   In Colorado, once you had obtained a permit to carry a gun under your coat or in a pocket, you could only renew your permit in the county where you originally applied for the permit.  If you changed your residence from Moffat county in the northwest, to Baca county in the southeast, you would have...

January 31, 2014 (CHICAGO) -- Police across Illinois have objected to just 236 applications from people seeking to carry concealed weapons out of 33,631 submitted to the state police.

COLUMBUS — School districts that designate teachers and other personnel to carry hidden firearms must undergo pretraining and a psychological assessment after the fact if they use the weapon under a bill that passed the House with bipartisan support Wednesday. But opponents objected to provisions to take the issue off the collective bargaining table and questioned the wisdom of arming teachers in classrooms. “[House Bill 8] does not arm employees,” the bill’s chief sponsor, Kristina Roegner (R., Hudson), said. “Current law allows that to happen.” The bill would add off-duty law officers to those exempted from a ban on carrying...

Idaho would join a handful of states that allow students, teachers and others to bring guns to class under a measure resurrected by gun advocates in the Legislature on Monday.

GRAND RAPIDS (WZZM) -- A man who tried to rob someone with a fake gun is in the hospital after he was shot by his intended victim (snip) But as he did, the suspect began yelling and aimed the gun at the car. The driver, who has a concealed weapons permit, pulled his gun and fired at the suspect, hitting him once in the chest.

Map courtesy of opencarry.org  It appears that people with concealed weapon permits in South Carolina will now have an easier time of finding a place to have dinner.  South Carolina is just a signature away from joining the vast majority of states that do not prevent people with gun permits from bringing their personal defensive firearms into restaurants that serve alcohol.  The legislation prohibits people carrying legal weapons from consuming alcohol in the establishments.  Governor Nikki Haley seems likely to sign the bill, which passed the house with an overwhelming 90 to 18 majority.  From greenvilleonline.com: The House’s 90-18...

A national newspaper chain with nearly 100 publications and 1.6 million readers is considering building “state-by-state databases” on concealed weapons permit holders, according to an internal e-mail. The plan, laid out in an email from a top editor at North Carolina-based Civitas Media, could be similar to a controversial project a New York state newspaper carried out in 2012 which included an online map that identified gun owners in two counties by name and address. Civitas' database project was detailed the plan in a Jan. 19 e-mail to newsrooms in 11 states, including Ohio, Illinois and Pennsylvania.

"GRAND RAPIDS (WZZM) -- A man who tried to rob someone with a fake gun is in the hospital after he was shot by his intended victim."

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Thad Cochran, R-Miss., are backing legislation that would allow persons with state-issued conceal carry permits to use them in other states with conceal carry laws. The Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2014 (S.1908) is intended to defend the Second Amendment rights of individuals with conceal carry permits, allowing them to carry those privileges from their home state to other states that also have conceal carry laws. “I am strongly committed to upholding Americans’ constitutional right to keep and bear arms,” Wicker said. “This legislation would ensure this right is not limited to...

Use of Silencers is encouraged in Europe Photo Courtesy Gun World Virginia lawmakers chose to reform the state's gun laws in spite of pressure by police agencies to keep restrictive measures in place.   HB878  reforms an antique law that gives local police a veto over obtaining federal permits for gun mufflers, short barreled rifles and shotguns, automatic firearms and destructive devices.  Because of a controversial vote in 1986, the existing privately owned stock of automatic firearms was frozen, creating an artificial shortage that resulted in skyrocketing prices for legal automatic firearms.  The cheapest automatic firearms available to collectors are...

In western states, "school shooter" has a different meaning.  Many schools have rifle teams There are many likely contributors to the fact that Utah has zero school-related shootings.   Utah is one of the states that has the least restrictions on second amendment rights in the nation.   It is one of the few that do not forbid concealed carry permit holders from carrying their personal defensive firearms in schools.   Utah has very little crime, with one of the lowest homicide rates in the country.  As stated in this article from ksl.com, the odds that when you are in Utah,  someone...

An armed aggressor herding people into a back room is always a bad sign.  It often precedes a mass murder.  From the selmatimesjournal.com: Dallas County Sheriff Harris Huffman said the incident appeared to be a case of self-defense and no one has been arrested in connection with the shooting Thursday afternoon. The incident occurred when Dallas County resident Kevin Mclaughlin entered Dollar General reportedly waving a pistol in the air, Huffman said. Mclaughlin then ushered a group of people inside the store into a break room. One customer showed good situational awareness, and was able to escape out the...

John Filippidis, silver-haired family man, business owner, employer and taxpayer, is also licensed to carry a concealed firearm. He’d rather he didn’t feel the need, “but things aren’t like they used to be. The break-ins, the burglaries, all the crime. And I carry cash a lot of the time. I’m constantly going to the bank. “I wanted to be able to defend my family, my household and the ground I’m standing on. But I’m not looking for any trouble.” Filippidis keeps his gun — a palm-sized Kel-Tec .38 semiautomatic, barely larger than a smartphone in a protective case — in...

Reasoning that more guns mean greater safety, Kansas lawmakers voted last year to require cities and counties to make public buildings accessible to people legally carrying concealed weapons. But for communities that remained wary of such open access to city halls, libraries, museums and courthouses, the Legislature provided an exemption: Guns can be banned as long as local governments pay for protections like metal detectors and security guards, ensuring the safety of those they have disarmed. It turns out that in Wichita, the state’s most populous city, and in some other towns, the cost of opting out before the Jan....

What's your favorite CCW wear and why?

A jury convicted Philip K. Green, 40, of reckless homicide.  Green had a CCW permit, and called the police after the shooting.   Green knew the man he shot, and had gone to several bars with him and two others.  This is the first homicide conviction for a Wisconsin resident with a CCW permit.  The permit system has been in place for over 2 years, with over 200,000 permits issued.  If we assume an average of 100,000 permits per year, then the rate of convictions for CCW holders in Wisconsin becomes .5/100,000 with this conviction.  That is about 1/10th of the...

A study published in the latest issue of the academic journal Applied Economics Letters took on many of the claims made regularly by advocates of stricter gun laws. The study determined that nearly every claim made in support of stronger restrictions on gun ownership is not supported by an exhaustive analysis of crime statistics. The study, “An examination of the effects of concealed weapons laws and assault weapons bans on state-level murder rates,” conducted by Quinnipiac University economist Mark Gius, examined nearly 30 years of statistics and concluded that stricter gun laws do not result in a reduction in gun...

The evening of February 27, 2008, in the Miami area, Gabriel Mobley and a friend were viciously attacked by two men. Using his licensed concealed carry pistol, Mr. Mobley successfully fought off the attack, killing both of the aggressors. He was charged with two counts of second degree murder – murder which, under Florida law, requires “malice”. Mobley exercised his rights under Florida’s self-defense immunity state, 776.032 Immunity from criminal prosecution and civil action for justifiable use of force, to avoid going to trial on the basis that it was more likely than not, based on the evidence, that he acted...

Detroit Chief of Police James Craig During his 28 years on the police force in Los Angeles, James Craig tended to agree with his state’s tight control over concealed carry permits, believing fewer guns would lead to fewer violent crimes. But when he moved to Portland, Maine, in 2009 to serve as the city’s new police chief, he discovered a different culture – one where guns actually made people safer. Now Craig, the chief of police in Detroit, Mich., has a message for the law-abiding folks in his crime-ridden city: Arm yourselves, and criminals will think twice about attacking...