Concealed Carry Permittees are BAD, BAD People

And that's what the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence would like you to believe. Yup, people with Concealed Carry Permits are the source of a lot of the violence with guns. Last week, I had a chance to participate in the local radio show down here in New Orleans. WWL was doing an early morning story about more people "packing heat" and why the number has increased. To their defense they did allow callers and guests to give both sides of the story. I called in and gave my reasons: I carry because I take it upon myself to protect myself and my family, I cannot rely on the police to be there within seconds. I also told the host that I was a Concealed Carry Instructor and most of my students take the class for the same reason. I also explained what is entailed in the class (mandated by the State of Louisiana I might add): SAFETY, SAFETY, SAFETY, how to handle a firearm, Deadly Force (how to identify it and when you can and cannot use it), Civil Liability, Louisiana State Laws and where you can AND cannot carry your firearm and, again, SAFETY SAFETY SAFETY. I concluded with saying that some people have a legitimate fear that the Chosen One, who has a POOR record on firearms ownership and gun rights, will try to restrict our rights or take them away. Remember, those who do not read history tend to repeat it. After I was done, the host interviewed Mr. Doug Pennington from the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, a very anti-Second Amendment and anti- gun rights group. He was discussing the recent shooting in Pennsylvania and how Mr. Sodini had a Concealed Carry permit. Since this show was only 10 hours after the shooting and Pennsylvania records cannot be obtained THAT fast, I took this with a big grain of salt. If it does turn out to be true, and it may, demonizing an entire group of Concealed Carry Permitees as a threat to society because of the actions of one or a few is downright absurd!

What does this all mean?

Pure Bullshit. Just another case of inventing statistics and a "make it up as you go" policy of misleading people with lies. Instill fear and we will come to the rescue!

(Sorry, that's also about health care and that's another show)

Now, are ALL people with Concealed Carry Permits law-abiding. No. BUT, and this is a BIG BUT, the statistics PROVE that the number of CCW violators (as in permit is revoked, denied or suspended) is VERY VERY LOW. How low? Read on..

How about the concealed carry users that PREVENT violence? Such as..

the armed citizen who shot a convenience store robber in Virginia - or - A 39-year-old Ypsilanti man used his concealed weapon and his experience as a soldier to stop an alleged bank robber - or - the incident in early August in Topeka, KS in which a legally-armed store clerk fended off two robbers. They never go on about those people because it clashes with their agenda and defeats their purpose.

Since I was unable to get back on the show due to time restrictions, I emailed the host at WWL with the following rebuttals to Mr. Pennington:

1) - Less than .05% of CCW holders in Louisiana since 1996 are denied / rejected / revoked. Source : http://www.lsp.org/pdf/chAnnualReport07-08.pdf on page 3. There were 1407 permites denied / suspended / revoked out of 27,422 permits.

AND, in 2008 the Department did not have any documented accidents or deaths
involving concealed handgun permittees.

Are we all angels? No, but we're better educated and have a lower rate of using a firearm in the "heat of the moment" BECAUSE we're trained. That average holds true for just about all the other states with Concealed Carry Laws. Some states, such as Florida, are even LOWER. (Florida is about .01%)

2) - Although Louisiana is a "shall-issue" state, ALL Permit applications in Louisiana go through a NCIC criminal and medical background check by the State Police, average turnaround for a permit, IF approved, is 8 weeks. Local police do not have the time and the laws are open to interpretation from one locale to another (as I experienced when I lived in Massachusetts). Mr. Pennington from the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence stated that "shall issue" states need background checks done by local law enforcement. As far as I am concerned, Louisiana State Police is as about as local to Louisiana as one can get.

3) I DO RECOMMEND training for all firearm owners, not just concealed carry holders

4) Mr. Pennington was concerned about criminals with concealed carry permits. The thugs with guns are not concealed carry holders and MOST are multiple offenders turned back on the streets by our revolving door criminal justice system. That's why I carry for protection because these thugs are NOT in jail where they belong. Convict them, put them in jail and the violence will go down. I have yet to hear of a criminal getting a CCW permit since he / she would fail a background check. Oh, and it is also a crime for a criminal to attempt to obtain a CCW. So I'm kinda thinking that they'll just skip this step and illegally carry a gun concealed anyways.

5) As far as cities with high crime rates compared to the number of CCW holders, Washington D.C. has a very high firearm crime rate and does NOT allow concealed carry and is still very restrictive even on private, law-abiding ownership.

6) Mr. Pennington refers to our classes as a "minimum". I ask that he sit in on one of our classes and see what we cover. Extensive training on safety, how to handle a firearm, the use of deadly force (when you can and cannot use it), where you can and cannot carry and the firearms laws in the state. My class is about 10 hours long, longer than what the state mandates



All I can say to Mr. Pennington is get your information right and stop lying to the public to scare them. We're pretty smart and we know what we're doing

Shame on you!