Concealed carry holders await passage of reciprocity act

Gun rights and election years make for useful bedfellows as conceal-carry holders await legislation.

The latest Second Amendment debate centers around U.S. Rep. Richard Hudson’s H.R. 38, or Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act. Debate of the bill, which has already passed in the U.S. House, comes during a mid-term election year including a re-election bid for Hudson. His congressional District 08 that includes Stanly County tends to support conservative values especially when gun rights are at stake.

H.R. 38 allows those lawfully licensed to carry a concealed handgun to do so when they travel from state to state. They must, however, follow the laws of each state, county and municipality in which they are carrying concealed.

Tuesday night the Stanly County Board of Commissioners unanimously endorsed a resolution of support for H.R. 38 courtesy of Chairman Joseph Burleson.

Without the legislation law-abiding citizens could unwittingly break the law as they attempt to navigate the current maze of state and local ordinances governing concealed carry when traveling, Burleson explained.

Hudson shared a story with Congress last month that helped birth the need for the bill.

“Let me tell you a story,” Hudson said. “It’s a story about an African American single mother with two kids, living in south Philly. After twice being the victim of muggings, she decides to go out and legally purchase a firearm to protect herself, gets trained with her weapon and applies for a concealed carry permit. Sometime thereafter, she crossed the state line into New Jersey and at a routine traffic stop, did exactly as she was trained: handed her driver’s license and concealed carry permit to the police officer and let him know that she had a pistol in her purse. What she didn’t know is that the state of New Jersey doesn’t recognize the concealed carry permits of their neighbor in Pennsylvania. And so this poor single mother, who has never had a brush with the law, spent almost 50 days in jail and was looking at 10 years in prison. Are you serious? We have to make sure that never happens again.”

Hudson deems the legislation a common sense bill, suggesting a concealed carry license should be no different than a marriage or driver’s license.

“That’s why if I get married in North Carolina, but I move to Arizona I’m not a single man again,” Hudson said. “They recognize that marriage. That’s why divorce decrees are recognized in every state. The concealed carry permit should be recognized the same way.”

Supporters of the bill call Hudson’s legislation the greatest boost to gun rights since the ratification of the Second Amendment more than two centuries ago.

Twenty-four state attorney generals advocate H.R. 38.

Critics argue, however, the legislation is another legalized measure to help arm those with criminal intentions.

Another 17 attorney generals oppose Hudson’s legislation, particularly those in states with tougher gun laws. In addition to usurping a state’s individual authority to enact laws of its own, opponents also counter the bill erodes tougher standards to the lowest common denominator, thereby weakening a state’s harsher stance.

Presently, 38 states have various requirements for permits involving the carry of handguns. Eleven states — Alaska, Arizona, Idaho, Kansas, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Dakota, West Virginia and Wyoming — make it optional to apply for a permit. Vermont, which is among the most firearm-friendly states in the country, does not issue a carry permit.

While some states already recognize a form of reciprocity for permit holders, eight states — Hawaii, California, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts — and the District of Columbia do not allow reciprocity with any other states.

The bill still awaits a vote in the U.S. Senate.

County commissioners’ support of the bill should come as no surprise since gun sales and concealed carry permits remain brisk in Stanly.

According to the Stanly County Sheriff’s Office, there were 1,845 permits to purchase a firearm processed in 2017. As for new concealed-carry handgun permits, 626 were processed along with 639 concealed handgun renewals.

As brisk as the data suggest, the numbers pale in comparison to 2016, a presidential election year and when gun enthusiasts often find a voice through candidates.

It was then 2,544 permits to purchase were issued, 932 new concealed handgun permits and 490 renewals processed.

Impact of the aforementioned election year and its relation on gun sales and permits was not lost on Sheriff George T. Burris.

“I believe going into the presidential election of 2016, it most likely increased the permits issued and gun sales, whereas, people may have been unsure about how the election would affect the gun control issue,” Burris said. “Also, citizens are learning that with the issuance of concealed handgun permits, they are not required to have a purchase permit to buy a firearm in North Carolina.”

At 2,013, permits to purchase firearms were higher in 2015, than in 2017. However, new concealed handgun permits were higher last year by nearly 100 more than in 2015. Concealed handgun renewals were also higher in 2017 by nearly 300 more.

About the only consistency in the last three years of firearm permitting data is the number of applications denied. There were 28 in 2015; 24 in 2016; and 25 last year.

Melissa Torres, who with her husband owns Scoot’s Place — a firearms retailer on U.S. Highway 52 in Albemarle, also notes the influence of election years.

“Anytime there’s an election year sales go up because of the ‘what ifs,’ ” she said.

Not only election years affect gun sales, but mass shootings and acts of violence tend to lead to spikes in gun sales and firearm accessories.

Torres points to both the church shooting in Charleston, South Carolina and the more recent mass violence in Las Vegas.

“I have never had a request for a bump stock until after the Las Vegas shooting,” Torres said. “Now, I’ve had multiple requests.”

A bump stock replaces a rifle’s standard stock, which is the part held against the shoulder. It frees the weapon to slide back and forth rapidly while enabling a semiautomatic rifle to fire faster. In the case of the Las Vegas hotel shooter, it contributed to a greater number of casualties.

Some states are now considering a ban on bump stocks.

This week New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie signed a bill that outlaws the sale and possession of bump stocks. The immediate law requires anyone in possession of a bump-fire stock to surrender it to a law enforcement agency within the next 90 days. Licensed manufacturers and retailers have only 30 days to do the same.

Gun enthusiasts tend to want what’s at risk of being taken away. In the case of H.R. 38, they seem to want anything the government is willing to concede in terms of gun control.