Commentary & Opinion By Donna Westfall – April 5, 2023
Scanning the news this morning and you’ll see the spectrum go from one extreme to the other. In Nashville, Tennessee, it’s reported that about 1,000 people who identify as or with “trans” want more gun control. They went to the State Capitol with their signs and chanted their slogans and shoved law enforcement around.
WHAT and WHY?
This is after one of their own “a trans woman” shot and killed 3 adults and 3 children at Covenant School on March 27th. She was killed by police 14 minutes after her rampage started.
Seems to me they need more psychiatric institutions. Let’s look at their gun laws in that State:
“In 2021, Tennessee eliminated its permit requirement for carrying concealed handguns in public spaces and, effective July 1, 2021, now generally allows anyone at least 21 years old to carry a handgun in most public spaces without a permit, either openly or concealed, as long as they are legally eligible to possess the handgun and are lawfully present in the place where they are carrying the gun.”
She was not lawfully present at that school. Was she legally eligible to possess a handgun; well, in this case it was a rifle. And from a report of one person at the gun range where she was practicing, there was something weird about her. Was she doomed to be shot? Absolutely. It doesn’t matter if the shooter was black, white, Asian, Hispanic or any other color of the rainbow. Doesn’t matter if the shooter considered themselves to be a man or woman. What matters is this. Why didn’t the shooter seek help outside of taking a rifle and killing innocents? She regularly went to gun ranges to practice shooting with records from 2022.
Over to Florida with Gov. DeSantis signing into law the elimination of concealed carry permits. This breaks the stalemate. Up until Monday, there were 25 states that allowed Constitutional Carry. Florida makes 26.
From the East Coast to the West Coast, our own California has more laws and restrictions and taxes and fees than any other state, you can still get a concealed carry permit, but it costs.
Here’s what you have to do and how much it cost in terms of time and money:
- Complete a Livescan fingerprinting. (Tuesdays & Fridays, 9:00) ·
- Turn in the completed application form at fingerprint time. ·
- Pay the applicant fee of $158.00
This is done at the Sheriff’s office located at 650 5th Street in Crescent City, but first there are steps to determining if you are a “qualified applicant”:
In order to qualify for a license to carry a firearm, the applicant must meet certain
requirements, including:
(a) Be a resident of the County of Del Norte (Penal Code § 26150; Penal Code § 26155).
(b)Be at least 21 years of age (Penal Code § 29610).
(c) Fully complete an application that will include substantial personal information. Much
of the information in the application may be subject to public access under the Public
Records Act. I
(d) Be free from criminal convictions that would disqualify the applicant from carrying a
firearm. Fingerprints will be required and a complete criminal background check will
be conducted.
(e) Be of good moral character (Penal Code § 26150; Penal Code § 26155). The
applicant shall provide at least three letters of character reference.
(f) Show good cause for the issuance of the license (PI enal Code § 26150; Penal Code
§ 26155).
(g) Pay all associated application fees. These fees are set by statute and may not be
refunded if the application is denied.
(h) Provide proof of ownership or registration of any firearm to be licensed.
(i) Be free from any psychological conditions that might make the applicant unsuitable
for carrying a firearm (Penal Code § 26190).
(j) Complete required training (Penal Code § 26165)
Required training involves a minimum of 8 hours and not be required to exceed 16 hours of live-fire shooting on a range along with learning about the safe handling of the gun and applicable laws.
But first you have to buy a gun because in California you are not allowed to borrow a gun.
Last updated January 5, 2023 . Subject to certain narrow exceptions, California law generally requires all firearm sales or transfers to be completed through a licensed firearms dealer, pursuant to a background check and other requirements.
Does this sound like something that does not happen overnight? You’re right. It can take weeks and weeks. Sometimes I wonder what would happen if soldiers from Russia or China were to invade our shores. Our state legislature couldn’t react fast enough to put into place emergency orders to teach our citizenry how to shoot guns, not to mention that right now it’s difficult to even purchase bullets. They only know how to demand face masks, vaxx and social distancing for three years putting many businesses out of business.
Speaking of guns and bullet, in Crescent City there are two gun shops: Shooter Supply and PRO2Arms. Prices for guns can range from a few hundred dollars on up.
Let’s say you purchased your first gun for $500. Then you have to find someone qualified to teach you which is another charge.
It doesn’t stop there. The money continues to add up. Because with a gun, you also need bullets. Maybe a vest or holster. Soon you’re looking at shelling out $1,000 bucks and more. However, having it along with peace of mind has no price.
Before we get to which states allow Constitutional Carry, here’s the definition:
Constitutional carry: Constitutional carry means that the state’s law does not prohibit citizens who can legally possess a firearm from carrying handguns, (openly and/or in a concealed manner) thus no state permit is required. Sometimes, constitutional carry may be conditional such as in those states that have no laws prohibiting the open carry of a handgun but which require a permit to carry the handgun concealed.
Permitless carry: Permitless carry includes constitutional carry states as well as states where an individual must meet certain qualifications, e.g., no DUIs in the last 10 years, in order to legally carry (Tennessee). Some states are fully unrestricted, meaning no permit is required for open or concealed carry. Others allow the open carry of a firearm/or handgun without a permit but require a permit for concealment.
Getting back to California. So you have your gun and a permit. Can you take that out of state? Not to Oregon because Oregon does not honor any concealed carry licenses from other states. You would have to check each state for what they permit.
Now’s a good time to go over the 24 states that do not recognize Constitutional Carry.
Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Nebraska, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Louisiana, South and North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Delaware, Colorado and Hawaii.
How many of those states have a Democrat for Governor?
20! Are you starting to see a pattern here?
South Carolina (since January 2017) and Virginia (since January 2022) have republican governors, but they have not been in office that long. Only Nevada and New Mexico have republican governors that assumed office in 2023.
Do you suppose that during their time in the governors chair that the laws about constitutional carry will change? Only time will tell.
Picture credit to A Girl and A Gun Women’s Shooting League.
