Tuesday, November 6, 2001

Attacks cause rise of concealed weapon permits
Associated Press

DENVER — Applications to carry a concealed weapon are on the rise around the country as Americans deal with fears of terrorism.

In October, Colorado officials conducted more than triple the number of background checks for concealed-weapons permits than they did a year earlier. One sheriff waived the $100 fee as a patriotic gesture and asked applicants to donate the money to the victims of the terrorist attacks.

Increases have also been reported in states such as Texas, Washington and Oklahoma. South Dakota officials reported the pace of filings has been about 25 percent above normal.

“People want to be safe and they don’t want to be left defenseless and they want to cope with their fear of an unknown future with protection rather than without,” said Wayne LaPierre, executive director of the National Rifle Association.

LaPierre said NRA firearm-safety courses, often a requirement for obtaining a permit, are booked solid through the end of December in many areas, and gun sales have increased significantly, as has NRA membership.

State or nationwide figures on how many concealed-weapons permits have actually been issued were not immediately available because local jurisdictions are responsible for the permits.

The process varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.

Joshua Orrison, 23, of Loveland, applied for a permit at the beginning of October, shortly after Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden suspended the fee. He works with youth groups such as 4-H and wanted additional protection while on outings, but said the terrorist attacks and the fee waiver persuaded him to apply.

“With the things going on, you never know what’s going to happen,” Orrison said.

Gun-control advocates urged caution among people buying firearms and authorities issuing the permits.

“There’s no evidence thus far that this has been a street battle. It’s been on the scale of large attacks and, in that respect, I think that this response doesn't match the reality,” said Tom Mauser, whose son Daniel was killed during the Columbine High School rampage in 1999.

The Colorado Bureau of Investigation conducts background checks for gun purchases and concealed-carry permit applications. In September, it did background checks on 217 people who had applied for permits, up from the 142 background checks in September 2000. Last month, the agency did 586 concealed-carry checks, up from 184 in October 2000.

Alderden has scheduled 1,559 to be fingerprinted for concealed-carry permit applications since mid-September. He issued about 870 permits in the 2 years before the attacks, and has issued 145 permits since Sept. 11.