It appears folks in Colorado, especially Pueblo county, are jumping onto the firearms bandwagon in droves. Since the election of Barack Obama, the sales of firearms across the country has sky-rocketed. In fact, Winchester reported at one point, their factories were going flat out, and they still couldn’t keep up. The number of criminal background checks has also seen a major increase, along with the revenues that accompany any such change.
In Pueblo county, Colorado, the Sheriff’s office issued 380 permits in 2008, and 545 in 2009. That’s a 43% increase in a state where it’s already legal to openly carry a firearm. It also the largest increase in a 7 year period. This is also no doubt a boon for Colorado itself as a criminal background check for this procedure cost upwards of $150, and pays for a CBI background check, a photo identification card and the processing of fingerprints. Information is also sent to the federal Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for background and registration purposes.
“I have given out more concealed handgun permits than in the history of the county of Pueblo. That’s six or seven permits a day,” first-term Sheriff Kirk Taylor said the week of September 27. Taylor also said he is amazed at the spike in permits but didn’t call it concerning.
Of course, as mentioned thousands of times before, so far without any evidence, many believe that President Barack Obama is a threat to the 2nd Amendment right to bear arms, especially with the way things are heading today.
“I think the election was the catalyst to the hysteria. That and a lot of misinformation about concealed handguns,” said Taylor, a Democrat who said he’s a “strong” supporter of the Second Amendment. In Colorado there appear to be two major misconceptions that people have about their rights to firearms, and were explained in further detail by Sheriff Taylor. These include having a gun in a vehicle, and bearing a firearm on oneself.
People think you need a concealed handgun permit to carry a gun in your car. By law, you can carry a gun in your car because it’s an extension of your house,” he said.
Colorado is also an open-carry state, which means you can openly carry a firearm, except in places where it’s prohibited; like the courthouse and schools. Now, if you walk down the street with a .45 strapped to your leg, that doesn’t mean a citizen isn’t going to call you in to the police, but you can openly carry a firearm in Colorado.”
I personally think openly carrying a firearm in this day and age should require some vetting. This is mainly because most people are on a knife edge about terrorism and recent mass murders, and would no doubt literally go ballistic if encountering someone with a 45 strapped to their hip. I know I’d definitely be a little nervous.
Out of the 545 concealed carry permits issued in Pueblo County, Colorado last year, only six of them were denied a permit, which was based on a criminal background check. Those who have been denied a permit can appeal to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. In Colorado, you can also conduct a personal criminal background check fairly simply using the state’s court system. I have written an article on how to get started with this here.
This article represents just a small fraction of what is happening all across the United States. Fear has been fueled by the all the recent shootings which I believe are no coincidence; take from that what you will. Plus, now there is actually a serious push for more gun control, something everyone has been expecting since Obama took office in 2008.
Categories: State News and Tips
