410 lines
16 KiB
Plaintext
410 lines
16 KiB
Plaintext
This is a internal International Association of Chiefs of
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Police (IACP) document that was obtained by NRA. It discusses
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in detail IACP plans to weaken or eliminate right-to-carry
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legislation in state legislatures.
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The outline and layout of the original letter has been reproduced
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in this electronic copy. It reflects as closely as possible the
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arrangement of the original documents.
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INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CHIEFS OF POLICE
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* 515 North Washington Street * Alexandria, VA 22314-2357 *
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(703) 836-6767 * 1-800-THE IACP * FAX: (703) 836-4543
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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
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DANIEL N. ROSENBLATT EUGENE R. CROMARTIE
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=========================(IACP)===============================
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_MEMORANDUM_
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To: Executive Committee
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S&P Representatives
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SACOP Representatives
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From: Dan Rosenblatt, Executive Director
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Date: September 21, 1995
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Re: Concealed Carry Weapon (CCW) Legislation at the
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State Level
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At our last Executive Committee meeting in Oklahoma City,
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staff was directed to prepare a simple position paper and
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strategy guide for members in states contemplating CCW
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legislation. Attached please find such a report. This draft
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document has been forwarded to President Whetsel, Chief
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Polisar and IACP Firearms Committee Chairman Chief Clarence
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Harmon for their review. All have given their approval and
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recommend that it be shared. If you have any initial comments
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on what else you would like included in the document, this
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would be a good time to bring them up.
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International Association of Chiefs of Police
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Concealed Carry Weapon (CCW) Position Paper
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_Status_
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Over the past several years the National Rifle Association
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(NRA) has actively "coordinated" efforts at the state level to
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have legislation passed that would allow citizens to carry
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concealed weapons in states where such activity previously had
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been prohibited or left to the discretion of law enforcement
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officials to issue concealed carry permits to persons able to
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demonstrate a specific need. Coupled with the results of the
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1994 election and the public's apparent concern with what is
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discerned to be increasingly random violent crime, their
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successes have been significant as shown by the following
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table.
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_Number of States With CCW_ _1993_ _1995_
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Prohibition against CCW 12 8
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Restrictive--may issue 18 14
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Non-restrictive--shall issue 20 28
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Of the eight states that currently prohibit CCW, six states
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had legislation introduced in 1995 to permit it. Of the 14
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states that permitted CCW at the discretion of law enforcement
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or judicial officers, six states had legislation introduced in
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1995 to liberalize their laws by removing discretion. As of
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this writing, four of these bills are still pending in state
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legislatures and will be until December, unless defeated
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sooner.
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We can anticipate that similar legislation will again be
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introduced in 1996 in the states where CCW is either
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prohibited or restricted (see Attachment I). Chiefs in these
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states have expressed concern for the safety of their citizens
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and officers, and asked how other states have handled these
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legislative challenges. What follows is such an analysis.
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_The Arguments_
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Proponents of the CCW laws contend that criminals will be
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hesitant to victimize individuals who might be carrying a
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weapon. The fact, however, that the weapon is concealed would
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seem to greatly reduce this deterrence value. Arguably, a
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criminal might be more inclined to shoot first, anticipating a
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victim might be armed. The facts are that there is no hard
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data on what happens to the crime rate when citizens carry
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concealed weapons. Studies have interpreted the same data
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different ways. The state of Florida which first started the
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liberalization of CCW laws in 1986 has produced studies that
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both credits CCW laws for a 29 percent decrease in homicides,
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while the same data has been interrupted (sic) as leading to
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as much as a 74 percent increase in gun homicides, in one
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city. Many other intervening factors ranging from
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immigration, other gun control laws, to the weather may have
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an effect on crime rates. Proponents of CCW laws indicated
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that Florida law enforcement has not had difficulties because
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of its CCW law. The Commissioner of the Florida Department of
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Law Enforcement and IACP Executive Committee member Tim Moore
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would be in a position to comment on that but he can also
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attest to the fact that the Florida CCW law requires
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fingerprinting, vigorous background checks and firearms
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training. If faced with a CCW legislative proposal, check the
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proposed bill to see that it has at least the same safeguards
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as the Florida legislation before accepting that argument
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(Attachment II).
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While data on the rate of change in the crime rate may be hard
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to interpret, public health officials have found that for
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every time a gun kept in the home is used to kill someone in
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self-defense, it is used 43 times to kill someone in a
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criminal homicide, suicide, or unintentional shooting. We
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believe that this same statistic will apply for guns carried
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outside the home under CCW laws.
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_What To Do About Proposed Legislation_
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If you are in one of the listed states, you can anticipate a
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bill. Here are some suggested strategies:
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_Before Introduction_
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1. Poll your state association of chiefs of police to
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determine the level of support for opposing either
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enacting new or liberalizing existing CCW laws.
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2. Attempt to establish a coalition of groups who might
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share your views to increase public awareness and
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concern. They might include other law enforcement
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groups--prosecutors, medical groups, MADD members,
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violence prevention groups such as churches and gun
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control advocates.
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3. Let the media know of your concerns through op-ed pieces
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in the newspaper and/or interviews on radio or
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television. Encourage the media to poll their readers
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and listeners.
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_After Introduction_
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1. Check the bill carefully to see what it contains and what
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it omits. How liberal is this _particular bill?_
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2. Contact the author of the bill with recommendations on
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tightening it up through amendments.
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3. Contact state Representatives and Senators to voice your
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opposition and see how strong support is for the bill by
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asking if they support it. Have a chief who lives in the
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district represented by the legislature to make the
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contact if possible. Keep track of how the vote count
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stands and make sure your coalition members make the same
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types of contact.
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_If You Have Votes to Defeat_
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Keep up an active media campaign until a final vote on the
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measure; do not let it just slip through--because it could
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_very_ easily.
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_If You Don't the Votes to Defeat_ (sic)
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Try to tighten the bill by having a friendly legislator
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include any of the suggestions contained in Attachment III,
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_Conclusion_
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These are tough legislative battles requiring dedication,
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coordination, and effort. The opposition is well-organized
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and financed. By in large the general population is troubled
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by the thought of more weapons being on the streets, and what
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that does for their safety. In states that have passed CCW
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laws recently, the press coverage in the initial few days has
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shown long lines of citizens applying for permits, implying a
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great deal of interest in carrying concealed weapons. But in
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actuality, those lines quickly disappear as the initial wave
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of applicants are processed. It would be interesting to see
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if a campaign could be mounted to have one or two of these
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liberalized CCW laws repealed based on a lack of interest by
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the citizens.
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ATTACHMENT ONE
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STATES PROHIBITING CCW
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NAME CONTACT PHONE NUMBER
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* Illionis (sic)
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* Kansas
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Kentucky
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* Missouri
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Nebraska
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* New Mexico
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# Ohio
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# Wisconsin
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STATES WITH RESTRICTIVE
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OR DISCRETIONARY CCW
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NAME CONTACT PHONE NUMBER
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* California
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* Colorado
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Delaware
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Hawaii
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Indiana
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Iowa
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* Louisiana
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Maryland
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# Massachusetts
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# Michigan
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Minnesota
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New Jersey
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New York
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* South Carolina
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* Indicates the states that had CCW legislation introduced
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during 1995 and were sucessful (sic) in defeating.
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# Indicates the states that had CCW legislation introduced
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during 1995 and where the legislature remains in session
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without having killed or passed the legislation.
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As of 8/16/95
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(What follows in the original is a photocopy of Chapters
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790.01 to 790.06 of the Florida state laws. This section
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deals with carrying concealed weapons. It has not been
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reproduced here.)
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ATTACHMENT III
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Following is a list of issues that you may want addressed by
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your legislative members when they are considering any CCW
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proposal:
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1. Requirement that all applicants be subject to finger
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printing and finger print background checks.
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2. Requirement that all applicants be subject to criminal
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history, drug/alcohol addiction and mental health
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background checks. Prohibit those with criminal,
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drug/alcohol addiction and/or mental illness history
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(both voluntary and involuntary commitment to mental
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facility) from acquiring CCW permit. This check should
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cross-reference with other states and federal law
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enforcement agencies to include FBI, DEA, Secret Service,
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Park Service, INS and Border Patrol, as well as Interpol,
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to cast the widest net possible.
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3. Requirement that all applicants have a certain number of
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hours of firearms training instruction administered by
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either a state or local law enforcement approved
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(certified) instructor. Most states' law enforcement
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communities have pushed for 10 or more hours per year.
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4. Requirement that applicants pay for any cost associated
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with processing of applications. Most states have also
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pushed for yearly to bi-annual re-application. As part
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of the process, applicant should be subject to an eye
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test and weapons performance demonstration at a certified
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shooting range yearly.
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5. Establishment of stiffer penalties for those who carry
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concealed without an active permit. For instance, moving
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such criminal violation from a misdemeanor to a felony.
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6. Establish a CCW permit sticker, to be placed on state
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drivers license with photo, and vehicle license check, to
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notify police that person might have possession of a
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weapon, in course of routine traffic stops.
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7. Establish CCW permit information entry on 911 database,
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so that police responding to a residence or business for
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possible domestic disturbance may be aware of gun
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ownership and CCW permit holders located at that
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location.
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8. Establish a procedure for swift revocation for cause for
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criminal conduct such as stalking, domestic abuse, etc.
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Allow for automatic suspension of permit if person is
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subject of criminal investigation, with restoration
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pending outcome of criminal case. Also, mandate
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permanent suspension if person does not voluntarily turn
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in permit to police; and police subsequently discover
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that person is subject of criminal investigation or
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convicted of a criminal violation in or out of state - or
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another country.
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9. Requirement that before any law is enacted which would
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liberalize CCW, it must come up for a vote in public
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referendum for those states which provide public
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referendums. This is the last option, but we feel
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confident that "shall issue" CCW proposals will fail in
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this arena in most, if not all states.
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10. Require that the law be subject to a sunset or
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reauthorization provision in a limited number of years (3
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to 5 years from enactment). Also, require that a study be
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conducted to track the number of permits processed,
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denied, approved, those with permits that commit crimes
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with or without a weapon, costs associated with permit
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process, effect on crime rate, and for other purposes.
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11. Requirement that individual must be citizen of the state
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for specified time (60 to 120 days) and a citizen of the
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United States to acquire CCW permit, thereby prohibiting
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out-of-state and foreign legal and/or illegal aliens from
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acquiring CCW permits.
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12. Requirement that the state will not honor CCW permits
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from other states which do not meet or exceed _all_
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provision of its CCW law.
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13. Requiring written consent of those applying for CCW
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permits to allow police to scan for gun detection in
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future. Also, requiring training for permit holders on
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how to conduct themselves at a crime incident/scene where
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officers are present, so as not to have them "mistaken"
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by police for criminal perpetrators with a weapon.
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14. Require separate CCW permit application for each specific
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weapon an individual wants to have authority to carry
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concealed. Limit permit holder to one gun purchase per
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month. Virginia passed such legislation separate from
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CCW several years ago in an attempt to alter its
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historical ranking as the number on state origin for
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providing
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neighboring U.S. northeast corridor states with guns used
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in the commission of crime. The result was that
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significantly less guns from Virginia now find their way
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into neighboring states or are connected with crimes in
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other states.
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15. Prohibit CCW permits from allowance to carry at bars,
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sporting events, concerts, festivals, fairs, restaurants,
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colleges and schools, _any_ governmental building/land or
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any site where alcoholic beverages are served. Also,
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allowance for private businesses, property owners and
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residences to ban gun possession on property by posting
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and notification.
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16. Require that list of citizens with CCW permits not be
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open to public - restricted to law enforcement access
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_only_ - as at least one unethical entrepreneur has
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solicited CCW permit holders in Florida to buy police
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look-a-like "badges" to accompany their concealed weapon.
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17. Require verification of purchase of gun liability
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insurance at a set amount ($75,000.00 to $150,000.00) for
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gun purchasers and CCW permit applications before
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allowing issuance of gun purchase and/or permit to that
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individual.
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18. Allow for residents of any political subdivision,
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township, municipality, incorporated city or other
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locality to vote for greater restriction or prohibition
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than state law requires on the issuance of CCW permits
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within that area of jurisdiction. This provision is
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bolstered by the University of Maryland study -
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commissioned by the Center for Disease Control and
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Prevention (CDC) which suggested that liberalized CCW
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laws tend to contribute to increased crime rates -
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particularly in urban areas.
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19. Require a local police involvement in the permit process,
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either as the place to conduct the permit application
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process, or require a consultation with the local law
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enforcement agency if a state law enforcement agency
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implements the CCW permit application process. They may
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know the individual personally and have direct input as
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to that person's character and past conduct.
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(end)
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=+=+=+=+
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This information is provided as a service of the National Rifle
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Association Institute for Legislative Action, Fairfax, VA.
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This and other information on the Second Amendment and the NRA is
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available at any of the following URL's: http://WWW.NRA.Org,
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gopher://GOPHER.NRA.Org, wais://WAIS.NRA.Org, ftp://FTP.NRA.Org,
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mailto:LISTPROC@NRA.Org (Send the word help as the body of a message)
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Information may also be obtained by connecting directly to the
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NRA-ILA GUN-TALK Bulletin Board System at (703) 934-2121.
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{PB
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