SECOND AMENDMENT
State-To-State Stumbling Blocks
CCW reciprocity is being hamstrung by conflicting statutes.
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Here's a bit of good news for law-abiding gun owners with concealed carry permits: There are now 36 states with "shall issue" concealed carry weapons laws. Now here's a bit of bad news: Only a couple of the "shall issue" states recognize concealed carry permits from the other "shall issue" states. Instead of a vast expanse of contiguous states where you can legally carry a concealed handgun, you have a veritable minefield of varying statutes and regulations governing the recognition of out-of-state CCW permits.
This is an absurd and unnecessary state of affairs. Most of the "shall issue" states have similar requirements for issuing CCW permits. However, in the U.S., individual states have historically exercised their right to self-government, with only minimal federal interference. Some members of Congress have discussed legislation to mandate universal CCW-permit reciprocity between "shall issue" states. Realistically, the notion of such federal legislation is dead on arrival. There is great concern in Congress about trampling on the rights of individual states. So don't expect any federal relief in the foreseeable future.
To illustrate the practical effect of this nonreciprocal situation, consider a long-haul truck driver with a CCW permit and a concealed handgun. Truck driving is an inherently dangerous occupation, so it's only logical for drivers to want to carry legal handguns for self-defense.
Truck drivers are stopped fairly often by law enforcement officers. Usually, these stops are for routine matters such as safety checks, weight limits and cargo manifests. But if the driver has a CCW permit and a handgun in the cab of his truck, he may have a problem when he enters a state that does not recognize his CCW permit.
Let's say our hypothetical truck driver has an Alaska CCW permit and is bound for Washington and Oregon. He would have to pass through British Columbia, where handguns are illegal, but for the sake of argument we will assume that the driver is able to reach the Washington state line unaccosted. However, upon reaching Washington, the driver would have a problem because Washington does not recognize Alaska CCW permits. Neither does Oregon. There would also be a problem driving from Idaho to Nevada or Washington. For that matter, a Kentucky truck driver would have to avoid Illinois and Ohio.
In Vermont, a CCW permit is not needed, and all out-of-state CCW permits are recognized. But if you were a Vermonter carrying a concealed handgun, you could not legally cross the state border in any direction. Vermont is hemmed in by Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Quebec. These three states and the Canadian province do not allow legally armed Vermonters to cross their borders.
The CCW reciprocity circus runs the gamut from states that recognize all out-of-state CCW permits to states that do not recognize any out-of-state permits. In between is a dizzying array of asymmetrical recognition agreements between "shall issue" states. Alaska recognizes all out-of-state CCW permits, but only 15 states recognize Alaska permits. Idaho also recognizes all CCW permits, but only 12 states have reciprocal agreements with Idaho. The situation is the same with Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan and Utah. These states recognize all out-of-state permits, but the reciprocal recognition numbers are only 13, 22, 14 and 16, respectively.
There are five "shall issue" states that do not recognize any out-of-state CCW permits. They are Connecticut, Maine, Nevada, Oregon and Washington. Inexplicably, there are about eight states that recognize permits from these four hard-line nonrecognition states. Why would any state enter into an asymmetrical, nonreciprocal recognition agreement with another state? The logic of such an agreement escapes me.
All of these CCW recognition and nonrecognition shenanigans raise some obvious, fundamental questions. So I called the chief law enforcement officers in four of the hard-over nonrecognition states.
Sgt. J. Paul Vance of the Connecticut Department Of Public Safety was straight-up and direct. Connecticut has a statute that prohibits the recognition of any out-of-state CCW permits. In so many words, if you have a problem with that, take it up with the Connecticut state legislature. On the other hand, Maine has taken some baby steps toward the recognition of out-of-state CCW permits. Its legislature authorized the chief of the Maine State Police to enter into reciprocal agreements with two states of his choosing. For some reason, the chief has not yet exercised his authority.
The Nevada Attorney General's Office had a novel explanation for its state's nonrecognition policy. The spokesman said that CCW permits are issued by the individual county sheriffs in Nevada, and the sheriffs do not generally have the time or the resources to confirm the validity of out-of-state CCW permits. I know for a fact that they have computers and fax machines in Nevada, and it's hard to believe the sheriffs are so penniless that they cannot afford these inexpensive modern methods for confirming the validity of out-of-state CCW permits.
In Oregon, the spokesman for the State Police said that its nonrecognition policy is embodied in statute. Fair enough. But he went on to say that the statute was based on the conviction that Oregon's CCW-permit requirements are more stringent than the requirements in other "shall issue" states. A review of the CCW requirements in the "shall issue" states shows that Oregon is in the middle of the pack, not way out in front as the State Police spokesman would have me believe.
To obtain a CCW permit in Oregon, one must be at least 21 years old, a legal U.S. citizen and a resident of the county issuing the permit. The applicant must complete an approved firearms proficiency and safety course. The applicant must have no outstanding warrants, no felony convictions, no recent misdemeanor convictions, no stalking or protective orders and no serious juvenile crime record. There must be no serious mental-health issues in the applicant's background. These requirements are pretty standard stuff for the issuance of a CCW permit.
Indiana, on the other hand, recognizes CCW permits from all other states, but the Indiana-resident CCW-permit requirements are especially strict. The CCW-permit applications must be submitted to the local sheriff or police chief. The applicant must state a reason for wanting or needing the permit. The issuing law enforcement agency then conducts a background investigation on the applicant to determine if he has the character and reputation to be deemed a "proper person to be...licensed."
The investigating officer then prepares a report of his investigation along with a recommendation concerning the issuance of the CCW permit. The sheriff or police chief may decide to issue a qualified or unlimited permit. The qualified permit is for hunting and target shooting only. The unlimited permit is issued only to verifiable "proper persons." The holder of an unlimited permit may only use the handgun for "protection of life and property."
The term "proper person" is defined under Indiana law. Such a person must be at least 18 and have no convictions for a gun crime or other serious offense. The applicant must have no convictions for resisting arrest and no serious juvenile offenses on his record.
The applicant must not be an abuser of alcohol or drugs, and he must not have a reputation for--or a propensity to--commit violent acts. Even a felony arrest (not a conviction) may be used as a reason to deny a CCW-permit application as long as the court rules that there is probable cause to believe that the applicant committed the crime with which he is charged. I am reminded here of the line from Alice In Wonderland: "Sentence first, trial later."
Even after a CCW permit is issued in Indiana, the sheriff or police chief who issued the permit may revoke the permit at any time if he believes there are reasonable grounds to do so. Obviously, Oregon's CCW requirements cannot begin to compare to the stringent rules imposed in Indiana.
The law-abiding CCW-permit holder who wishes to travel outside his home state with a handgun had better do some legal research first. The fact that 36 states have passed "shall issue" CCW-permit laws is no protection against stepping on a legal landmine while you are carrying both your permit and your gun.
Just remember what the shift sergeant used to say on the old cop show, "Hill Street Blues": "Be careful out there."
