Nearly 200 Dunklin County residents lawfully carry concealed weapons, a sheriff's department spokesman said Wednesday.
However, unless legislation is crafted to amend certain state laws, the identity of those who pack cancelable weapons will be restricted to law enforcement personnel, according to the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Internet web site.
Dunklin County Sheriff Bob Holder has approved Carry Concealed Weapons (CCW) permits for 190 people since Missouri legislators passed the concealed weapons law, RSMO 571.094, on Feb. 26, 2004, the spokesman said.
Applicants complete classroom instruction; demonstrate proficiency at target shooting from seven yards; pass successfully live-firing exercises at B-27 silhouette targets identical to those used by law enforcement personnel to hone their own firing skills; and demonstrate the ability to load and unload handguns safely; the spokesman added.
Prospective permit holders must successfully complete the training courses prior to seeking the CCW permits, the spokesman said.
The Concealed Carry Weapon Training Course taught by Dunklin County Chief Deputy Sheriff Wally Poynor requires participants to supply personal identification; registered weapons with belts and holsters; cleaning kits, if already is owned by students; 150 rounds of ammunition; hearing and sight protection, including hats or caps; and appropriate dress for outdoors, the course syllabus stated.
Those who apply for permits to acquire concealable firearms must affirm they are U.S. citizens; prove they resided within the state for at least six months; affirm they are at least 21 years old; never pleaded guilty to, or were convicted of, felonies involving explosives, firearms, silencers or gas guns; are not fugitives or charged with felonies involving explosives, firearms, silencers or gas guns; were honorably discharged from military service, if they served in the armed forces; are not under full orders of protection; are not known publicly to be in intoxicated or drugged conditions; were never judged mentally incompetent or were committed to mental health facilities; and demonstrate reasons for acquiring concealable firearms, the spokesman explained.
Sheriff's department personnel create copies of applicants' driver licenses and handgun information, then perform background checks on those who apply for permits and their weapons, the spokesman said.
In addition to their students, instructors have their own lists of requirements to satisfy, the spokesman said.
Those who teach the courses that are necessary legally for CCW seekers must certify they are qualified firearms safety instructors when they sign off on students' diplomas.
Sheriff's department personnel ask those who seek CCW permits to make appointments with the department prior to the 20-minute interviews, and to bring with them copies of the Instructor Qualification forms, which are their proof of training; their driver licenses; and money orders to cover administrative fees.
Sheriff's department personnel take two sets of applicants' fingerprints, as well as photographs of prospects prior to performing in-house background checks, the spokesman noted. Personnel then forward the information to the Missouri State Highway Patrol and to the FBI for extensive background checks, the spokesman said.
Once the information is verified and background checks are okayed, the permits are, with the sheriff's approval, issued and returned, the spokesman said.
The process takes approximately 45 days, the spokesman added.
Once returned, successful applicants take the permits to the state Department of Revenue office, where they are issued identification cards, the spokesman noted. Or, those who wish may, with their birth certificates in hand, add endorsements to their driver licenses, the spokesman added. There are additional costs of approximately $11, the spokesman said.
The permit is effective for three years, the spokesman said.
Poynor said Friday that he already has accepted a few pre-registered students for his next class, which is slated to begin in mid-March.
"We can accommodate up to 40 students," Poyner said. "But we usually have classes of about 10 to 12 people."
Missouri's CCW law, enacted when the Legislature overrode Gov. Bob Holden's veto, bars the identification of concealed weapons permit holders, although applications to sheriffs to purchase guns have been open records for years, and remain so, the SPJ web site indicated.
The measure made it a misdemeanor for law enforcement to disclose the names of CCW permit holders issued by Missouri sheriffs starting Oct. 11, 2003, according to the SPJ.
An Associated Press study of the four concealed gun laws enacted that year -- in Colorado, Minnesota, Missouri and New Mexico -- indicated that each state bars public identification by name of permit holders.
Legislation was filed, but not approved in 2004, in at least two other states -- Tennessee and Texas -- to close accessible listings by name of concealed gun permit holders.
"There is no need for the public to know who has a permit," National Rifle Association spokeswoman Kelly Hobbs told The SPJ. "Research has shown that the principal reason right-to-carry laws deter crime is that criminals do not know who is armed."
But what about the public's right to know the identity of those who pack concealed weapons?
In Missouri, the state open records law assumes that government documents are public unless they are exempted specifically. Scores of "good reasons for public access to concealed weapons permits leap to mind," the SPJ stated.
For example, a parent wouldn't be able to determine independently if a babysitter carried a concealed weapon, or a homeowner couldn't discover if a bothersome neighbor had a permit, the SPJ maintained.
Also, journalists would have no way to determine if concealed weapons were used in road rage incidents or at school shootings, the site stated.
"It denies the public and press any way of monitoring the issuance of concealed weapons permits," the SPJ indicated.