GUNS/BARMS

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Concealed Carry Permits Growing...

As Is Hope For Increased Safety

Kevin Zelaya
Lexington Clipper-Herald
Dec 27, 2017

LEXINGTON — Firearm use, especially concealed carry use, is becoming a growing trend in Nebraska.

According to "Firearms in Nebraska," a March 2016 Legislative Research Office report for the Nebraska Legislature, the total active conceal carry permits in the state grew from more than 12,500 in 2012 to more than 37,500 in 2015.

As noted in the report, until 2006, concealed carry was illegal under most circumstances. That year, the Legislature passed LB 454, the Concealed Handgun Permit Act 19, which provides the framework for legally carrying concealed handguns.

The act was 10 years in the making. A measure to allow concealed carry was first introduced in 1996 and reintroduced continually in the Legislature until it passed. Under the act, concealed means "the handgun is totally hidden from view. If any part of the handgun is capable of being seen, it is not a concealed handgun."

To obtain a concealed carry permit, the applicant must meet a long list of criteria, which includes being at least 21 years old, having no felonies on one’s criminal record, having eyesight sufficient to pass a Class O operator’s license and providing proof of firearm training.

Some places, by law, allow no one, other than law enforcement, to carry any sort of weapon, even those with a concealed carry permit. These places, known as gun free zones, include: schools, police stations, county/federal buildings, hospitals and financial institutions, among others.

Brad Jensen, a certified National Rifle Association instructor who teaches concealed carry classes at the Jeffrey Shooting Range located southwest of Lexington, said participating in his classes has been up and down.

"Since the election (of Trump), my class attendance for concealed carry has been down. I don’t know if that can be attributed to the economy or the election. I don’t feel a different atmosphere in the class," Jensen said.

Jensen said his largest class, by attendance, of 15 students or more, was held in December 2017. The larger class size could be attributed to a group of people getting together to take the class, the recent church shooting in Texas or some other reason, he said.

Lonnie Meyer, a member of the board of directors of the 1000Plus LLC Shooting Club, which operates from the Jeffrey Memorial Range, said obtaining a concealed carry permit has given him greater peace of mind.

"I do believe firearms training is extremely beneficial, whether a person chooses to carry concealed or not. It’s not the permit that makes me feel safe, it’s the training and knowledge of the gun I carry," Meyer said.

Justin Kyle of Overton got his concealed carry permit in April 2014. He said there is a big responsibility for those that can conceal carry to know what places, such as schools and churches, are restricted places for those with a concealed carry permit.

Kyle said it was a sign of the times that places traditionally deemed safe, like churches, were no longer a place of guaranteed safety.

"You expect a house of God to be a place of common ground. You don’t feel a need to carry there, it should feel safe. In certain situations, like the church in Texas, people weren’t safe," Kyle said.

The fact that the number of concealed carry permits was growing in the state did not surprise Kyle, who said he read that the state of Florida reached the one million concealed carry permits milestone about three years ago.

"I think people feel safer," Kyle said about the possible reason some who never had a concealed carry permit are applying to get one.

Being someone who was raised around firearms when he was young, Kyle said he decided to pass on this tradition to his children. Three years ago, he got his children involved in hunting and learning about firearms, he said.

He said he sees firearms as tools and that "unless you have a purpose, if you touch it you are busting trouble."

It is beneficial to children to learn at young age how to properly use, store and be around firearms so they know what is right and wrong about firearm use, Kyle said.

"We like to hunt, compete (in shooting events) and be respectful of firearms," Kyle said.

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