There is a particular question I get asked a lot when it comes to carrying firearms and having a license to carry / concealed handgun license. It is usually along the lines of, “as a cop, how do you feel about other people carrying guns?” The question is asked with the expectation that my response will be negative, thinking that I, and other officers don’t want other people carrying guns.
This could not be farther from the truth. Myself, along with the majority of officers that I work with are strong supporters of the second amendment. We want people to have guns! And of course I am referring to the good guys having guns, not people committing crimes!
There is nothing more frustrating than having a defenseless victim. Whether it’s someone that is robbed, assaulted, or even killed (just to name a few), the victim always seems to be a person that is not able to defend themselves from the attacker. I wish the victim was armed and capable of defending themselves! I do realize there are many other methods of self defense as well, but for now I am just talking about guns.
August 4th, Titusville Florida, is a recent perfect example of a concealed carry holder using a firearm for self defense. Over 100 people were at a park for a back to school cookout when a man, who had been in a fist fight earlier, returned to the park with a gun. Only minutes later, he started shooting and a license to carry holder then shot the gunman. The gunman was the only person injured. Just think if the license to carry holder had not been there to stop the shooter. A police response can take anywhere from 30 seconds to a few minutes for a critical incident. That is plenty of time for a gunman to shoot multiple people. With more license to carry holders, hopefully shootings will be stopped quicker. Making guns illegal, or having “gun free zones” never prevent a criminal from, well, being a criminal. We should go ahead and make crack cocaine illegal, that will prevent people from buying and using it! Oh wait, it is illegal, and the laws definitely do not prevent people from purchasing and using cocaine! I think that same thought process can be applied to the second amendment.
I do believe that every person who carries a gun needs to practice and train, then practice and train some more. It is downright scary talking to and encountering people that think passing the License to Carry / Concealed Handgun License qualification means they are proficient and trained to carry a gun. Just because you have the license, it does not mean you should be carrying a gun. It would be the same as saying that because I was able to get my drivers license, I can start racing NASCAR without extra practice or training. Besides the fact that NASCAR does have additional requirements, it would be irresponsible to think I could race. This is an entirely different discussion for another post however.