Open Carry Gun Laws

It's not difficult to get a concealed carry permit, Stacia. He should have NO problems whatsoever. He'll just have to pass the firearms safety class, which means he'll have to sit through a boring, extremely redundant video that lasts about 2 hours, and shoot 40 rounds at various distances (starting at 1 yard and going back to just 10 yards). Then, once he has that certificate, he'll have to take it, his DD214, and his driver's license and be fingerprinted and have several forms filled out stating that he has no history of mental illness. It's no big deal, really. What sucks is the cost. You'll be out at least $150 when it's all said and done.

We should have our concealed carry permits in a month or so, but in the meantime, I'd just like to know for my own good if it's legal for me to carry when I take the dog(s) for a walk or not. I don't *expect* anything to happen, but where I'm walking is in a new housing development, which is back for the most part in the woods. There are only a couple of people living in there right now, but there are several construction crews that work until around 8:00pm or so, and I would just feel safer knowing that I had the gun if I needed it, and they could clearly see that I had it and think twice before trying anything. You know? I can't count on Jak to do anything at this point in time; he's still super friendly towards everyone and doesn't know any kind of 'watch' command yet. Gypsy wouldn't do anything either, even though me walking the two of them (one a GSD and the other a chow/pit mix) might be enough of a deterrant unless the person wasn't afraid of dogs. I don't think my little canister of K-mart pepper spray would be all that effective in this particular area. In a parking lot or somewhere that I would be able to run somewhere, it'd probably be okay, but not here. If Adam could get some OC spray, on the other hand..... :lol:

I'm probably just being overly paranoid about it all, but the fact that I was abducted and raped when I was 12 years old in the same area probably has a lot to do with my feelings about walking alone in the area now. I need to just call the sheriff's office and ask, but I'm not sure how to word the question so I don't sound like some psycho or backwoods ******* or something. :lol:

Mike Schoonbrood said:

Kristen Cabe said:

No, in order to get a concealed carry permit, you have to do the class, even if you are military.

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You sure? Is that state dependant? A friend of mine was special forces n he told me he could get a concealed carry permit without taking a class... maybe he doesn't know what he's talking about, or maybe it's state specific.

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Here's a partial quote from
http://www.personaldefensesolutions.net/faq.htm#10

PARTIAL QUOTE:

1.  Why should I apply for a Florida Non-resident Concealed Handgun License?
Having this license expands the number of states in which you can carry a concealed handgun legally to 28 states.  MARYLAND, NEW JERSEY AND NEW YORK RESIDENTS: You can now carry concealed in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia and Ohio as part of the 28 States covered by the Florida Non-Resident CCW Handgun License.
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2.  How many states honor the Florida CHL?
Twenty-seven plus Florida makes twenty-eight.
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3. Does Florida issue Concealed Carry Permits to non-residents of the State of Florida?
Yes. Absolutely. The State of Florida issues CCW permits to all applicants who are qualified regardless of whether they reside in Florida or in any other state. In actuality, Florida does not issue a separate permit called "Non-Resident Permit. If you are qualified, regardless of the state in which you reside, you will be issued a Florida CCW Permit. Your permit card will have your picture and your address on it. A nonresident is subject to the same laws and restrictions with respect to carrying a concealed weapon or concealed firearm as a resident of Florida who is so licensed.
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4. Can I get a Florida CCW Permit even though I reside in a state that does not issue CCW Permits?
Yes. Absolutely. While the Florida CCW Permit will not entitle you to carry legally in your state, if your state does not issue CCW permits or allow concealed carry (for example, NJ and MD), it will give you the right to carry a concealed firearm legally in 28 other states: Pennsylvania, Ohio, Delaware, Florida, Virginia, Texas, Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, and Wyoming.
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5. What are the qualifications to be eligible to be issued a Florida CCW Permit?
•    You must be a citizen of the United States OR you must be deemed a lawful permanent
     resident alien by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS formerly INS).
•    You must be 21 years of age or older.
•    You must be able to demonstrate competency with a firearm.
•    You must be a non-felon.
•    You must take a recognized Firearm Safety Class given by an NRA Certified Firearms Instructor
     (such as ours) and get a Certificate of Completion with the instructor's signature and NRA
     Certification Number on it, OR furnish proof of being Active Military or Honorably Discharged
     Military (e.g., furnish a DD-214).
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12.  I am active military.  Do I still need to take a course?
No.  You just need to submit with your application a photocopy of
your Military ID.
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13.  I am retired military. Do I still need the course?
No.  You just need to submit with your application a photocopy
of your DD-214. END QUOTE
................................................................

You can see that everything is state-specific, and that some people from one state can get licenses in certain other states.

Everything I saw yesterday, on about 8 sites, varied wildly from state to state.

Stacia Porter said:

We'll have to call here and find out. Most states we've been to Michael is allowed to have a concealed carry license w/o going through the rigamarole. Of course this is NC LOLOL. I actually would find it totally insulting to make Michael sit through a 2 hour course on weapon safety. He could teach that course, and a few other weapons-related ones lol. Then there's the one on how to fire wire-guided missiles and repair them (his original job in teh army was a land combat missile repair person -- seriuosly expensive equipment).

My big concern is that I don't think some of the places he goes to recruit allow concealed weapons...so why bother? I suppose if we're hiking or something.

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It's actually not so much a weapons safety class as it is pounding into your head the concealed carry LAWS themselves. It has nothing to do with how to handle, clean, fire, etc. the gun. You might as well just go ahead and be insulted, because in NC, he has to do it. :roll:

If he goes to schools (and that includes everything from elementary schools to private schools to universities), he cannot carry concealed on the premises at all. That also includes ballfields. Federal and State government buildings are also off limits, as are banks and other financial institutions, places that sell and/or serve alcohol, law enforcement buildings and detention centers and any building containing a court, and any place that displays a sign specifically prohibiting concealed carry.

1 yard and 10 yards? Wow, they're asking so much :roll:

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Tell me about it. You have to be a pretty poor shot to fail the shooting part of the test. I did it using the instructor's gun - one that I'd never shot before in my life, AND it was a revolver, too. I'd never even held a revolver before. I had one oops shot, because the trigger was a little more sensitive than what I was used to, but the rest were dead square in the center.