Permitless carry would remove safeguards

To the Editor:

The Indiana Legislature has convened a summer committee on “permitless carry.” Currently, Indiana residents who wish to carry a loaded handgun in public must obtain a permit, which requires a background check. The proposal under study is that this permitting requirement should be repealed.

The committee, chaired by Indiana State Sen. Rodric Bray, held its first meeting on Aug. 22, and heard testimony from the Indiana Association of Chiefs of Police, the Indiana State Fraternal Order of Police, the Indiana State Police, and the Indiana Sheriff’s Association, which unanimously opposed the proposal on the grounds that it would make their jobs more difficult and decrease public safety.

However, the majority of committee members were resistant to law enforcement testimony, on the grounds that the permitting requirement is an infringement of their Second Amendment rights.

Currently in Indiana, handgun carry permits are denied to people who have a propensity for violent or emotionally unstable conduct, people who have been convicted of certain weapons offenses and people who have records of abusing alcohol or drugs.

Also, along with the vast majority of other states, Indiana requires a criminal background check before a person can get a permit and carry a concealed handgun. Permitless carry would remove all these safeguards and decrease law enforcement’s ability to keep us safe.

Indiana legislators should put the safety of their constituents first and reject permitless carry in Indiana.

Please contact, Rodric Bray at 317-232-9400 or at Senator.Bray@iga.in.gov and voice your concern about this very dangerous proposal.

Greencastle League of Women Voters

Leslie Hanson, Linda Raines, Margot Payne, Tiffany Hebb, Pam Propsom, Rita Schendel, Kim Fidler, Barbara Boese, Carol Emery, Dana Dudle, Beth Newton Watson, Paula Evans, Whitney Morrill, Ruth Ralph, Brooke Cox, Karen Martoglio, Harriet Moore, Angela Smock, Stephanie Hunter, Sheryl Tremblay, June Javens-Wolfe, Martha Opdahl, Ann Newton and Dot Thompson