Posted on 05/29/2013 12:54:51 PM PDT by Bodhi1
I spent Thursday, Friday and Monday mornings calling every county sheriff's office in Missouri.
Those guys are hard to track down. Many of them are working sheriffs and catching them in the office is rare.
Out of the 114, I was able to speak with forty-five, which is nearly 40 percent, a fairly good sample.
I asked each of them the same three questions:
In answer to the first question, thirty-nine, or 86 percent, answered they did support it. Five were against and two were undecided. Those who supported it still had some reservations. Sheriff Brad DeLay of Lawrence County and Sheriff David Hoffman of Monroe County wants anyone carrying a gun on school grounds to go through more extensive training than what is offered in an eight hour concealed carry course. Sheriff Richard Lisenbe of Phelps County also supported the measure with the caveat anyone carrying would have special training. Sheriff Jimmy Shinn of Marion County and Sheriff Scott Keeler both said they'd support the move as long as the local law enforcement knew who was carrying a gun and what they looked like. That way no one was shot by mistake.
For the second question, the answers were split. Nineteen sheriffs, or 42 percent, supported lowering the age for a CCW permit to age 19, down from 21. Ten sheriffs were against it. But twelve sheriffs said they would support any nineteen year old who was in the military being allowed to get a concealed weapon permit. For the dissenters, the common reason was maturity. Another factor was it's illegal for nineteen year olds to buy a handgun. It made no sense to some that they should be allowed to carry one concealed. There were four sheriffs who were undecided.
The final question found Missouri sheriffs overwhelming in favor of decentralizing the permitting process and moving it to the county level. Forty out of forty-five sheriffs surveyed, or 88%, agreed with moving the process. Sheriff Raymond Tipton of Hickory County said it's the way it always should have been. Sheriff Randee Kaiser agrees, saying the sheriff's office already does 90 percent of the work. There was one common factor between those who dissented and those who agreed. Many sheriffs were concerned about funding the process.
Mick Covington, Executive Director of the Missouri Sheriff's Association, pointed out the move already has $2,000,000 earmarked for start up costs, and the process, after established, should pay for itself through the fees collected. At least one sheriff was skeptical that even if funding was in place that it would be enough. Many sheriffs were concerned this could become yet another unfunded mandate from Jefferson City.
I'm always wary when people survey law enforcement officers on the topic of the nation's civil rights: ultimately, they're citizens like all the rest of us, not authorities at all, and historically, a great many have gone to great lengths to infringe both our Second Amendment and all the rest of our rights; all the same, it's heartening to see more and more LEOs are catching on to the idea of civil rights.
Thanks.
These folks seemed genuine. I felt like I was talking to a guy over my back yard fence.
There’s a lot of common sense in Missouri, it seems.
Thanks.
These folks seemed genuine. I felt like I was talking to a guy over my back yard fence.
There’s a lot of common sense in Missouri, it seems.
Exactly how dangerous are the schools in Missouri? We’ve got some 30 school buildings in my county alone and I can’t find that any of them have ever had a single shooting.
Hardly worth paying someone to protect the schools. Personally I’d rather go back to letting school personnel carry if they wish.
That Amish school in Pennsylvania wasn’t considered dangerous yet kids were slaughtered.
Schools could get a bunch of retired, yet able bodied, old farts like me to volunteer a few hours a week and it wouldn’t cost the tax payers anything.
Specially designated armed personnel will help but not so much as it might seem unless those SPPs are dressed the same as the other adults in the school and do not stand out as armed guards. One armed guard who looks like an armed guard simply becomes the first target for a madman. If Concealed Carry is implemented and all teachers required to attend a Gun Safety Course and that, say, half the staff in a school must have CC permits then it need not be required for any teachers to be carrying at any given time. The prospective killer does not know who is armed and who is not nor how many. It is not worth it to him if his grand finale might just turn into a relative fizzle. One or two killings just won’t do it. That’s why he chooses a school in the first place.
ABOF volunteers would be helpful. if there are several in a school for the whole school day and if they circulate among the classrooms as classroom volunteers. If there is only one and he sits in the office he will be easy to ID for someone who cases the joint ahead of action as all seem to have done. Once identified, that ABOF takes the first bullet then the place is another resistance free killing zone.
is the one method that is cheap and has a high probability of effectiveness.
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