Virginia online classes make getting gun permit easy for non-residents
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Virginia is issuing a rising number of concealed-carry gun permits to people who live in other states in a trend that may be helped by online gun classes.
The commercial courses allow applicants to seek a permit from Virginia that is valid in their state, but without having to meet tougher requirements, such as firing a gun with an instructor.
Virginia State Police issued 1,632 concealed-carry permits to nonresidents through the first half of 2012, topping the previous year's total of 1,321 nonresident permits.
There are no hard numbers on the cause because state police do not track how many people take online training compared to other types of training.
But state police note the increase came after Virginia law was changed and follows online marketing to other states.
The commercial courses allow applicants to seek a permit from Virginia that is valid in their state, but without having to meet tougher requirements, such as firing a gun with an instructor.
Virginia State Police issued 1,632 concealed-carry permits to nonresidents through the first half of 2012, topping the previous year's total of 1,321 nonresident permits.
There are no hard numbers on the cause because state police do not track how many people take online training compared to other types of training.
But state police note the increase came after Virginia law was changed and follows online marketing to other states.
One more quick point. Americans are supposed to be a progressive people. Yet it seems that ALL gun proponents, of which I am one, just want their damn guns and to be left alone about it and that's the end of it. Yet we ALL seem to want people to believe we are more progressed than the weapons we insist we must have. We take classes, if we are somewhat responsible owners, but our 'progressed consciousness' says it's ok to then do not one more damn thing other than blindly sit our lazy butt on our Second Amendment rights. Real bogish, people. That's the act of being bogus, fyi. We COULD elect to take on the RESPONSIBILITY of re-registering every firearm we posses at driver's license time. Every year would be better. Blind people can own guns, as can those without arms. Problem? I understand heirlooms, but jeez. My point is that maybe if we ALL don't want our rights screwed with, maybe it's hightime we STEPPED UP AND STARTED DOING THINGS TO SHOW WE DESERVE OUR RIGHTS. We CAN whittle this down to a whistle, but we gotta get our freakin act together For Real on it.
@FreeCoffeeNow!  You claim to be a pro-gun proponent and then go on an anti-gun tirade. If you want to throw out straw dogs you need better camoflage.
@FreeCoffeeNow! You may have noticed my comment and past comments on gun ownership. I I'm a gun owner and I beleave it is a right that will not go away.
What I am not, is an NRA sheep. I just want the guns laws on the books enforced. The NRA holds there ground on anything that remotely smells of gun controll but at the same time urge every person to be armed regardless of thier abilty to handle a weapon. Too many incidents lately involved legal gun owners losing thier minds and taking innocent people with them. Yet, the answer for the NRA and gun owners is to arm more people and make even easier.
The guy in Arlington over the weekend is becoming the norm and the exception. There needs to be a dialogue, not more laws just a dialogue.
I have a friend who bought a gun. It sits in a box in his closet because he has never used one. Try to have him go to a range and learn to use it-just wants it around in case, and that is where it sits, in the case. How many guns are sitting there like that waiting for a burglur?
 @snoopy84N"RA holds there ground on anything that remotely smells of gun controll"  - TRUE
"but at the same time urge every person to be armed regardless of thier abilty to handle a weapon." = FALSE. Â The NRA urges people to learn to use their weapons by taking classes etc.. They also do not do a blanket "Everyone should be armed" thing. While they think more people should be armed if you read what they say they pointedly do not encourage everyone to be armed.Â
 @SeattleJoe facts, facts, facts. how boring compared to the drooling screamers who just "know" the truth.
@SeattleJoe @snoopy84 This is very true. I have been a member since 97 and what Seattlejoe says is correct.Â
I actually support mandatory gun safety and competence training for a carry permit. And I have a boat load of firearms and embrace the right to own and defend. We require training for hunting. I mean come on.Â
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Ignorance with a firearm is the worst kind. If we ever wish to have reciprocity of gun carry laws across the land, we must mandate reasonable training and skills.Â
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Arizona required training and it was well worth it. You learn laws, how horrible gun wounds can be and basic combat distance firing skill. Washington state, all you need to do is drool and your permit is granted.
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We should just hand out strike anywhere matches to toddlers. Notice how those have been banned?
 @pbs7mm While it makes sense to require training for concealed carry, it doesn't appear that the percentage of legal concealed carriers who screwed up unintentionally in WA state is any different than in states that require training.Â
One can easily get a Utah out of state concealed carry permit that is good for more than half the states (33) for only $145. It isn't online but sounds just as easy to take.
Is there a way for them to verify online that the person taking the class is indeed who they say they are? Are they background checked to make sure they are allowed to even have a CWP? How is obtaining a CWP in Virginia valid for other states especially when they have different guidelines to abide by?
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COME ON! The lack of details in these stories are getting ridiculous. What happened to digging for details, reporting the WHOLE story, asking questions?
 @Tattooed_Angel Many states will honor other states concealed licenses but the weapon must be carried in accordance with the state laws you are in at the time.  Washington has concealed weapon reciprocity with about 12 states, as LC above points out, the Utah permit is very popular because it has reciprocity with so many more states.Â
@Tattooed_Angel Come on now what did you expect from KOMO.
So how doe we get uin touch??? Show us the information~!
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On-line class-really? Why don't they make it mandatory for all residents and non-residents have a fire arm at age 12.
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How about a middle school mandatory class on fire arms. Let's have someone manufacture lunch boxes with a gun compartment. How about we have McDonald's provide 12th birthday gift meal with a "GLOCK 27" a light small wepon a kid would have no problem carrying around. How about................................................................................
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Where does this insanity end? Why make so easy to get gun that rule and laws become moot?
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 @snoopy84 "How about a middle school mandatory class on fire arms."  If it were a gun safety class I'd be all fore it.
I didn't have to do anything to get my concealed permit in Washington state.
Thanks for contributing to the arms race, jerks.Â
 @Citizen#3457899654 Classy
I really don't like getting drawn into the gun issues too often, but this is something that really needs saying. It seems to me that the biggest gun problem in America is due to over-manufacture and questionable retail tactics that are in fact, not in the publics' best interests. Virginia is a big part of our national problem, due to the wholesaling of truckloads of weapons. Why would a dealer want to spend time, money, and effort on setting up a booth at a legitimate venue to sell maybe a handful of older rifles, a shotgun or two, and a couple old collector pieces when it's an instant sale to take a trunkload of machine pistols and Glocks to any inner city gangland? WE NEED TO DEMAND TRACKING OF ALL FIREARMS MADE IN THIS NATION. Every damn one. I have no desire to see the rights of decent citizens trampled, and this is the ONLY way I've ever been able to come up with. Every serial number matches to a person who will be put in prison for screwing around. EVERY sale or trade tracked, all offenders banned for life and given their federal/state felonies. Thoughts?
@FreeCoffeeNow!  You need to keep up with the times. Every firearm in this country that's legally purchased through a licensed dealer is tracked and has been since 1968 by local as well as federal authorities. That includes all the new manufactuered weapons you seem so worried about.
There isn't much they can do about the illegal gun trade because it is illegal and wasting resources on failed gun tracking into Mexico doesn't help.
With over 300 million firearms already in the hands of American citizens any attempt to register existing firearms and their owners would be seen as another big brother attempt to control the populace and would be doomed to failure from inception.
 @FreeCoffeeNow! Well as long as there are nitwits out there trying to take away peoples guns then something like this will never happen. If the second amendment were modified to state the gov could never take your weapons unless you are a criminal, mentally unfit, etc and they could not just create some law to make you a criminal or mentally unfit etc to get around the amendment then you could possibly get this to happen. Aside from that I seriously doubt people want to take the risk.
Every serial number matches to a person who will claim it was stolen from him some time ago for which the details are vague now.
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There...fixt for ya
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 @PilonidalCyst The answer is in America making the choice right now and forever upon 18 to accept or decline a permit for a forearm. Cut criminals out of the game at an early age. They can't accept.
 @FreeCoffeeNow! Thank you for you post. It is about access and accountability and the dirty little secret of over-manufactoring and saturation at all costs to society.Â
At least they have a class. Â Unless it's changed Washington requires no training or class at all, fingerprints, fill out the app, pay and wait. Â There was no requirement to fire a gun with an instructor.
@oledawg  That was part of the deal made in Olympia to get rid of class III weapons in the state.
 @oledawg It was tried, the NRA killed it.