WI: Concealed Carry Permits Top 280,000 in 2015

Wisconsin concealed carry permits topped 280,000 in 2015, according to Wisconsin Governor Walker.  From WSAW.com:

“We have over 280,000 people who in the last five years have gone through concealed carry. There’s people all across the state, like my wife who went through a course, got the training, add that added protection.”

The official Department of Justice report on CCW permits have not been released yet.

The permits have been a success by most observers standards, following the pattern in other states.  The first permits were issued late in 2011.  Only one person with a permit has been convicted of a homicide since that time.   Wisconsin has an adult population (21 or over) of about 4.4 million.   Thus, people with permits are about 1 out of every 16 Wisconsin adult residents.    The one manslaughter homicide by a person with a permit (who claimed self defense, but was convicted by a jury)  in four years translates into a homicide rate for Wisconsin permit holders of about .22 homicides per 100/000 people per year.  That is less than 1/13 of the homicide rate for Wisconsin on average.   It is similar to the rate for permit holders in Minnesota.  According to the FBI, the Wisconsin homicide rate for 2012 was 3.0, 2.8 for 2013, 2.9 in 2014.   

Part of the reason that Wisconsin has achieved significant numbers of permits is that they learned from the mistakes made by previous states.  Requirements for the permit were not burdensome.  The original fee was set at $50, but experience proved that $40 was sufficient to meet state costs.  The state lowered the fee to that number.  Wisconsin does not require fingerprints or photographs for their permit.  Wisconsin has never required any licensing for the open carry of weapons.

Wisconsin Carry has offered free classes to meet the concealed carry requirement for the permit.  Here is their notice of the next free class: 

Free Concealed Carry License Class: Fond du Lac, WI (click here to register)

2/27/2016, 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM

Free Concealed Carry License Class at Izaak Walton League Clubhouse Saturday Feb. 27th Required: You must visit the following link and download the class handouts and bring them with you to the class. http://www.wisconsincarry.org/documents/documents.aspx NOTE: If you sign up for this class but cannot attend we ask that you please notify us at [email protected] If you sign up for the free class but do not show up, you will not be permitted to sign up for future classes unless you notified us 48 hours ahead of time you couldn’t attend. There are *far* too many people we have to turn away because a class appears to be full to have people “no show” a class. *Note, you do NOT need to own a gun to attend, nor do you need to bring one for the class.

Izaak Walton League Clubhouse – A.D. Sutherland Chapter
N6491 County Road K
Fond Du Lac, WI 

Wisconsin seems ripe for Constitutional Carry.  They have strong state constitutional protection for the right to keep and bear arms in Article I Section 25:

 The people have the right to keep and bear arms for security, defense, hunting, recreation or any other lawful purpose.

 Governor Walker just signed Act 149, which effectively implements constitutional carry for knives in Wisconsin.

Wisconsin has come a long way in four short years. The state shows how fragile the media cartel mythology of more guns/ less safety is.  The state concealed permit system has been a resounding success.  Wisconsin is incrementally  restoring Second Amendment rights for its citizens and residents.

©2016 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included.
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