PACKHEAT

FROM THE 5-16-01 ISSUE OF THE DAILY OKLAHOMA CONCERNING THE ISSUE OF CONCEALED WEAPONS CARRY STATES VS. NOT AND THE REDUCTION OF VIOLENT AND OTHER CRIMES . THE ARTICLE IS BY STERLING BURNETT.

"Imagine a crime fighting policy that, by itself, substantially reduces the incidences of murder, rape and assault. A policy that enlists citizens in the fight against violent crimes--empowering them to take back the streets and live in less fear. Now imagine that this policy is cheaper to implement than any other measurably effective crime-fighting tool. Indeed, the citizens who participate in this effort voluntarily commit substantial amounts of resources and time for equipment and training.
The good news is that you don't have to " imagine" this policy, because it exists in many jurisdictions. Unfortunately, despite its proven effectiveness, some people are fighting hard against efforts to expand this initiative..This effective, but controversial crime fighting tool is allowing citizens to carry concealed handguns.

Firearms are used by law-abiding citizens about five times more often to prevent crimes than to commit them. Thus, it should not be suprising that the evidence shows that when a state allows its citizens to exercise their right to carry a concealed firearm, crime rates decline. More than 30 states now have "right to carry" laws. Under these laws, the state establishes certain objective criteria that a person must satisfy before being allowed to carry...Stringent Safety and Training precede the issuance of Licenses..
The favorable results of concealed carry laws have been documented by many experts, including Yale Univ. Dr. John Lott. Using data from all 3,054 U.S. counties, Lott found that "right to carry" laws reduce murder by 8.5% , rape by 5% and severe assault by 7%. Had right to carry laws prevailed throughout the country, there would have been 1,600 fewer murders, 4,200 less rapes and 60,000 fewer severe assaults. Nor has the ability of "Citizens" to carry weapons resulted in increased accidental shootings or "heat of the moment" killings. Indeed, while firearm ownership in the U.S is at an all time high, the firearm accident rate is lower that it has ever been since 1903.

Concealed carry permittees have proved themselves quite law abiding compared to the general population. For instance, between 1987 and 1995, Florida had issued nearly 300,000 permits, but only 19 have been revoked. In Texas, where more than 215,000 licenses have been issued, licensees were 5.7% times less likely to be arrested for violent crimes than the general public and 14 times less likely to be arrested for non-violent offenses than the general Public.

Those who argue aganist right to carry laws have none of the facts on their side. As John Russi , director of Florida's licensing division said, "They said there would be gun fights and confrontations in the streets". As far as I can determine, there has been no negative impact".

KEEPING HONEST, LAW-ABIDING PEOPLE "UNARMED" AND AT THE MERCY OF ARMED AND VIOLENT CRIMINALS WAS NEVER A GOOD IDEA.