Growing numbers seeking permits for concealed handguns

SUFFOLK

Christopher Corbett exercised one of his new rights soon after turning 21: He applied for a concealed-handgun permit.

He said his father, a police officer who has "seen the worst of the worst," was adamant.

"People should be able to protect themselves without worrying if the police are going to get here in time," Corbett said.

The number of applications for concealed-handgun permits is soaring across Virginia, including in Hampton Roads. People don't have to state a reason when they apply, so no one can say with certainty what's driving the trend.

But theories abound.

Some in the firearms industry say it's a response to the Virginia Tech shootings or the crime coverage of today's continuous news cycle. Some of the increases in recent years may have been the result of expiring permits sought after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. One gun shop owner even pointed to the uncertainty of the upcoming election.

Robert Marcus of Bob's Gun Shop in Norfolk said demand for the weekly concealed-carry instruction course there is so high that he added another class this week. The sessions take 35 people each.

Marcus said nearly 100 more have signed up for an online course that he began offering April 3.

Locally, Virginia Beach, Norfolk and Portsmouth all saw spikes in permit applications in 2007, but Suffolk saw the largest increase by percentage.

The sprawling, historically rural but fast-growing city saw applications jump 58 percent last year, and the first three months of 2008 have it on pace for another record, thanks to applicants such as Corbett and Donald Ryan.

Ryan, 72, sought a permit this year for the first time. Health problems have put him in a wheelchair, and he and his wife live at the end of a long street.

"There's some really sick people out there," he said.

A former police evidence technician who served in the Navy, Ryan said he's been around firearms all his life.

Getting a permit to carry a concealed weapon comes with "an awesome responsibility," he said. Guns should be used only "if you are in fear of your life - period," he said. "Property crimes don't count."

This week he opened a letter from the sheriff's office letting him know that his application is almost through the system.

On the notice were the words of caution that Suffolk Sheriff Raleigh Isaacs Sr. includes for each applicant:

"I would like to remind you as to the careful handling of firearms under the watchful eye of children."

The number of concealed-carry permits in Virginia first soared in 1995, the year that the law was liberalized to give judges less discretion in denying permits. Applications jumped to 32,869 - nearly four times the 1994 total, according to numbers compiled by the Supreme Court of Virginia.

The statewide number, which includes applications for both new permits and renewals, spiked again in 2002. Permits are good for five years until they must be renewed, so some of those post-9/11 applicants likely contributed to the recent surge.

Statewide, applications jumped about 61 percent last year from 2006, to about 44,000, according to the Supreme Court figures. As of Thursday, the Virginia State Police database contained 152,267 active concealed-carry permits.

Applicants must be at least 21 and pass a criminal background check. They also have to answer a number of questions, including whether they are subject to a restraining order or are addicted to a controlled substance. They also must prove they have received safety training.

In Suffolk, 194 people applied in the first three months of 2008. Scott Brown was among the 93 seeking a new permit, not a renewal.

Brown, 52, applied in February, months after relocating from Colorado. He said he has owned guns since childhood.

"I've always felt that was one of the responsibilities of citizenship," Brown said. "Every once in a while, we've got these nut cases that just start shooting people. We would complicate the lives of criminals if we all carried guns."

Virginia Citizens Defense League President Philip Van Cleave said highly publicized shootings such as the one at Virginia Tech remind people that the government can't always protect them.

"The police can't be everywhere at once," he said. "If they can't be there, you've got a choice - e ither die or protect yourself. More and more people are looking at it that way."

Dave Forster, (757) 222-5563, dave.forster@pilotonline.com

Kristin Davis, (757) 222-5555, kristin.davis@pilotonline.com