I was just reading the NRA's "America's 1st Freedom" Magazine and came across an article about Utah doing daily background checks on all CCW holders.
I can't find a website from the NRA that has the article. I feel it's interesting enough to type the article here for all to see, so forgive any typo's. Also, if anybody can find the article at [url]www.nralive.com[/url] please provide the link.
There was no aurthor at the end of the article therefor can not credit anyone for it. However, I think it's Wayne LaPierre. The Article appears on page 14 of the July issue of the magazine mentioned above.
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Shocked and outraged Utah concealed carry permit holders recently learned that all 38,000 of them are being subjected to unwarranted daily background checks by the state's Bureau of Criminal Indentification (BCI).
Previously, such screening was done only when a person applied for a right-to-carry permit, or when the permittee renewed it. But recently Joyce Carter, supervisor over BCI's firearms section, told the [i]Salt Lake tribune[/i] that the daily background checks were instituted in Febuary 2000.
Not unexpectedly, many permit holders are baffled.
"This policy is about harrasing gun owners, making them look bad and frightening the public," said Sarah Thompson, M.D., executive director of Utah Gun Owners Alliance. "It's NOT about 'public safety.'"
Thompson points out that not one of the 256 people whose license was revoked in the past year had committed a violent crime with a firearm. (Incidently, that's 6/100 of 1 percent of Utah CCW holders.)
"What are the 'crimes' that BCI is using to justify this unwarranted abuse of gun owners?" she asks. "Well, the 'fugitive from justice' are generally people who haven't paid a traffic fine and have had a warrant issued. And the 'spouse abusers' are generally people who have a protective order filed against them as part of a routine divorce---often without their knowledge."
What especially galls many permit holders is the fact that they've been singled out as the type of menace that would need daily surveillance.
"Here's a complete list of Utah residents subjected to daily criminal background checks: concealed carry permit permittees," Thompson said. "Here's a partial list of residents not subjected to daily criminal background checks: convicted pedophiles, convicted drug dealers, convicted violent felons, persons on probation and parole. So, if BCI is truly concerned about 'criminals,' why aren't they doing daily background checks on real criminals?
"UTGOA suspects that this is a PR campaign designed to convince the public that CCW permittees are dangerous so that the legislaure will eliminate legal cancealed carry, support more draconian gun control/or give BCI more money to persecute gun owners. And we don't like it at all!"
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