Back in January 2001, anti-gun activist Sarah Brady issued a statement condemning Michigan Gov. John Engler for signing a concealed carry law. Brady promised that, “Mark my words: this insult to caring Michigan citizens will not go unnoticed, and will not be forgotten.” What has largely been forgotten, however, is Brady’s alarmist rhetoric.
July marks the one year anniversary of the law going into effect. The number of concealed weapons permits skyrocketed in the last 12 months, but the crime wave predicted by opponents of the bill has yet to materialize.
Before Engler signed that bill, there were 51,000 people with concealed weapons permits in Michigan. Today there are more than 100,000. So far, there does not seem to be a single crime attributable to an individual with a concealed weapon, which is consistent with what has happened in other states. Inevitably, of course, somebody is going to commit a crime with a weapon they are carrying under a concealed permit, but in other states people with concealed weapons permits have tended to commit crimes with their guns less frequently than off-duty police officers.
Significant numbers of women have applied for a concealed weapons permit. In Kalamazoo County, where I live, 20 percent of the applicants have been women.
Due to some quirks with the way the law was enacted, it would be almost impossible to repeal it in the forseeable future, and anti-gun groups have largely given up on such efforts.
Sources:
Weakening Michigan’s Concealed-Carry Law. Sarah Brady, January 3, 2001.
Gun permits up, but no problems yet. Craig McCool, Kalamazoo Gazette, June 16, 2002.