Tools For The Best Life Possible^TM

Picture a war where the good guys have been disarmed.

In Vallejo there’s less than one policemen per 1000 people. As California cities go bankrupt, one by one, the first thing that goes is Police and Fire protection. Regardless of how good the remaining force may be Vallejo residents are guaranteed to get the pizza before the policeman if they call for both at the same time.

Even worse, California leads the pack in disarming innocent civilians. It’s all but impossible to get the permit you need to exercise your 2nd amendment right. The reason you have to purchase a permit for a right you were born with is explained in my article, Judged by 12 or Carried by 6. But, California takes it a step further by practically denying the right to carry, altogether.

Most sheriffs and police chiefs offer to review your application for appearances, only. They don’t actually approve them unless you’re part of local government or make a large donation to the sheriff. That’s the best way to describe what I found while researching the possibilities for a friend who lives in California.

There’s some rural counties in the mountains and deserts that approve a greater number of applications. Based on the remoteness of these areas people would probably ignore the permit process if they were turned down. And with such low population the sheriff would have to put the entire county in jail.

People who apply for a permit to carry a gun are the least dangerous segment of the population, including the police. With California’s’ dwindling police force the residents of the state should be grateful to their fellow citizens willing to undertake the training and responsibility required for the task.

Resources for CA CCW Applicants

Based on my research, a California resident can improve the miserable odds of getting their CCW application approved by keeping the following things in mind:

1. Your first application must be your best application. They don’t want to approve you in the first place. They definitely don’t want to bother with you a second time if they don’t have to. It’s going to take a long time, anyway. Why not improve the odds by perfecting your first application?
2. Be aware that the sheriff or police chief you’re submitting to is looking for any reason to deny your application, as these 2006 statistics show. Here’s some old stats from 1999.
3. There may be 2 permits: County and City. County will cover city but city may limit to the city limits. To make things more complicated the sheriff (county) may delegate issuing authority to the city. The order in which you apply may be crucial. And the ideal number of applications to submit is the least number required by law. Ask theoretical questions, in person, of both the county sheriff and the city police chief.
4. Many CCW holders recommend using the same caliber (and possibly even the same gun) as the police. This is based on the 2006 Harold Fish case where his 10mm hollow points were deemed excessive force even in self-defense. The reasoning is: A jury can’t tell a citizen his force was excessive if he uses the same force as the police use for their own protection. Otherwise, you’re admitting the police use excessive force, or, you’re deeming a citizens life as less valuable than a policeman’s.
5. Your ‘Good Cause’ statement in section 7 should be perfect: Reasonable, true, backed up by facts and documentation. Be the reasonable man with a good cause that you already are. You may not believe that anyone is worthy of giving you the right to carry a gun. But, the people you’re submitting to believe it is their right to deny you. No 2A lectures or assertions of your right to protect your family. They don’t care. Here’s some examples of 11 good cause statements including Sean Penn’s. Here’s Sylvester Stallone’s CCW application (Section 7 redacted).
6. If you get frustrated with CA the state that issues non-resident CCW’s with the broadest reciprocity is Texas. Some states only give reciprocity to residents of the state issuing the permit. You can Build a State Reciprocity map here.
7. The Best overall CCW site is here.
8. The Best Place to get started for California is here.
9. Here’s some CCW FAQs by county for CA.

Interestingly, I haven’t been able to find out the penalty for carrying a concealed weapon without a CCW permit in California. However, in AZ and NV it’s a misdemeanor. Frankly, I’ve found it difficult to find the penalties on this law for most states.

I’m no legal expert. However, I suspect no state wants to risk the publicity of charging someone with a felony for exercising a constitutional right. Even if its only a federal one.

Good luck and thank you!

Tags: constitution, defense, DIY, economy, freedom, guns, Health, How-To, independence, Law, safety, self-defense, tyranny, US

This entry was posted on Monday, February 9th, 2009 at 7:51 pm and is filed under DIY, Health, How-To, Law, US, constitution, defense, economy, independence, self-defense, tyranny. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.