PA Bill Number: HB335
Title: In inchoate crimes, further providing for prohibited offensive weapons.
Description: In inchoate crimes, further providing for prohibited offensive weapons. ...
Last Action: Removed from table
Last Action Date: May 1, 2024
Topeka and Kansas authorities discuss new concealed carry law :: 07/10/2015
The rules have changed. A Kansas law that took effect last week gives most people ages 21 and older the option of carrying a concealed handgun in public on their person, whether that be a six-shooter in a holster, a semiautomatic handgun in a waistband or a pistol in a purse.
The law legalizes “the concealed carry of a firearm without a concealed carry license issued by the State, as long as that individual is not prohibited from possessing a firearm under either federal or state law,” Topeka police Lt. Colleen Stuart said Thursday.
The bill also clarifies that it is illegal for anyone under 21 to carry a concealed weapon except on that person’s land, in his or her abode or at his or her fixed place of business, Stuart said.
The law, which took effect July 1, enables Kansans to carry a concealed firearm without having to go through the previously established process off passing a background check, completing firearms training and paying a nonrefundable fee of $132.50 to acquire a concealed carry permit from the state.
But Attorney General Derek Schmidt’s office continues to accept new and renewal applications for concealed carry licenses, said Jennifer Rapp, the office’s spokeswoman.
“To date, there are 90,387 active licenses,” she said Tuesday.
In effect, Stuart said, there are “two processes running parallel.”
“One in which you can go through the registration, licensing, training and have a concealed carry license and the other in which you can purchase, if you are legally allowed to, a firearm, with no registration, licensing or training and carry concealed,” she said.
State and federal laws ban the possession of a firearm by certain people, including drug addicts and many convicted felons.
Though the state no longer requires safety training to carry concealed firearms, Topeka Second Amendment advocate Earl McIntosh encourages gun owners to get the training anyway.
McIntosh, a retired Marine who is a board member for the Kansas State Rifle Association, said Tuesday he was pleased the new law had taken effect.
He said he expects it will make Kansans safer by deterring would-be criminals, who won’t know which law-abiding citizens are armed.
Shawnee County Sheriff Herman Jones said Tuesday his deputies didn’t seem to be hearing a lot of questions from the public about the new law.
Jones said his office was changing “nothing policy-wise, per se” in reaction to the new law.
He said if a deputy sees someone carrying a concealed gun, the deputy might ask that person about it.
Still, “persons carrying concealed should not expect to be asked unless the deputy has reason to do so,” Jones said.
Stuart said Topeka police officers might inquire about concealed guns carried by people they take into custody or contact consensually.
“Appropriate actions will be taken depending upon the situation of the contact,” she said.
Stuart said the Topeka Police Department always makes a practice of educating its officers on changes in laws, and it did that regarding the concealed carry changes.
“Officers will know and understand the new changes and be prepared to act within the guidelines provided by the new legislation,” she said.
Stuart added that:
- “It is no longer against the law to have a firearm or ammunition in a vehicle in a parking lot open to the public if those items are stored out of plain view in a locked vehicle or carried on a person when arriving at the parking area.”
- “The carrying of a concealed handgun shall not be prohibited in any building unless such building is conspicuously posted in accordance with rules and regulations adopted by the attorney general.”
- Concealed carry is allowed on school grounds, but only for people who are licensed for concealed carry by the state.
http://cjonline.com/news/2015-07-09/authorities-discuss-new-concealed-carry-law
