The article is at the March 25, 2011 Idaho Statesman.
As I have said repeatedly, this is not really the right solution to the psychotic mass murder problem. Also, I was not entirely happy with the bill because of the open carry aspect of it. The article mentions that State Senator Davis discussed the murder of his son by a guy named Olsen, another student who, in spite of a recent DUI conviction, had a concealed weapon permit, back in 2003.
The murder of Sen. Davis' son highlights a weakness in Idaho current concealed weapon permit law that I tried to get my legislators to pursue when I lived in Boise, but got nowhere. Many states make a DUI conviction a five year disqualifier for a concealed weapon permit, on the rather logical basis that if you aren't responsible with alcohol and cars, you probably aren't responsible for alcohol and other dangerous devices. Five years is enough time that if you are a chronic irresponsible sort, you are always going to have a fresh DUI conviction on your record.
Making this change would have prevented Olsen from getting a permit, since he had a recent DUI conviction. It also would expand the number of other states that would recognize an Idaho concealed handgun license, since our lack of DUI disqualifier makes us something of an outlier.
If lessened CWP reciprocity is the price of greater liberty in my home state, I'll gladly pay it. Just as some convicted of DUI may indeed be inclined to exhibit questionable behavior with a firearm, others will not be so inclined. It hardly strikes me as just to punish all DUI offenders with an additional and unrelated penalty based on a hypothetical extrapolation of possible future behavior, especially when a third DUI conviction in ten years carries prohibited person status.
ReplyDeleteAdding a five year CWP suspension to the DUI penalty invites the eventual expansion of that penalty time frame just as it happened with the definition of a subsequent DUI offense. The Idaho legislature doubled the established interval of five years to create a ten year window for increased penalties.