"Constitutional Carry" in Idaho
Robin Lake
June 29. 2011
As of this writing, Wisconsin is on the threshold of becoming the 49th state to allow concealed carrying of weapons for self-defense. The Wisconsin State Assembly voted, on Tuesday, June 28, to approve the enabling legislation by a 68-27 margin. The measure now awaits the signature of the Governor, Scott Walker. He is expected to sign it.
This action will leave Illinois as the last remaining holdout not allowing law-abiding citizens to carry their own protection with them, tucked securely into a holster or purse, in the calibre of their choice. The same Illinois whose name is synonymous with lawlessness; whose government is synonymous with corruption. The same Illinois which, with the recent conviction of ex-Gov Rod Blagojevich, can boast that four of their last eight governors having spent time in prison.
The First Session of Idaho's 61st Legislature (2010-'11) saw the introduction of S 1126, a bill dealing with what is commonly called "Constitutional" or "Permitless" Carry. If enacted, it would have rewritten existing Idaho code, thereby granting Idaho's otherwise eligible citizenry the right to carry firearms, concealed or openly, without a permit. Permits still would have remained an option for those who wanted to acquire them. The optional permit would have ensured those citizens could avail themselves of reciprocity agreements between Idaho and other states.
Passage of S 1126 would have been a win for all honest citizens. Unfortunately, S 1126 was still-born. Either by design, or just as a function of having been introduced late in the session, it did not go beyond assignment to the State Affairs Committee, an early step in the legislative process. The bill's short history is recorded below, taken from the Legislatures own website, linked above.
For several years, all across America, the trend among the several states has been toward passage of less restrictive legislation, allowing more and more citizens to carry firearms in public. The reverse has been true at the federal level.
Then, some months ago, the first rumblings of "Fast and Furious" and "Gunwalker" reached our ears.
"Fast and Furious" was an operation (presumably now closed down ... presumably), run by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and (recently) Explosives, that allowed, by some accounts encouraged, the purchase, by straw purchasers, of large quantities of firearms which BATF&E operatives at all levels knew were headed straight into the hands of the bad guys in Mexico.
"Gunwalker" is the derisive moniker applied to the operation, which allowed "guns to walk" across the border, by skeptical observers and reporters. Allowing illegal firearms to "walk" into Mexico is something that the mission of BATF&E forbids them to allow. Laws were broken ... by those sworn to uphold the law.
It looks like, on many levels, the passage of "Constitutional Carry" here in Idaho will be a good thing. You can contact your Representative or Senator and encourage him or her to support it in the next session of the Legislature.