[IL] Chicago gun lawsuit plaintiffs apply for permits

From the anti-gun hellhole known as Chicago:

Two years after filing a lawsuit that ultimately forced the city to dismantle its 28-year-old handgun ban, Otis McDonald walked into a police station Monday and applied for a permit allowing him to keep a gun at home.

The process took only 20 minutes, but McDonald said some of the requirements to obtain the permit seemed excessive. And though a gun permit was worth any price for him, he said he is concerned that the $100 fee could deter some law-abiding citizens from buying a handgun.

The city's new gun ordinance, enacted after the U.S. Supreme Court gutted the law that banned handguns, allows each eligible gun owner in a home to buy one handgun a month. Each handgun requires a $100 permit that must be renewed every three years. Gun owners also are required to register all their guns with the city, at a cost of $15 per gun every three years.

"The process itself was not bad," said McDonald, who initially plans to buy a .45-caliber handgun for his Morgan Park home. "But the unreasonable thing was the $100 many people will not be able to afford. And that's a shame because they will continue to be vulnerable to the drug dealers and gangbangers." ...

Read the rest here.

[IA] Judge orders Iowa sheriff to complete course on Constitution after concealed-carry denial

From the Hawkeye State:

A federal judge has lambasted an Iowa sheriff for denying a gun permit to an outspoken government watchdog and anti-abortion advocate whom some in the area considered "weird."

It was wrong for Osceola County Sheriff Douglas Weber to deny Paul Dorr of Ocheyedan a permit to carry a concealed weapon three years ago, according to a court ruling issued Wednesday.

U.S. District Judge Mark Bennett also ordered Weber to successfully complete a court-approved course on the U.S. Constitution within five months.

"In denying (Dorr) a concealed weapons permit, Sheriff Weber single-handedly hijacked the First Amendment and nullified its freedoms and protections," Bennett wrote in the ruling.

Anger over the sheriff's denial of the gun permit was a factor in inspiring some grass-roots activists to push for changes to Iowa's weapons law. Starting Jan. 1, a new law requires sheriffs to issue gun permits except under a narrow set of circumstances.

Bennett ruled that Weber's denial of Dorr's gun permit in 2007 trampled his free speech rights because the sheriff was retaliating against Dorr for publicly protesting, passing out leaflets and writing letters to newspaper editors on a variety of topics.

"The court finds a tsunami, a maelstrom, an avalanche, of direct uncontroverted evidence in Sheriff Weber's own testimony to conclude beyond all doubt that he unquestionably violated the First Amendment rights of ... Paul Dorr," Bennett wrote in the decision. ...

Read it here.


[via Hotair]

[UT] Utah gun permits booming - in other states

From the Beehive State:

Never shot a gun? Never been to Utah? Got a "combat mindset"?

If yes to the above, you could qualify for a concealed gun permit from Utah, which is seeing record demand for permits from people all across the United States who never been to the state and have no intention of ever going.

Bedrock conservatism is enjoying a surge with the rise of the Tea Party movement, which advocates small government, individual rights and has made a strong showing in Utah. The debate may become only hotter after a Monday U.S. Supreme Court ruling extended gun rights to all cities and states. ...

...

A five-year permit good in 33 states has flooded Utah with applications, with the number rising to 74,000 last year. The fee is $65.25. Applicants must also clear a background check, be 21, and take a course.

Today, more out-of-state residents have Utah licenses than state residents, and out-of-state instructors outnumber those from Utah.

Read it here.