14 States Now Opposing Concealed Carry Permit Restrictions

Kansas has become the fourteenth state to join in support of the U.S. Constitution's Second Amendment, agreeing that a person does not need to show why they want a permit to carry their firearm concealed.

In a case before the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia Kansas has been added to the list of states which oppose requiring those who apply for concealed carry permits to provide a reason for carrying concealed. Attorney General Derek Schmidt confirmed the addition on November 15.

The court is reviewing a decision by a Maryland district court which struck down a Maryland requirement that a person had to provide a reason for needing to carry their firearm concealed before a permit would be issued.

“Citizens who qualify to have a concealed carry permit should not be required to clear the further hurdle of showing the government why they need to have a firearm,” Schmidt said. “The Second Amendment protects the individual’s right to keep and bear arms and does not allow the government to demand to know the reason why.”

The Wichita Eagle reports,

Maryland is among 10 states with a concealed-carry law that has further restrictions, such as requiring a reason for the permit. In Maryland, the law requires a person to have “good and substantial reason to wear, carry, or transport a handgun.”

The Maryland State Police unit that handles the permit requests has said that “such a reason must reflect more than `personal anxiety’ and (show) a level of threat beyond that faced by the average citizen,” according to court filings.

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Kansas is one of 39 states with laws on the books that do not require a person to give a reason for needing the license.

The other thirteen states that Kansas has joined with in the brief before the court are: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia and West Virginia.