Standoff Over Hidden Guns

Police chiefs in Orange County’s cities are rising up against a plan by Sheriff-elect Mike Carona to let more residents carry concealed weapons, a plan that could lead to a tenfold increase in such permits.

Some chiefs plan to process permit applications themselves rather than turn them over to the county, as they have done under the long tenure of departing Sheriff Brad Gates.

“I am concerned about the liberalization of the permits,” Placentia Police Chief Daryll Thomann said. “We were happy with the way it was being done.”

Carona’s campaign promise to approve more permits stems partly from a controversial University of Chicago study that found that serious crime has gone down as concealed-weapons permits increase.

The study sparked a nationwide debate between those who believe crime is reduced when citizens are armed and those who assert that carrying handguns leads to more homicides, suicides and accidental injuries or deaths.

Undeterred by criticism that the study is flawed, Carona agrees with the report. He said he’s doing research to determine how many more citizens would be allowed to carry concealed weapons. Last year, Gates issued 131 annual permits.

“I can say safely that the number is going to increase,” Carona said. “Is it going to be dramatic? I don’t know. My guess is it will jump in the neighborhood of San Diego County.”

Last year, San Diego County issued about 1,500 permits.

The possible increase is even more dramatic when looking at the ratio of permits issued for every 100,000 residents. Orange County granted 2.44 permits per 100,000 last year, compared with about six in Los Angeles County and a hefty 55 in San Diego County.

Carona said his promise to make more concealed-weapons permits available also stems from his belief that such permits have been issued arbitrarily in the past.

“When you start to look at the profiles of those who have received permits and those who have not, you have to ask yourself why was one approved and not the other,” he said.

The police chiefs aren’t interested in drastic changes based on a controversial study and on perceptions of unfair distribution. They believe simply that the fewer guns on the street, the better.

“Municipal chiefs are concerned about the more liberal approach,” said Newport Beach Police Chief Robert J. McDonell, president of the Orange County Police Chiefs and Sheriff’s Assn. “A number of the departments are reexamining their options.”

In their reviews, they know there is a loophole.

Nearly all applicants for permits turn in their forms to local police offices, which, under Gates, have forwarded them to the Sheriff’s Department. While police have the option of deciding who gets permits, citizens have the right to appeal to the sheriff or go directly to the sheriff.

“The sheriff can do whatever he chooses to do,” McDonell said. “We believe if [an applicant] is rejected on a local level, [the sheriff] would want to know why. We will work to keep those communications lines open so whatever he does, it will be in an informed manner.”

Police chiefs aren’t the only ones upset by Carona’s plan. Mission Viejo residents Charles and Mary Blek, whose son was shot to death during a robbery in New York City, said their group, Orange County Citizens for the Prevention of Gun Violence, has voiced its opposition to Carona and will watch to see if the number of local permits rises dramatically.

“Arming the society does not create civility, nor does it produce solutions to gun violence,” Mary Blek said. “We cannot solve the epidemic of violence by arming ourselves to the teeth.”

Getting a permit to carry a concealed weapon in Orange County has been nearly impossible during Gates’ long tenure.

The sheriff for the past 23 years has been accused of handing out permits selectively to political supporters. In 1990, two private investigators repeatedly denied permits won a judgment of nearly $600,000 against Gates. Public concern then faded, but criticism of his methods has persisted.

“It’s not a level playing field,” Carona said of Gates’ policy.

Gates could not be reached for comment.

The sheriff defended his policy in a July letter to The Times Orange County edition. “It is not a numbers game,” he wrote. “It is not completed with a rubber stamp or reviewed for any other subjective reason. Each [application] is evaluated as to demonstrated need and absence of viable alternatives.”

Carona maintains that everyone who qualifies under state law should get a permit as long as they demonstrate a need, display competency with the weapon after 16 hours of training and cover the costs of issuing the permit.

In making the permits a campaign issue, he said he wanted to take “political patronage” out of the process and make it more objective.

State law gives county sheriffs the authority to issue a concealed-weapons permit on the conditions that the person applying “is of good moral character, that a good cause exists for its issuance and that the person applying is a resident of the county or a city within the county.”

With a permit, a person can carry a revolver, which generally holds five or six rounds of ammunition, or a semi-automatic handgun, which can carry up to 15 rounds.

Straining Relations

In Orange County, the permit process includes a nearly 40-page application, a criminal and psychological background check, a firearms safety inspection and proof that the applicant is qualified at a firing range to use the weapon. The permit is good for one year.

“The bad guys are carrying guns on the street. Those are not the people who would apply for or be given a permit,” Carona said. “The people who are going to go through the training are going to be better equipped from an intellectual and tactical perspective. They are the ones who generally don’t use weapons.”

Several police chiefs said last week that they were annoyed that Carona didn’t tell them directly about his plan, leaving them to learn about it through televised election debates or in the news. La Habra Police Chief Steven H. Stavely said he discussed the matter with Carona.

“I disagree with his philosophy, and we will be taking back [the permit process] and issuing them out of this office,” Stavely said. “It’s just a philosophical difference on what the law says and how the law is written.”

Buena Park Police Chief Richard M. Tefank said he has not decided what to do but does “not agree philosophically” with Carona.

Santa Ana Police Chief Paul M. Walters, who lost a bitter campaign against Carona for sheriff, acknowledges that Carona will still be able to issue the permits to anyone who applies directly to the sheriff.

Once Gates leaves office in early January, Walters said, he will process permit applications and won’t forward them to the sheriff.

“We’re going to wait and see how it goes before we decide if we’re going to refer them over there [again],” Walters said.

Carona said he is standing firm during this rift with the chiefs but respects any chief’s decision to stop forwarding the permit applications to the Sheriff’s Department.

“That is a decision the individual chiefs have always had,” Carona said. “We just agree to disagree, and we are doing so professionally. I support any chief who wants to take the responsibility to issue their own permits.”

McDonell said the chiefs association is working on a sample policy for departments to use should chiefs opt to review applications themselves.

“This way we can bring some consistency to the process,” said McDonell, who called on police agencies to cooperate with Carona on the issue.

Carona said he believes in the results of the University of Chicago study, the most comprehensive to date on the topic. Its author, John Lott, insists: “Allowing people to get a concealed-weapons permit saves lives and reduces the threats they face from violent crimes.”

Lott used data for all 3,054 counties in the United States during 18 years, through the end of 1994, to conclude that for each year that concealed-weapons permits have increased, murder and rape rates declined 3% and 2%, respectively.

“I think there are lot of myths about guns and concealed guns,” Lott said. “When the debates occur, there are a lot of horror stories about what can happen. What you find is that those myths and fears haven’t been borne out. The type of person who goes through the permitting process tends to be extremely law-abiding.”

Lott said 31 states have laws saying permits “shall issue” if applicants meet the age requirement and pass a criminal background check. About half the states require some kind of training in handling guns.

California is one of 12 states with laws saying permits “may issue” to applicants who meet certain criteria and demonstrate need. Seven states do not allow people to carry concealed weapons.

But Lott has drawn fire from some experts and gun opponents who say his study is flawed.

“The study can’t really tell you anything about whether these laws will reduce or increase violent crimes,” asserts Jon Vernick, director of the Johns Hopkins University Center for Gun Policy and Research. The center published a rebuttal to Lott’s study last year, stating that his conclusions are based on “several methodological and factual flaws.”

“It seems to us a dangerous gamble to put more concealed weapons on the street,” Vernick said. “It’s a gamble that’s not supported by scientific evidence.”