KEEPING BLACKS DISARMED: DC set to propose “may issue” carry bill

The District of Columbia, their prohibition on carrying firearms outside the home freshly struck down by the federal courts, is now proposing a “may issue” carry law.

In reality, “may issue” means that politically connected cronies will get carry permits and the average resident in a city that’s majority black (except for the northwest corner where the white folk live) will be left to fend for themselves against criminals who know their victims will almost certainly not be armed.

Keeping black folks disarmed.

It’s what some southern Democrats have been trying to do since the Civil War.

The proposal to create proposed legislation was part of a press release issued today.

The Washington Times has the story:

People who have a “good reason” to feel threatened — for example, stalking victims — would be able to seek a concealed carry permit for a legally owned handgun under a new D.C. law proposed Thursday. But those with generalized fears, such as apprehension about living in a neighborhood with high crime, would not be considered eligible for such a permit, officials say.

The distinction is an aspect of legislation being grudgingly crafted by D.C. officials in response to a federal court decision that in July struck down the city’s longstanding ban on carrying guns in public.

Among the requirements for gun owners to obtain concealed carry permits under the proposed law, gun owners must justify their need for a permit and undertake new safety training. City laws would continue to restrict the carrying of firearms in certain “sensitive locations” such as government buildings, bars, schools and at public demonstrations.

When questioned about the proposal at a press conference Wednesday, officials defended the city’s approach.

“Living in a high-crime area is not sufficient to establish the good cause,” Attorney General Irvin B. Nathan said. “Getting death threats, being the victim of domestic violence and having the threats or reoccurrence, that would be good cause. It has to be personalized. It has to be something specific.”

Mr. Nathan said the city modeled its “may issue” approach to permits, which is virtually certain to face a lawsuit, on states such as New York and Maryland, where such statutes have withstood challenges in federal courts. But a similar requirement in California stating that a person seeking the permit prove they were confronted with a “clear and present danger” was struck in February. That ruling is on hold pending appeals.