FOP Should Now Endorse National CCW For Private Citizens, Says CCKRB

August 2, 2004

Based on the Fraternal Order of Police support for national concealed carry for working and retired police officers as "a deterrent to crime and terrorism," the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA) today called on the FOP to support national concealed carry for armed private citizens.

CCRKBA Executive Director Joe Waldron noted, "We all know that even retired policemen can't always be there when they are needed to prevent or stop a crime, but the likelihood of legal intervention increases when you add several million law-abiding, licensed private citizens to the equation.

"These private citizens," Waldron observed, "lobbied vigorously on behalf of the police in their effort to pass the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act. It is only the right and proper thing to expect that active duty and retired police officers now benefiting from that law, along with police groups like the FOP, would immediately, and without reservation, step to the plate and support national concealed carry for all legally-armed private citizens."

Currently, dozens of states have enacted reciprocity agreements amongst themselves and a handful of states have passed "universal recognition" laws that simply honor concealed pistol licenses issued by all other states, Waldron noted. The problem is that these state reciprocity agreements do not cover all states.

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"Private citizens have the same self-defense rights as working and retired cops," Waldron said. "After all, outside their jurisdictions, and after they've entered retirement, these officers are just plain citizens like everyone else. Citizens do not leave their self-defense rights at state borders, no matter what they do for a living.

"Contrary to what some would have us believe," Waldron added, "the vast majority of these citizens have received competent training in the use of firearms as a condition to obtaining their carry licenses. Many are competitive shooters who use their firearms far more frequently than working or retired police officers. They are remarkably competent, and would only further add to our level of community safety and homeland security.

"They have been staunch supporters of law enforcement," Waldron stated, "and they understand better than anyone else that instead of society continuing to place the burden of safety just on police officers, especially the retired cops, all citizens should share that responsibility. How better could they do that than to promote a national safety act for citizens, with the well-earned support of this nation's dedicated policemen and women?"

With more than 650,000 members and supporters nationwide, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms is one of the nation's premier gun rights organizations. As a non-profit organization, the Citizens Committee is dedicated to preserving firearms freedoms through active lobbying of elected officials and facilitating grass-roots organization of gun rights activists in local communities throughout the United States.