Higher Aim
There's a sense that now is the time to buy a gun and acquire a concealed carry permit, and the systems in place are feeling the weight of record-high requests.
“A lot of them are saying, 'I want to get it now, before I can't get it anymore,'” said Butler County Sheriff Michael Slupe.
Slupe said a majority of people applying for concealed carry permits through his office as of late have cited political or safety concerns stemming from events in recent months.
According to Slupe, in recent years, a typical monthly average number of concealed carry permit applications would be between 400 and 500. Since June, that number is somewhere between 800 and 1,100 each month.
“Since last June, we have basically doubled our licensed-to-carry applications, which all require a PICS (Pennsylvania Instant Check System) check,” Slupe said.
Based on those estimates, in 2018, the sheriff's department ran between 4,800 and 6,000 background checks for concealed carry permits.
If recent estimates hold true through the end of the year, the department could see the total range from 9,600 to 13,200 requests.
Each of these applications requires a PICS inquiry to certify that the applicant may legally carry a firearm in the first place.
Done by department
These checks are done by a singular state police department in Harrisburg made up of both enlisted officers and civilian employees, according to Trooper Josh Black, a public information officer for Troop D.
“Typically, most backgrounds are completed in a matter of minutes, but it depends on how backed up they are,” Black said.
According to a recent state police news release, the number of PICS checks run in the first quarter of 2021 was 427,460, which exceed those done in the first quarter of 2020 by more than 100,000.
Black said the state police value the fact that people are ensuring they take every precaution to legally own and carry a firearm.
“It's not extra work,” Black said. “The department likes to think of PICS as an essential role and a core function of the department.”
Slupe said he has a great deal of respect for the people running PICS checks, even if the wait times have seen a corresponding bump.
“They want to get it right,” Slupe said. “If we doubled our concealed carry applications, what do you think all the other counties are doing in the commonwealth?”
Figures for trends in other counties were not available.Preventing groupsThe check focuses on preventing core groups of people from owning a firearm, including people with a criminal record, people with a current protection-from-abuse order against them and people who have been committed due to their mental health.Black said often people in these categories do not go about getting their gun through proper channels. It is common to see a person charged with a crime also have a gun violation added to their alleged offenses.“They do it illegally,” he said. “On top of whatever crime they've committed, they have a firearm.”Similar to the PICS, the National Instant Check Service, or NICS, is another platform checked by state police in their research, especially when it comes to gun sales and transfers.On its website, the FBI also has data about requests for NICS.In Pennsylvania, requests included 160,116 in January, 114,482 in February and 154,301 in March.The website also features a top 10 list featuring nationwide totals in two categories, most requested per day and most requested per week.Currently, five of the top six highest number of checks in one day were posted in March. On the per-week side, five of the top 10 were posted in 2021.For per-day data, No. 1 March 17, 236,295; No. 2 March 30, 220,665; No. 3, March 25, 212,008; No. 5, 209,332; and No. 9, March 19, 195,983, were all days in 2021 in which a high number of requests were made in a single day.For per-week data, the highest week span currently is between March 15 and March 21, during which 1,218,002 checks were made throughout that week.Sales risenGun sales have certainly risen for many dealers, including the Keystone Shooting Center in Mars, according to its merchandising manager, Ivy Buss.“Our gun sales have definitely been a lot busier, especially with everything going on,” Buss said.Buss said most of the people she's talked to are aiming to feel safer.“Most people want to purchase a concealed weapon, more for home protection,” she said. “Less people are coming in and buying a rifle for deer season.”Slupe said people buying guns should be seeking as many educational opportunities as possible too.“I've always said, especially for first-time gun owners, they should seek out training,” Slupe said. “Get to know your gun, know the laws covering that gun and learn how to clean their gun.”There are many resources available for learning about guns, including opportunities right down the road.Keystone Shooting Center offers private and group classes for people of all types of experiences as well as a fully functional range and a gun shop.“Our range is pretty much busy all the time, but our weekends, we pretty much have an hour wait just for people to get on the range,” Buss said.
<br />
