BELLEVUE, WA – The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA) today took aim at California’s antiquated, discretionary concealed carry law, noting that a legally armed citizen might have stopped a crazed man at an Irvine supermarket before he was able to kill two people and slash three others in a Sunday morning attack.
“Joseph Hunter Parker was a madman with a deadly Samurai sword, and he was able to attack and kill pretty much at ease until police arrived,” noted CCRKBA Executive Director Joe Waldron. “Had there been even one armed shopper in the store, the outcome might have been different.”
Waldron noted that at least 35 other states have passed sensible concealed carry laws, including every state around California. Oregon, Nevada and Arizona all have reasonable carry statutes, recognizing that a citizen’s right to self-defense is one of the basic, fundamental human rights. These common sense laws mandate that any law-abiding citizen who meets the legal requirements must be issued a license to carry a firearm for personal protection. Reputable studies indicate that law-abiding armed citizens successfully defend themselves against criminal attack more than two million times each year.
“For whatever reason,” Waldron observed, “California lawmakers prefer to remain in the dark ages, and keep their constituents relatively defenseless against criminal attack. Their reluctance to provide law abiding citizens with the means to protect themselves from maniacs like Parker is mystifying.
“Instead,” Waldron noted, “California residents faced with attack are forced to defend themselves against a dangerous sword-wielding lunatic, using nothing more than barbecue utensils, mayonnaise jars and the lids from garbage cans. That is simply unacceptable. Californians desperately need progressive, pro-active concealed carry reform, where personal protection is recognized as a right, not just a privilege for the politically connected. If Dianne Feinstein and Dan Perata could get carry permits, so should John and Jane Doe.
“Lawmakers in Sacramento who balk at the notion of armed self-defense,” Waldron concluded, “should try to explain themselves to the families of Parker’s victims. The time has long since passed for anti-self defense politicians to admit they’ve been wrong. They should either change their philosophy about personal protection and support concealed carry reform, or step down and make room for people who will.”