Crime & Safety

Carry Conceal Best When Backed by Training, Chiefs Say

Lawmakers dropped a requirement calling for four hours of training before obtaining a concealed weapons permit, a move Port Washington and Saukville police chiefs disagree with.

While both Port Washington Police Chief Richard Thomas and Saukville Police Chief Bill Meloy say they support a citizen's right to carry concealed weapons — they also agree it's a right earned with education.

"I support the right to carry concealed weapons, however, I always support some type of required training," Meloy said. "I don’t feel that people should just have a gun, (or) go and legally purchase a gun and not know how to load it, unload it or anything else. I guess I don’t agree with just abolishing any type of training."

But, on Monday, lawmakers abolished the previously set four-hour minimum firearms training requirement, according to JSOnline.com, meaning people could "pay to take courses that last just a few minutes," and then recieve a permit, Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen said.

Find out what's happening in Port Washington-Saukvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"I felt that the attorney general's position on training was a good one, I think that a minimum four hours is probably necessary," Thomas said, adding that some states require daylong training. Wisconsin was the 49th state to add a carry conceal law; Illinois is the now the only state that does not allow concealed carry.

Meloy said he's concerned that the majority of people do not realize they may still be liable when threatening to or actually using the gun in public, depending on the specific circumstances.

Find out what's happening in Port Washington-Saukvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Still, Meloy said, he does not see carry conceal creating problems in Wisconsin, as statistics have not shown it to create problems across the country — but he does think people need to learn what they are doing.

"What we don’t need is knee-jerk reactions to things," Meloy said. "I think it's going to play itself out to the point where I think rules will be formulated as time goes on."


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.

More from Port Washington-Saukville