Conceal-carry license applications for guns rise sharply in Oklahoma

Between Nov. 30 and Jan. 3, the number of gun-carry license applications received totaled 3,774, OSBI data shows.

The number of Oklahomans applying for conceal-and-carry gun permits has been spiking in recent weeks after some sheriffs waived licensing processing fees, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation reported Wednesday.

Between Nov. 30 and Jan. 3, the number of gun-carry license applications received totaled 3,774, OSBI data shows. But, over the next five weeks, between Jan. 4 and Feb. 7, the bureau said applications nearly doubled with 6,682 received.

Early figures for February suggest the increase continues.

OSBI officials can only speculate about the cause of the spike in applicants.

“The reasoning for this increase is a matter of opinion since the application does not ask for a reason,” an OSBI news release stated. “However, during this time frame several sheriffs across the state waived their $25 fingerprinting fee and encouraged their citizens to apply for a license as a means of personal protection. This event could certainly have had an effect on the amount of applications received.”

Just how many Oklahoma sheriffs have waived all or part of the gun-carry license fees is unclear, Bureau spokeswoman Jessica Brown said.

According to news reports, sheriffs in Creek and Garvin counties have waived all or part of the $25 fingerprinting fee normally charged to gun-carry license applicants.

In December, a Facebook page maintained by the Garvin County sheriff’s office posted a photocopied letter by Sheriff Larry Rhodes. The image was shared nearly 2,500 times and received 1,422 “likes.”

“As sheriff of Garvin County, I encourage you as citizens to follow the laws of the Oklahoma Self Defense Act, which allows you to legally carry hand-gun Rhodes wrote in the letter. “In a time when our nation is under attack by domestic and international threats and our safety is at risk due to acts of violence, I do not want to restrict your ability to protect yourself and exercise your Second Amend-

ment rights."

Last month, Creek Country Sheriff John Davis told a Tulsa television station that he had noticed an increase in violence in his mostly rural county. He also said response times for those in rural areas served by his office can be much longer than the "three to five minutes" city residents enjoy.

“By no means am I saying the citizens should take the law into their own hands and just totally forget about law enforcement,” Davis said. “This is for you to protect yourself until we can get there and handle the situation.”