The right weapon, training make for gun safetyBy Sean Kennedy
Tony Boyle has owned a handgun since he was 25 years old, and his wife, Carla, has owned one for the past 27 years.
"It's good for self-protection, for protecting your home, my wife is more comfortable, and it's legal," said Boyle. "At the time I got my first handgun, I enjoyed shooting. I enjoyed the challenge of accuracy and those types of things."
While Boyle has long been a responsible gun owner, many more people are joining the ranks, purchasing handguns to protect them as their fears of terrorism increase.
Following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, author Chris Bird said Americans have become more concerned with personal safety. Bird wrote "The Concealed Handgun Manual: How to Choose, Carry, and Shoot a Gun in Self-Defense," to offer his knowledge on handguns to the public.
Bird was a commissioned officer in the Royal Military Police of the British Army in the 1960s, where he served as company weapon-training officer. Since then, he has moved to the U.S. and has taken an active role in educating others about the safe and wise use of weapons.
Boyle, a licensed gun dealer who owns BS&G Pawn, also encourages responsible ownership of weapons. He has two guns, one for work and one for home, but he doesn't carry one with him wherever he goes.
"If I go fishing, I don't have it," said Boyle. "Some people will carry a gun when they go fishing, and some will carry a gun when they go somewhere they don't want to be bothered, but if I really think I need a gun to go somewhere, I probably just won't go there."
Some people just like to use their guns for sport.
"For a lot of people it's a sport," said Boyle. "They'll go to the target ranges and have competitions with that, just like bowling or tennis or badminton. It can be a sport if you choose to be responsible."
One important thing for people to consider before they ever get a gun is whether they would ever actually use it on someone.
"People ask me would I ever use one on a person, and I say 'yes,'" said Boyle. "I'm too old to fight and too fat to run. Me and mine are sacred to me, and mine and I will protect them. That's just the nature of the beast."
For Boyle, people buy handguns depending on what they intend to use them for.
"If you are buying a gun for house protection, I usually tell people to get a .38-caliber double-action," said Boyle. "You want something that will go through a door and hit a man hard enough to stop him. Anything smaller than a .38 won't stop him, and anything larger could go through the door and the door next door, and hit someone over there."
There are basically three different types of handguns people can purchase in Oklahoma: single-action, double-action and semi-automatic. With single-action handguns, the hammer has to be manually cocked and then the trigger pulled. With a double-action handgun, the trigger will automatically cock the hammer. Semi-automatics carry more rounds, and the trigger just has to be pulled, but Boyle says they can jam.
"Semi-automatics can and will jam at the wrong time," said Boyle. "You have to have the strength to clear barrel and the knowledge that it has to be done; otherwise it won't do you any good. With the other two types, you don't have to worry about jamming."
In the state of Oklahoma, anyone who wants to purchase a gun is required to fill out a background form, which will be checked with the Department of the Treasury Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. The form must be filled out by the actual purchaser of the gun, not by anyone else.
"I can't sell the gun to someone for someone else," said Boyle.
The state does not require any other background check other than the national check.
State law forces police chiefs and state sheriffs to give concealed carry permits (CCW) to anyone 23 years of age or older who can buy a handgun, allowing them to carry loaded, concealed handguns in public (known as "shall issue").
Some safety training in the legal or safe use of weapons is required to obtain the CCW permit. State law allows residents of some other states to carry concealed weapons in this state without informing local police.
Jeff Wilson says carrying a concealed weapon in his vehicle makes him feel more comfortable.
"I'm not one of those freaks who drags a gun around everywhere I go, but I do a lot of driving [to and from Siloam Springs, Ark.] at night, and my car's not in too good a shape," he said. "Several years ago when I broke down, a fella stopped on the pretext of helping, and he wound up making an indecent proposal, and things got kind of hairy there because he had a ball bat. That won't happen to me again."
Some people fear that if more people carry guns, more gun crimes will be committed. That's especially true in Florida, where Gov. Jeb Bush recently signed a law that allows people to "meet force with force," rather than retreat, when they fear for their lives on the street. National Rifle Association Executive Vice President has indicated he will be taking that measure to other states. LaPierre was in Oklahoma this week, stumping for a litigation-stalled law here that will allow people to keep firearms in their vehicles while at work.
Tahlequah Police Chief Steve Farmer said that just because more people are carrying handguns, does not mean that the crime rate will increase.
"I think people who have bad intentions will impact the crime rate," said Farmer. "But responsible people, I don't think it's really going to increase the crime rate."
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