Hunter Brown openly carries his .40-caliber pistol just about everywhere but work because he refuses to be a willing victim. And if people are offended by it, he hasn't noticed.
Brown, a 27-year-old Broken Arrow resident, was raised around guns from a young age.
"Pretty much as early back as I can remember, probably 5 (or) 6 years old, I was out there with my granddad" learning to shoot, he said. "(I) started with BB guns and gradually worked up."
His grandfather, a veteran, thought knowing how to safely operate and handle a gun was a valuable skill.
Brown got his concealed and carry handgun license in 2009. His was one of nearly 36,000 applications approved by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation that year.
Only about 18,500 applications were submitted in 2008. Last year's total surpassed 2009 with 39,872 approved applications and was the highest in recent years.
Brown carried his Smith & Wesson M&P compact concealed until open carry legislation passed on Nov. 1, 2012.
"I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it," he said.
Brown is a pathology technician. His employer doesn't allow open carry and besides, he said, it's not very practical in scrubs anyway.
Elsewhere, he carries it as much as possible and specifically patronizes businesses that allow it.
"If anyone's said anything negative ... I haven't heard of it, that's not to say there haven't been any (negative reactions). I'm sure there are," Brown said.
More frequently his handgun leads to conversations with other gun owners, he said.
Brown has never been in a situation where he's contemplated using the gun and he hopes he never winds up in one.
"There's a lot of responsibility involved and you have to be able to accept that responsibility one way or the other," he said.
Area law enforcement agencies haven't experienced an influx of calls or incidents related to open carry, they said.
Deputy Chief Mike Carter of the Sand Springs Police Department recalled having to send officers to educate a patron at a city-owned community center after the law passed.
State statute prohibits the carrying of a handgun, concealed or not, into a city, county, state or federal facility, among other places.
"He was warned and sent on. ... It wasn't something where we made an arrest," he said.
The city has since updated the building's signage.
"You just don't see people doing it because tactically I think it's a silly thing to do," Carter said.
He and representatives from other agencies noted they continue to see a limited number of people choosing to carry openly.
"Part of your advantage of being an armed person is the element of surprise," Carter said, noting that openly carrying could make someone a target in certain situations.
Tulsa County sheriff's deputies were on the lookout for anybody who might be openly carrying at the Tulsa State Fair this year but didn't see anyone, said Maj. Shannon Clark.
"The only ones that I've seen have been in businesses, the owners or people working the businesses," he said.
Posted from: http://newsok.com/open-carry-in-oklahoma-nearly-40000-applications-approved-in-2012/article/3898370
For complete article: http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/loca...cle_494f08a6-d4e9-5487-ad5d-1af50bc5ce0b.html
Brown, a 27-year-old Broken Arrow resident, was raised around guns from a young age.
"Pretty much as early back as I can remember, probably 5 (or) 6 years old, I was out there with my granddad" learning to shoot, he said. "(I) started with BB guns and gradually worked up."
His grandfather, a veteran, thought knowing how to safely operate and handle a gun was a valuable skill.
Brown got his concealed and carry handgun license in 2009. His was one of nearly 36,000 applications approved by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation that year.
Only about 18,500 applications were submitted in 2008. Last year's total surpassed 2009 with 39,872 approved applications and was the highest in recent years.
Brown carried his Smith & Wesson M&P compact concealed until open carry legislation passed on Nov. 1, 2012.
"I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it," he said.
Brown is a pathology technician. His employer doesn't allow open carry and besides, he said, it's not very practical in scrubs anyway.
Elsewhere, he carries it as much as possible and specifically patronizes businesses that allow it.
"If anyone's said anything negative ... I haven't heard of it, that's not to say there haven't been any (negative reactions). I'm sure there are," Brown said.
More frequently his handgun leads to conversations with other gun owners, he said.
Brown has never been in a situation where he's contemplated using the gun and he hopes he never winds up in one.
"There's a lot of responsibility involved and you have to be able to accept that responsibility one way or the other," he said.
Area law enforcement agencies haven't experienced an influx of calls or incidents related to open carry, they said.
Deputy Chief Mike Carter of the Sand Springs Police Department recalled having to send officers to educate a patron at a city-owned community center after the law passed.
State statute prohibits the carrying of a handgun, concealed or not, into a city, county, state or federal facility, among other places.
"He was warned and sent on. ... It wasn't something where we made an arrest," he said.
The city has since updated the building's signage.
"You just don't see people doing it because tactically I think it's a silly thing to do," Carter said.
He and representatives from other agencies noted they continue to see a limited number of people choosing to carry openly.
"Part of your advantage of being an armed person is the element of surprise," Carter said, noting that openly carrying could make someone a target in certain situations.
Tulsa County sheriff's deputies were on the lookout for anybody who might be openly carrying at the Tulsa State Fair this year but didn't see anyone, said Maj. Shannon Clark.
"The only ones that I've seen have been in businesses, the owners or people working the businesses," he said.
Posted from: http://newsok.com/open-carry-in-oklahoma-nearly-40000-applications-approved-in-2012/article/3898370
For complete article: http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/loca...cle_494f08a6-d4e9-5487-ad5d-1af50bc5ce0b.html
