Midvale City, Utah will hold a City Council meeting to discuss what to do about the Midvale City gun laws which are in, if enforced, would be violation of Utah State Law.

I would request that you pass this on and be in attendance if at all possible.

UPDATE: Good news! Midvale City has repealed their city ordinances that were contrary to Utah Uniform Firearm Law. Good job Midvale!

First the Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification (BCI or “the division”) was in violation of Utah Statute requiring that they “shall issue” a Concealed Firearm Permit as outlined in U.S.C 53-5-704(1)(a) “The division or its designated agent shall issue a permit to carry a concealed firearm for lawful self defense to an applicant who is 21 years of age or older within 60 days after receiving an application, unless during the 60-day period the division finds proof that the applicant is not of good character.”

The BCI has already proven and admitted that they’re beyond the 60-day statutory window, and are now past to 81 days because they are “too busy” and “short staffed”.

The State isn’t doing anything other than “increasing the staffing” of the BCI to address this issue, and questions about whether it’s acceptable to submit one’s State Taxes 3-weeks past the due date because a tax payer is “too busy” or “short staffed” have gone unanswered.

The problems don’t stop there

One individual that SittingDuckPolicy.com interviewed told us that both he and his wife took their training course and submitted their applications at the same time. When they didn’t receive their permits after 77 days (17 days longer than allowed by law) they were told on multiple occasions that the BCI “no longer performs complimentary application status checks”.

Finally they received information about one of their permits: a woman 50 miles away had received it! The address and date-of-birth were incorrect, but the name and picture matched this individual’s wife. The woman mailed the permit to this individual who then contacted the BCI: the errors were due, again, to being “too busy” and “short staffed”. He supplied the correct information and was assured a replacement permit would be mailed.

The replacement arrived, this time with the correct address but still with the incorrect date of birth. He hasn’t yet contacted the BCI regarding this second permit.

We have to wonder how a proper background check can be completed with an incorrect address AND an incorrect date of birth!

As of this writing he has not yet received his own permit, the calendar still ticking off day after day beyond the 60 allowed by law. The Utah BCI still refuses to check on the status of his permit.

What should you do?

If you are similarly situated, please let us know!

Also, you should contact Jason Chapman, Supervisor, Concealed Firearms (Bureau of Criminal Identification, Utah Department of Public Safety) at +1 (801) 965-4445 Monday – Thursday.

Insist he check on the status of your permit, and ask why it is acceptable for a State Agency to violate State Law, ask what laws it is permissible for you to violate because you’re “too busy” or “short staffed”.

Utah’s H.B. 357 Substitute  Firearms Amendments (Sandstrom, S.) was signed by the Governor on 03/30/2009.

This bill modifies provisions of the Utah Criminal Code related to firearms. It

• modifies the criminal penalties exception provisions related to carrying a concealed firearm to apply to a vehicle in a person’s lawful possession and to a vehicle in the lawful possession of another, with the consent of that person;
• allows a person to carry a loaded firearm in a vehicle in the person’s lawful possession or in a vehicle with the consent of the person lawfully in possession of the vehicle;
• allows for the possession of a loaded firearm on a person’s real property; and
• makes certain technical changes.

In plain English, this bill says that after the effective date you can carry a loaded or unloaded firearm in a vehicle that you are driving, or in a vehicle with the consent of the person driving it, or on your “real property” (which is legal speak for your “land”).

You’ve always been able to do this in your home (or temporary residence, or camp), but now you can in your home, in your yard, at your office (if you own it), in your parking lot at work (if you own it), and in your vehicle.

Of course, I am not a lawyer, so before you trust my interpretation of the law, contact Representative Stephen Sandstrom or your gun-law attorney.